Key COVID-19 numbers in the Ottawa area today

• Ottawa has 46 new COVID-19 cases and two more deaths.

• Key numbers are moving further from yellow zone levels.

• The capital has its first two school outbreaks of the week.

Today's Ottawa update

Ottawa Public Health (OPH) is reporting 46 new COVID-19 cases and two more deaths Wednesday. Both deaths are linked to health-care outbreaks. OPH has declared 33 more cases resolved.

The seven-day rolling average of new cases continues its rise that started late last week.

Numbers to watch

29.5: The number of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 Ottawa residents.

1.5: The percentage of COVID-19 tests coming back positive in Ottawa.

5: Ottawa's number of active school outbreaks, up from three on Tuesday.

1.1: The average number of people infected by a single COVID-19 case, or R(t), has dropped slightly but remains above one, suggesting the coronavirus is spreading faster than it can be controlled.

Researchers measuring the level of coronavirus in Ottawa's wastewater noted the first significant one-day decline in more than a week's worth of data.

Across the region

Fourteen more western Quebec residents have tested positive for COVID-19. The region's seven-day average of new cases has dropped every day this week.