1 person in hospital as N.L. reports 2 new cases of COVID-19

There are two new cases of COVID-19 in Newfoundland and Labradoron Sunday one in the Eastern Health region and one in the Central Health region and a person is in hospital due to the virus for the first time in five months.

According to theDepartment of Health'smedia release on Sunday, there are now 10 active cases in the province, but it's not clear which of the active cases are in hospital. There hasn't been a person in hospital related to COVID-19 in the province since June 15.

The new case in the Eastern Health regionis a man between 40 and 49 years old who travelled from Russia to work at Nalcor's Soldiers Pond site as part of theLower Churchill project, according to the Health Department. The site is approximately 35 kilometres west of St. John's.

Public health officials have been in contact with Nalcor Energy about the case. According to the Department of Health,the manhas been following public health guidelines since his arrival and has been self-isolating whilenot at work.

In a press release,Nalcor saidthe man received an exemption from the provincial governmentto work at the Soldiers Pond siteand hasbeen followingprotocols put in place by public health, including self-Isolating in St. John's when not at work.

The manhas also followed allworksite isolation protocols, according to Nalcor,and is not believed to have had close contact with other individuals while at work.

The company said because of the health and safety protocols in place atSoldiers Pond, it is believedthe risk to other individuals working there is low.

"Nalcor has established stringent health and safety measures at all its worksites to prevent the transmission of COVID-19. The area where this individual worked has been closed off and our cleaning protocols have been activated," the company said.

"Work in one building at the site has been stopped while cleaning is completed."

Nalcor said the man arrived at theSoldiers Pond site on Tuesdayand worked in isolation for two night shifts that dayand on Thursday. The company said hedid not show any symptoms during either shift.

On Friday, the manwas notified of a positiveCOVID-19 test of a family member in Russia. Nalcor said the mantested positive for COVID-19 through testing done by a private laboratory. The test result was confirmed bypublic health.

Nalcor said it has advised workers at the site of the positive case and is working with public health to identify possible close contacts.

"Out of an abundance of caution, for all other workers from the Soldiers Pond site, private testing can be arranged by Nalcor for individuals who are concerned about their possible exposure," the company's media release said.

2nd new case related to travel from Alberta

The new case in Central Health is a manbetween 20 and 39 years old. The case is travel-related, as the man returnedhomefrom work in Alberta.

Contact tracing by public health is underway for both new cases.Anyone considered a close contact has been advised to quarantine.

The province'stotal number of cases is now303,with 289people having recovered.

In total, 56,662people have been tested in the province as of Sunday, including186in the last day.

Sunday's cases bump the weekend total tofour, as one new casewas reported in the Western Health region Saturday, connected to another recent case in that area, while another case was reported in the Eastern Health region.

There have been four deaths related to COVID-19 in Newfoundland and Labrador since March.

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