The province says there have still been no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Manitoba after a woman who fell ill was taken off a WestJet flight at Winnipeg’s James Armstrong Richardson International Airport Thursday.
Initial tests for COVID-19 take 24 hours at the provincial laboratory and another 48 hours are required for confirmation by the National Microbiology Laboratory.
The province’s confirmation comes hours after Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister told reporters the illness was not related to the virus.
“Necessary precautions were taken. It was definitely an ill person … but it wasn’t in that category,” Pallister said.
The overall risk to Manitobans remains low.
The passenger, a middle-aged woman who sources told Global News had recently been in China, fell ill on WestJet flight 448 from Vancouver to Winnipeg Thursday afternoon.
An emergency responder wearing protective gear and a mask removed the woman and passengers remained on the plane for an hour and a half before being allowed off.
Sources told Global News Thursday the woman exhibited symptoms that led to primary screening for COVID-19.
On Friday, Manitoba Health said they couldn’t confirm anything about the woman’s immediate health due to privacy reasons.
However, they said “no laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases have been identified in the province.”
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