6 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Manitoba on Monday

Six new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Manitoba on Monday, bringing the total number of cases confirmed in the province since Saturday to 16, health officials announced.

The total number of confirmed cases in Manitoba is now400.

The current five-day test positivity rate a rolling average of the percentage of completed tests that came back as positive is now 0.45 per cent.

Three people are in hospital, with two people in the intensive care unit.

Chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin warned there is a potential risk of exposure due to a person who visited the Sherwood Grocery Store in Gull Lake, Man., while symptomatic on July 19, 20and 21.

Roussin couldn't say whether the infected person was an employee or customer at the store.

Sherwood Groceryowner Jeff Gallop disputed Roussin's account, statingno one in the storewas aware they had any symptomsuntil July 21 and sought testing immediately after symptoms developed.

The person in question was not at the store on July 19, he said.

The province stuck by its account.

There are currently 74 active cases of the disease caused by the new coronavirusin Manitoba, with 319 people recovered and seven deaths.

Many of the new cases are related to travel or close contact with known cases, including a number of caseslinked to funerals, said Roussin.

"We know that this is where the virus can thrive, in events like this," he said. "The nature of such events make physical distancing quite difficult and if we're not cautious, this is where we see this virus spread."

Five cases linked to travel

Earlier on Monday, the Winnipeg Airports Authority put out a statement saying it was requiring all passengers, visitors and staff membersto wear masks upon entering the terminal.

Five of the new cases are linked to travel, seven have been linked to known cases, and one is considered a case of community spread, with no identifiable source. Three other cases are still under investigation, said Roussin.

Of the 16 new cases announced since Saturday, four are in the Southern Health region; four are in the Interlake-Eastern health region; four are in the Winnipeg health region; and four are in the Prairie Mountain health region.

Two of the new cases involve girls between the ages of zero and nine years old, both in the Prairie Mountain health region. Another case involves a male between the ages of 10 and 19 years old in the Winnipeg health region.

Last month, Manitoba dropped its 14-day self-isolation requirement for travellers from the western provinces, the territories and northwestern Ontario. When asked whether rising case numbers in the Manitoba and elsewhere could lead the province to reimpose the requirement, Friesen and Roussin said they are monitoring the situation.

WATCH | Full news conference on COVID-19 | July 27, 2020:

Manitoba government daily briefing on coronavirus: July 27

4 years ago

Duration 39:41

Provincial officials give update on COVID-19 outbreak: Monday, July 27, 2020.

"I would say to Manitobans and people who are thinking about travelling to Manitoba, to be cautious with your plans because we're going to do what we need to do to protect the health of Manitobans, and so that may result in the re-implementation of those restrictions," said Roussin.

People can expect health officials to advise them to wear masks whenever they are in public indoor spaces once respiratory illness season arrives, or earlier if we see higher levels of community transmission, said Roussin.

Demand for testing growing

Health Minister Cameron Friesen said there had been plans to take the drive-thru testing site at the Main Street Manitoba Public Insurance Building offline, but he directed health officials to keep it open.

Friesen acknowledged that there were times last week when people waited in long lines to get tested at sites either in Winnipeg or throughout the province.

"Only a week or two ago, we saw a decrease in those wanting a test done. Now we're having to quickly respond to make sure there's adequate testing, as that demand for testing grows," he said.

More than 3,000 tests were completed over the weekend, bringing the total number of tests completed since early February to 84,967.

Although the province has increased its testing capacity, it still falls short of the goal of 3,000 tests per dayset by Premier Brian Pallister in April. The private testing laboratoryDynacare which has been sending some samples to a lab in Brampton, Ont., for testingis expected to be able to process up to 1,400 samples per day by Wednesday, said Friesen.

He added that government leaders feel "quite bullish" on the ability of both Dynacare and the provincial Cadham lab to flex their capacity and reach the goal of 3,000 tests per day by the end of the summer.

Two new testing sites opened up in recent days, including one at the ACCESS Fort Garry site at135 Plaza Drive, which opened on July 24, and one at604 St. Mary's Rd., which opened Monday.

Later this week, Roussin and Education Minister Kelvin Goertzen are expected to provide an update on the province's plans for the upcoming school year, said Friesen. The provincial government has said it would decide between three different potential plans by Aug. 1.

Many new cases related to travel or close contact with known cases

4 years ago

Duration 2:01

Six new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Manitoba on Monday, bringing the total number of cases confirmed in the province since Saturday to 16, health officials announced.

Health officials will now be holding just one regular press conference perweek to discuss COVID-19 numbers, Friesen said. Monday's update comes two days after the provincial government implemented Phase 4 of its reopening plan.