Flin Flon now at four active cases, Manitoba case rates dropping, Sask. finds dangerous new variant

Fewer and fewer Manitobans are testing positive for COVID-19 and cases in the Flin Flon district continue to drop, but bad COVID-19 news has come from Saskatchewan.

Manitoba reported only 82 net new cases of COVID-19 Tuesday, with three of Manitoba's five health regions reporting cases in the single digits. Only two health regions reported more than 10 cases - Winnipeg, which reported 18 new COVID-19 cases, and the Northern Health Region (NHR), where 53 new cases were reported. 

The Flin Flon/Snow Lake/Cranberry Portage/Sherridon district is continuing its own downward trend. Only four active cases of the disease are now active in the Flin Flon district, down from as high as 20 late last month. Sixty people in the district have had COVID-19 and recovered, while one person has been reported to have died due to COVID-19.

Saskatchewan's case load is still growing, with the province reporting another 223 new cases and eight deaths Tuesday. None of the deaths were reported in the far north east health zone and eight new cases were found in the region, but no new cases were found in the far north east 2 health zone, which contains Creighton, Denare Beach and other Saskatchewan communities near the Manitoba border - Two cases were reported by the Saskatchewan government as people who had tested positive in another province.

The district, which was down to the low 30s in overall cases last week, has climbed up to 51 active cases. The exact locations of these cases are unknown.

The big story relating to COVID-19 in Saskatchewan came Tuesday, when the provincial government announced two new cases of the B.1.1.7 variant - the so-called "UK variant" - had been found in the province. This variant has been deemed by international health officials as up to 70 per cent more transmissable than the standard form of COVID-19 - research has shown the new variant binds more easily to human cells. The B.1.1.7 variant also causes more severe symptoms on average than most COVID-19 cases.

Both cases of the B.1.1.7 variant found in Saskatchewan were reported in Regina and are believed to have arrived in the province in January. One of the two people who tested positive, according to the province, had recently been in the U.K. - the second person is considered a close contact of that first infection.

"The best protection against all COVID-19 variants remains the same as protection against COVID-19: stay home, physically distance, wash your hands frequently, wear a mask and get tested if you are experiencing even mild symptoms," reads a provincial news release.

No cases of the B.1.1.7 variant have been reported yet in Manitoba.

Of the new northern Manitoba cases, 40 were reported in the Island Lake district, which now has 818 active COVID-19 cases.

Other districts that saw more cases include the Thompson/Mystery Lake region where six new cases were found but active cases dropped, thanks in large part to 16 people in the district now considered "recovered" from COVID-19. One other district - the Bunibonibee/Oxford House/Manto Sipi/Gods River/Gods Lake district - reported three new cases, while another - the Grand Rapids/Misipawistik/Moose Lake/Mosakahiken/Easterville/Chemawawin district - reported two. Two others, the Nelson House/Nisichawayasihk district and Norway House, each reported a new case.

No new deaths from COVID-19 were announced by the province Tuesday - health officials said the reason was because of a data reset behind the scenes. News of any possible deaths will be reported Wednesday.

Manitoba now has 3,421 active cases, with 254 people in hospital and 36 people in intensive care due to COVID-19. Test positivity rates for the entire province now sit at about 7.6 per cent over the last five days province-wide, including 4.1 per cent in Winnipeg.