Ontario announces 634 new cases of COVID-19 Thursday

Ontario is reporting 634 new cases of COVID-19 Thursday, and 54 new deaths.

It marks a five per cent increase in the number of cases since Wednesday.

There are now 12,879 confirmed cases in the province, including 713 deaths and 6,680 resolved cases.

In total, nearly 12 per cent of patients with COVID-19 have been hospitalized. The province says 233 patients are in intensive care units and of those people, 185 are on ventilators.

The virus continues to spread within long-term care facilities in Ontario. Ten more homes have declared an outbreak in the last 24 hours.

According to the Public Health Ontario Daily Epidemiologic Summary (iPHIS), outbreaks have been declared at 135 long-term care sites since the beginning of the pandemic.

The Ministry of Long-Term Care says more than 1,000 staff members have tested positive and roughly 2,000 residents have been infected with the virus. The ministry says 516 residents and less than five workers have died as a result of COVID-19.

Ontario announced Thursday it is extending all emergency orders put in place to stop the spread of COVID-19 until May 6.

The orders include the closure of outdoor amenities in parks and recreational areas, non-essential workplaces, public places and bars and restaurants, along with restrictions on social gatherings and limiting staff from working in more than one retirement home or long-term care home.