MONTREAL -- The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Montreal dropped by 10 on Friday, to a total of 29,745, after the discovery of a laboratory error in which several negative cases were erroneously classified as positive.
On Wednesday, Quebec's public health authorities announced that 40 positive cases were being re-evaluated due to sample contamination. On Friday, that number was upped to 78, with all those cases being reclassified as negative.
Taking the share of those cases from Montreal into account, as well as total new cases in the city, the changes amount to a 10-case drop in Montreal's numbers, which had stood at 29,755 on Thursday.
The number of deaths due to the virus was also readjusted. It now stands at 3,466, one less than previously reported.
The number of public retirement homes and long-term care facilities with at least one confirmed case of COVID-19 dropped to 26, down one from the previous day.
Montreal North continues to be the area of the city with the largest number of cases, with 2,653, as well a the highest rate of infection per capita, with 3,149.6 cases per 100,000 people.
Mont-Royal has the highest rate of deaths, with 369.9 per 100,000 people.
