‘Data reset’ leads to no new coronavirus deaths reported in Manitoba, 83 new cases Tuesday

Manitoba is reporting its lowest daily number of new COVID-19 cases since mid-October for the second-straight day.

Health officials said 83 new infections had been identified as of Tuesday morning after reporting 89 new cases Monday.

No new deaths were reported Tuesday, but the province says that’s due to a “data reset” and the latest victims of the virus will be instead reported Wednesday.

“The reset puts into place additional checks and balances, increases consistencies and improves regional data,” the province said in its daily COVID-19 update.

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Since March, 29,733 Manitobans have now contracted the virus and the number of deaths remains at 832.

The latest cases include 18 cases in the Winnipeg Health region, two cases in the Southern Health region, five cases in the Prairie Mountain Health region, 53 cases in the Northern Health region, and five cases in the Interlake-Eastern Health region.

The current five-day COVID-19 test positivity rate is 7.6 per cent provincially and 4.1 per cent in Winnipeg.

Provincial data also shows there are 3,421 active cases and 25,480 individuals who have recovered from COVID-19.

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As of Tuesday morning health officials said there are 99 people in hospital with active COVID-19 as well as 155 who are no longer infectious but continue to require care, for a total of 254 hospitalizations.

There are 24 people in intensive care units with active COVID-19 as well as 12 who are no longer infectious but continue to require critical care for a total of 36 ICU patients.

Health officials say a new outbreak has been declared at St. Boniface Hospital unit B5 in Winnipeg. Meanwhile outbreaks at Oakview Personal Care Home in Winnipeg and Rest Haven Personal Care Home in Steinbach have ended, they said.

Laboratory testing numbers show 1,410 tests were completed Monday, bringing the total number of lab tests completed since early February 2020 to 480,277.

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.

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