COVID-19 cases surge in The Pas health district, seven new cases found in Flin Flon district Tuesday

Most northern Manitoba communities are seeing COVID-19 cases either stabilize or drop. The Pas/OCN/Kelsey health district, on the other hand, is soaring, seeing more than 80 new cases come up since in the last week.

Seven new cases of COVID-19 were also reported in the health district covering Flin Flon June 15.

The Flin Flon/Snow Lake/Cranberry Portage/Sherridon district now has 18 active cases as of June 15, reporting seven new cases between June 14 and 15. A total of 20 new cases have been found in the Flin Flon district in the last week. Recoveries have been keeping pace with new cases until Tuesday, when four new recoveries were reported.

The Pas’ district now has 100 active cases of COVID-19, by far the highest case load of any area in the Northern Health Region (NHR). By contrast, the district with the second-highest case count is the Shamattawa/York Factory/Tataskweyak/Split Lake district, where 38 people are ill as of June 15 - between a half and a third of the cases found in The Pas’ district.

Aside from The Pas though, the NHR is seeing several districts staying around the same level of active cases - or better, seeing cases decline. Only The Pas, Shamattawa and Thompson/Mystery Lake districts have seen their level of active cases increase in the last week. All other districts have either seen no change in cases or active case drops. The largest case drops have been in the remote Island Lake and Bunibonibee/Oxford House/Manto Sipi/Gods River/Gods Lake districts, which saw active cases drop 19 and nine respectively in the last week.

A total of 284 people in the NHR have active cases of COVID-19, according to the most recent provincial data. Twelve people from the NHR are currently hospitalized due to COVID-19, with three of those people needing intensive care.

Province-wide, test positivity rates and active cases are starting to decline. A total of 2,972 people have active COVID-19 cases, down from almost 4,000 active cases a week ago and down from over 3,000 June 14. Manitoba also reported its smallest one-day new case numbers in months June 14 and 15, reporting 124 new cases province-wide Monday (including single digits in two Manitoba health regions) and 116 new cases Tuesday.

Case numbers have not been that low in Manitoba since the trough between the province’s second and third waves, where new cases dropped down to the double digits for a short time. The last time Manitoba’s one day case levels have been that low was April 18, when 109 cases were reported.

The number of people who have had COVID-19 and require hospitalization remains high, however. There are 266 Manitobans currently in hospital because of COVID-19, with 186 of those people still considered to have active COVID-19 cases. A total of 87 Manitobans are in intensive care due to COVID-19 - more people than Manitoba had ICU beds before an emergency expansion earlier in the pandemic. Out of those 87 Manitobans, 24 people are in intensive care out of province, with 22 people in Ontario and one person having been flown to Alberta to receive care. Some people who have been flown out of province are now returning home for treatment and to convalesce - 26 Manitobans flown out for treatment are now back in Manitoba.