The Manitoba and Saskatchewan governments have finally figured out the details of the COVID-19 case found in the Flin Flon area.
The Saskatchewan government announced six new cases of COVID-19 today, including a case in Far North East 2, the health zone that includes Flin Flon, Sask., Creighton and Denare Beach. No specific community of origin was given for the case. The newly announed case is the same case reported earlier this week by the Manitoba government as being in the Flin Flon/Snow Lake/Cranberry Portage/Sherridon district.
The case is from a Saskatchewan resident who works in Flin Flon at Northern Lights Manor and who tested positive for the disease in Flin Flon. It was the interprovincial nature of the case that led to confusion in the announcements from both provinces. No possible public exposures to the disease or other cases related to the case have been reported.
The case was reported by the Manitoba government as being in the Flin Flon district Sept. 6, then pulled back and announced as being in an "unknown district" Sept. 7. On Sept. 8, The Reminder reported, after confirmation from the Northern Health Region (NHR), that the case was found in a worker at Northern Lights Manor in Flin Flon who had not worked while symptomatic.
An investigation with Manitoba public health officials ensued, determining the case was in a Saskatchewan resident - which was confirmed by NHR - and would not be counted in Manitoba's case load. The Manitoba government took the case off their rolls for the Northern Health Region Sept. 10, with the Saskatchewan government adding the case to their count later in the afternoon.
"A case was removed as it was determined to be from out of province," reads the Manitoba government media briefing from Sept. 10, referring specifically to the northern case.
The remaining five cases of COVID-19 found in Saskatchewan Sept. 10 were spread around the province, with Saskatoon, Regina, central west and central east areas all reporting one case each. According to the province, the location of the sixth case is still pending.
One person in Saskatchewan is in hospital with COVID-19 and is not in intensive care.
Manitoba reported 15 new cases of COVID-19 Sept. 10, while removing the previous NHR case and another case elsewhere due to a duplication. Nine of the new cases were found in Winnipeg, while two each were found in Southern Health-Sante Sud, the Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority and Prairie Mountain Health. In Manitoba, 360 people currently have COVID-19, with 11 of those people in hospital and three in intensive care. No active cases of COVID-19 are currently in the Northern Health Region.
Manitoba reported its first positive test in a school Sept. 9, with a student at Churchill High School in Winnipeg testing positive on the second day of school. According to a provincial press release, no close contacts have been connected to the case. The school and cohort containing the student have been notified and the areas the student attended at the school have been cleaned.
"The risk is deemed low as physical distancing was maintained while at school and a mask was worn on the bus and in school the entire time. There are no close contacts connected to the case and Public Health has not advised anyone to self-isolate. Others who were at the sites on Monday do not need to self-isolate, but should self-monitor for symptoms of COVID-19," reads the release.
