Health officials say nine more cases of the B.1.1.7 COVID-19 variant have been confirmed in Manitoba and warn of a recent potential exposure to the highly contagious strain at a busy Winnipeg retailer.
With the latest cases of the variant, first identified in the United Kingdom, Manitoba has now reported 64 cases of variants of concern since February, including 52 of B.1.1.7 and 12 of another variant first found in South Africa.
In a release Wednesday the province warned of a potential exposure to B.1.1.7 at the St. James Costco location in Winnipeg on March 7 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Anyone who was there during that time who is now experiencing symptoms should isolate immediately and go for testing, the province says.
All of the newly reported variants of concern come from the Winnipeg Health region, the province said.
But a release from the province didn’t say exactly when the cases were identified, how the individuals were infected or whether or not the patients have recovered, or provide details on how many contacts they may have had.
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Health officials also reported 96 new COVID-19 infections across the province and no new deaths Wednesday.
Of the new cases, 51 are from the Northern health region, 40 are from the Winnipeg health region, two were reported in the Southern Health–Santé Sud health region, one was found in the Prairie Mountain Health region, and two were found in the Interlake–Eastern health region.
Three previously announced cases from unspecified dates were removed due to data correction, so Manitoba’s total number of reported cases now sits at 32, 996.
The province’s COVID-19 death toll remains at 917.
According to provincial health data, 1,035 of the province’s cases remain active, and 31,044 Manitobans have recovered from the virus since last March.
There are now 149 people in hospital as a result of novel coronavirus and 21 patients in ICU connected to the virus, according to the province.
Meanwhile, the province has declared outbreaks at River East Personal Care Home, Heritage Lodge Long Term Care Home and Extendicare/Oakview Place, all of which are in Winnipeg.
Laboratory testing numbers show 2,007 tests were completed Monday, bringing the total number of lab tests completed since February 2020 to 554,775.
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, visit our coronavirus page.
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