Two months ago this week, northern Manitoba had no active cases of COVID-19. Only four people in the region had caught the disease. On Monday, sixteen new cases of COVID-19 were reported in northern Manitoba Nov. 9, bringing the region up to 248 active cases.
One of those new cases was reported in the Flin Flon/Snow Lake/Cranberry Portage/Sherridon district, bringing the region to two active cases. No known exposures to COVID-19 have been released within the district, while two previous cases within the district have been listed in Snow Lake. Including Saskatchewan communities near Flin Flon, the community has had three confirmed cases of COVID-19 with no signs of possible community spread reported.
The Pas/OCN/Kelsey remains the health district with the most cases of the disease as of Nov. 9, with 108 active cases of COVID-19 and 149 people infected, including people who have recovered. The Cross Lake/Pimicikamak district has the second highest number of cases active - 69 people have the disease within the district, while two people who had the disease previously have recovered.
Outside those two regions, cases have either remained around the same level or have seen a steady, slow rise. The Thompson-Mystery Lake district has 20 active cases, with another 40 people who have previously tested positive now recovered. Fourteen active cases in the NHR are listed as “unknown district”, with 16 cases marked as recovered but still not listed under any of the districts within the NHR.
The Island Lake district now has 11 active cases. Last week, that district also announced the north’s first death from COVID-19 since the pandemic began - a woman in her 40s. Ten people in the Grand Rapids/Misipawistik/Moose Lake/Mosakahiken/Easterville/Chemawawin district also have active cases of COVID-19. All other districts within the region have fewer than 10 cases of the disease.
A new outbreak has been announced in The Pas, at the Oscar’s Place homeless shelter. The shelter is now listed as “red” under the provincial pandemic response system, with restrictions in place at the site. There are three locations in northern Manitoba listed as “red” - along with Oscar’s Place, the Keeyask Generating Station and the entirety of the community Cross Lake are listed as red, with heavy restrictions in place.
Northern Manitoba as a region is currently listed as “orange” by the pandemic response system, with non-essential travel into the region restricted from outside jurisdictions, including some regions of Saskatchewan and southern Manitoba. Residents from Saskatchewan communities near Flin Flon are able to come and go into the community, pending any other local restrictions, without quarantining for two weeks.
Mask use is still mandatory in all public spaces in northern Manitoba and a gathering limit of five people is in effect in the region.
Two more exposures were listed at schools in The Pas - a possible exposure to COVID-19 was reported at Margaret Barbour Collegiate, the fourth time an exposure was listed at the community’s high school. People who later tested positive for COVID-19 were reported by regional and provincial health authorities to have been to the school Oct. 14-16, Oct. 20, Oct. 16, Oct. 28 and Oct. 30. An exposure was also listed at Kelsey Community School Oct. 30, while another possible exposure was announced at the New Avenue Hotel on Fischer Avenue, on Halloween from 8 p.m.-12 a.m. and Nov. 2 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. It is the second time a person who tested positive for COVID-19 was reported to have been to the New Avenue Hotel, as a person who went to the hotel’s bar Oct. 20 later tested positive.
