Manitoba hit a grim milestone March 27, reporting its first COVID-19 death - a woman in her 60s from Winnipeg who was previously in intensive care.
Provincial chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin announced Manitoba’s first death due to COVID-19 during a media update March 27. He also announced three new positive tests throughout the province, bringing Manitoba's total number of cases to 36. The Cadham Provincial Laboratory processed 606 more COVID-19 tests March 26.
“I want to reiterate that now is a time for social and physical distancing,” Roussin said.
“We can protect ourselves, we can protect the people around us, we can protect our community by practicing social distancing.”
Roussin said he wasn’t aware of any other patients in intensive care following the woman's death.
Along with the announcement, Roussin also announced the province will restrict gatherings of more than 10 people starting Monday, dropping the limit down from 50 people.
“This will dramatically decrease the risk of transmitting this virus,” Roussin said.
“The time to implement these strategies was two weeks ago, but if you haven't yet it's not too late. You can protect yourself and others starting today. Please do not wait to see if an order applies to you.”
The restrictions do not apply to health care or child care. The 10 person limit also does not include retail outlets or businesses, but stores must ensure shoppers properly distance themselves from each other. The North of 53 Consumers' Co-op grocery store in Flin Flon has only been allowing only 50 people inside the store at a time.
“At this point [the order] applies to public gatherings, it doesn’t apply in workplaces,” he said.
“For workplaces, this order right now may not apply, but social distancing strategies too. There’s lots of things businesses can put in place now to ensure social separation between employees… Make it easy for your employees to stay home when they get ill… We all have roles to play.”
Earlier in the morning, Premier Brian Pallister announced plans for investment in a remote mental health program that should come online within weeks.
On March 26, the federal government issued an order for travellers returning to Canada to self-isolate for fourteen days. The Manitoba government is also telling anyone returning from irregular out-of-province travel to self-isolate.
