Northern Sask. travel ban lifted as cases fall

People living in northern Saskatchewan can start travelling in the region today, and others can head to their cottages in the area.

The province is lifting a travel ban against non-essential travel in the north, which was imposed because of an outbreak of COVID-19.

Restrictions on non-essential travel had been put in place at the end of April as the number of COVID-19 cases began rising in the far north region, eventually peaking at 156 caseson May 10.

On Monday, there were only eight cases in the north.

Health officials will continue to monitor the case count and the spread of the virus before moving ahead with relaxing more rules.

La Loche, which saw a high number of cases last month,also has the OK from the government to allow businesses under Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the reopen plan to resume operations, as of next Monday.

Along with eased restrictions on travel, the limit on gatherings has been increased to 20 when the gathering is outdoors for the northwest area. Indoor gatherings will remain limited to 10.