4 new COVID-19 cases reported in Yellowknife, masks now mandatory in schools

The N.W.T.'s chief public health officer announced four new cases of COVID-19 in Yellowknife on Monday, bringing the number of confirmed cases linked to an outbreak at a city elementary school to 69.

Dr. Kami Kandola also announced 45 recoveries in an update Monday afternoon. There are now 24 active cases in the city and there have been no hospitalizations.

Kandola also said on Monday that masks are now mandatory in schools in Yellowknife, Dettah, Ndilo and Behchok.

The N.J. Macpherson School outbreak, declared on May 2, led to school closures in Yellowknife, Ndilo, Dettah and Behchok, and forced more than 1,000 people into isolation.

Many of those people were released from isolation this past weekend, and schools were allowed to reopen on Monday.

N.J. Macpherson School told parents last Fridaythat the school would put off in-person learning until Wednesday due toa delay in COVID-19 test results. Hundreds of staff and students at the school had to be tested for the virus before returning to the classroom.

No new exposure sites were announced on Monday.