More red ahead: Windsor-Essex, Chatham-Kent not expecting changes to COVID-19 restrictions

The top doctors for both Chatham-Kent and Windsor-Essex say their regions are likely to remain at the red level of COVID-19 restrictions next week.

Windsor-Essex Medical Officer of Health Dr. Wajid Ahmed and his counterpart Dr. David Colby in Chatham-Kent were asked in separate press conferences Thursdayabout whether they were expecting to see changes announced on Friday.

Both said they had not been contacted by the province this week about their region's status, suggesting that it's more than likelythe current rules are staying as is.

The province controls where regions stand in its five-colour COVID-19restrictions framework, typically making announcements of changes onFriday afternoons.

Windsor-Essex has been atthe second-highest level of restrictions, red,since mid-February, and as of last week, case rates hadnot yet decreased enough to meet the criteria for a switch tothe orange zone.

"We are not anticipating any changes tomorrow," Ahmed saidat the health unit's daily briefing Thursday.

The region currently has 229active cases and 11 outbreaks. Twenty-one new cases were reported on Thursday.

Chatham-Kent was moved to the red zone as of Monday amid a recent surge in cases. There are currently 104 active cases and three outbreaks. Four new cases were announced on Thursday.

Colby told reporters Thursday that while he doesn't like making predictions, he doesn't think that a move to lockdown is in the cards since he didn't get a heads up about it.

"Our numbers are kind of up, which distresses me, but they have plateaued," he said.

He said he hopes the case number will drop off, noting that the region has seen a cycle of rising and subsiding cases several times before.