Health officials in Manitoba identified 36 new cases of COVID-19 Thursday and said a second case has been reported at a school in Carberry.
The new cases bring the province’s total number of cases reported since March to 2,029.
The number of deaths remains at 20, while 1,388 have recovered. There are 621 active cases, with 15 people in hospital, including seven in ICU. Manitoba’s current five-day COVID-19 test positivity rate was 2.1 per cent as of Thursday, according to the province.
The province warned of a potential exposure at Carberry Collegiate in Carberry. They say a second case at the school was at the building Sept. 21. Health officials say close contacts have been contacted and the infection was not acquired at the school.
They also warned of a possible exposure at the Subway restaurant in Carberry on Sept. 26 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
On Wednesday health officials also announced several new potential exposures to COVID-19, including one at Glenlawn Collegiate in Winnipeg on Sept. 25.
Of the new cases reported Thursday, 28 are in the Winnipeg Health region, which has seen a steady increase in cases recently. The other new cases were spread amongst the province, with four people in the Prairie Mountain Health region, two in the Interlake-Eastern health region, and two in the Southern Health region.
Winnipeg, along with municipalities around the city, moved to a level orange restriction on Monday, meaning masks are mandatory in all indoor public places and gathering sizes have been restricted to no more than 10 people indoors.
On Thursday the province said it will be expanding requirements for wearing masks in health facilities.
As of Wednesday, Oct. 7 a requirement for non-medical masks previously put in place for all Manitoba health facilities will be extended to doctor’s offices and community service providers affiliated with Manitoba’s health regions.
“Anyone seeking treatment in or visiting a public health-care setting will be required to bring and wear a non-medical mask,” reads a government release.
“Accommodations do exist for those who are not able to wear a mask for medical reasons.”
Provincial data shows 1,803 tests for COVID-19 were completed Wednesday, bringing the total number of lab tests completed since early February to 186,668.
At a press conference Thursday Manitoba’s Health Minister, Cameron Friesen said a new mobile testing site opened Wednesday at Portage and Wall Street in Winnipeg completed 75 tests during it’s first day of operations.
The site, a partnership between the provincial government, Shared Health, and medical laboratory service Dynacare, is the first of three expected to open in Winnipeg in the next few weeks.
The province has said more drive-thru sites are coming for Brandon, Winkler, Portage la Prairie and Dauphin in October.
The province also announced the federal government’s COVID Alert app is now up and running in Manitoba as of Thursday, joining other provinces such as Ontario and Saskatchewan.
The smartphone uses Bluetooth technology to detect when users are near each other.
If a user tests positive for COVID-19, they can choose to let other users know about potential exposure risk without sharing any personal information.
–With files from The Canadian Press
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. In situations where you can’t keep a safe distance from others, public health officials recommend the use of a non-medical face mask or covering to prevent spreading the respiratory droplets that can carry the virus. In some provinces and municipalities across the country, masks or face coverings are now mandatory in indoor public spaces.
For full COVID-19 coverage from Global News, click here.
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