13 new cases of COVID-19 in Manitoba as outbreaks at 2 Winnipeg care homes reported
Outbreaks declared at Beacon Hill and Fred Douglas Lodge after health-care workers test positive
Manitoba is reporting 13 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday.
However, a case previously identified on Aug. 30 was removed from the total, the province said in a news release, after it was determined to be from out of province. That brings the total net new cases for Wednesday to 12, and the total number of lab-confirmed cases in Manitoba to 1,244.
There are now 454 active cases in the province, and 776 people have recovered from the illness caused by the novel coronavirus.
There are 14 people in hospital with COVID-19 — matching Tuesday's total, the highest daily number of hospitalizations the province has had. The previous high was 12 hospitalizations in April.
One person was in intensive care with the illness as of Wednesday. The number of COVID-19-related deaths in Manitoba remains at 14.
The current five-day COVID-19 test positivity rate is 1.8 per cent.
Of the new cases, eight are in the Prairie Mountain Health region, four are in Winnipeg, and one is in the Southern Health region, the release says.
The province is also reporting that two personal care homes in Winnipeg have initiated outbreak protocols after health-care workers tested positive for COVID-19.
The Beacon Hill Lodge long-term care home, in downtown Winnipeg, has declared an outbreak after a worker there tested positive.
The worker is at home in isolation, according to a statement Wednesday from the chief medical officer for Revera, the company that operates Beacon Hill Lodge.
Along with other safety precautions, "residents are being isolated on their floors and staff are being cohorted to work on dedicated floors," said Dr. Rhonda Collins.
All residents are being monitored closely for symptoms, and staff are screened at the beginning and end of their shifts, Collins added.
On Tuesday, CBC News learned that management of the Fred Douglas Lodge personal care home in Winnipeg reported a staff member tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday.
In a letter to family members of residents that day, CEO Roslyn Garofalo said no other staff or residents are presenting symptoms, and management is working to control the spread of the virus.
Although only one case has been announced in each location, the province said Wednesday it's treating both as an outbreak. Both facilities have moved to the red, or critical, level on the province's colour-coded pandemic response system.
City of Winnipeg employee tests positive
On Wednesday afternoon, the City of Winnipeg announced an employee in its public works department has tested positive for COVID-19.
The worker typically works in areas where the public does not have access, and they do not have a "public-facing job," a news release from the city said
The person is self-isolating, but the city would not provide more details about the individual, citing privacy reasons.
Possible close contacts were sent home, and instructed to get tested for COVID-19 and self-isolate, the city said.
Enhanced cleaning protocols have also been implemented in order to disinfect areas and equipment the employee used.
Potential exposures in western Manitoba
Public health officials are also warning of two potential public exposures to COVID-19 in or near Riding Mountain National Park late last month.
The first was Aug. 21-23 at the Canoe Taphouse at 130 Wasagaming Dr. in Wasagaming, the townsite in the western Manitoba park. The province's website says possible exposures may have occurred on:
- Aug. 21 from 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
- Aug. 22 from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
- Aug. 23 from noon to 8 p.m.
The other was Aug. 21 and 22 at the Buffalo Bar and Ten Restaurant at the Elkhorn Resort Spa and Conference Centre in Onanole. Possible exposures there may have occurred on:
- Aug. 21 from 9 p.m. to midnight.
- Aug. 22 from 6:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.
People who may have been exposed are advised to self-monitor for symptoms and immediately self-isolate if symptoms develop.
Latest local news
- Are Winnipeg shoppers wearing masks? Here's what we found at 15 locations
- From cardboard dividers to repurposed rooms, how classrooms are adapting for back to school
- Fewer child-care spaces but more vacancies leave some Manitoba families scrambling