New Brunswick health officials say the province has found no new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday.
Dr. Jennifer Russell, the province’s chief medical officer of health, said that means the province has gone seven straight days without a new case of the novel coronavirus.
“With the long weekend coming up it’s important that everyone follows public health directions,” she said during the province’s coronavirus update on Wednesday.
READ MORE: New Brunswick pandemic response gets top marks from public policy expert
Russell said she was overjoyed to see people in public wearing a mask but stressed that a mask is not a replacement for following physical distancing guidelines.
She stressed that masks should only be worn for a short time and that they are not meant to protect yourself but protect others in case you are an asymptomatic carrier of COVID-19.
“Wearing a mask shows you care about the health of your fellow New Brunswickers,” Russell said.
She told New Brunswickers that it was important to treat their mental health and to go outside this May long weekend — but only if they are not feeling sick.
As of Wednesday, the number of COVID-19 cases in New Brunswick remains at 120.
The number of active cases remains at two, and 118 people have recovered. Neither of the patients with active cases are in hospital.
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The news comes amid glowing reviews for New Brunswick’s response to the pandemic from a leading expert in public policy.
Donald Savoie the Canada Research Chair in Public Administration and Governance at the University of Moncton, said the Tory minority government of Premier Blaine Higgs was quick to take measures to address the novel coronavirus.
READ MORE: No new cases of COVID-19 reported in New Brunswick on Tuesday
Police to remain at province’s borders
He says the government’s decision to create an all-party COVID-19 committee served the province particularly well.
Higgs told the province on Wednesday during a provincial update that police remain at the province’s borders in order to stop unnecessary travel into New Brunswick.
He said the number of people that police turn away remains low, at an average of 39 people a day, but that they have not hesitated in protecting New Brunswickers.
Job fair attracts more than 1,833
A virtual job fair hosted on Tuesday and Wednesday had more than 1,833 participants, the province announced on Wednesday.
The goal was to match prospective employees with 50 potential employers, which included members from the seafood industry and the IT sector.
“We need New Brunswickers to step up for our province and for the industries that have jobs available, especially in the seafood processing and agriculture sectors,” said Higgs.
“We must continue to work together, to support New Brunswick businesses and industries, to take care of one another, and to contain the spread of COVID-19.”
The province has continued to reopen under the “orange” phase of its COVID-19 recovery plan.
The premier said on Wednesday that New Brunswick businesses are continuing to open and thanked all of them that are following the guidelines laid out by the province.
Higgs said that a CFIB survey on May 8 had found that only 21 per cent of small businesses were open.
A survey conducted a few days after New Brunswick entered its “orange” phase found that the figure has climbed to 26 per cent.
Higgs said that WorkSafeNB officials will, upon request, go out and work with businesses that feel they need assistance in setting up their workplace to follow the province’s public health measures.
Questions about COVID-19? Here are some things you need to know:
Symptoms can include fever, cough and difficulty breathing — very similar to a cold or flu. Some people can develop a more severe illness. People most at risk of this include older adults and people with severe chronic medical conditions like heart, lung or kidney disease. If you develop symptoms, contact public health authorities.
To prevent the virus from spreading, experts recommend frequent handwashing and coughing into your sleeve. They also recommend minimizing contact with others, staying home as much as possible and maintaining a distance of two metres from other people if you go out.
For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.
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