Restrictions on northern Manitoba travel removed, 2 new COVID-19 cases announced

Restrictions on travel to northern Manitoba that have been in place for more than two months are being lifted, the province said Friday, while also announcing two new cases of COVID-19.

The restrictions, which limited travel north of the 53rd parallel and to remote communities without summer road access, had been in place since mid-April.

They were already relaxed twice this month — initially allowing Manitobans to travel directly to northern tourist destinations and cabins, and later allowing those from northwestern Ontario or Western Canada to do so.

The restrictions initially barred any non-essential travel north of the 53rd parallel and into remote communities with no summer road access.

Anyone travelling into northern Manitoba must still respect restrictions put in place by local communities and First Nations, the province said in a news release Friday.

The two new cases of COVID-19 announced Friday brought the total number of active cases in the province to 11.

The new cases are a man in his 30s and a woman in her 50s, both from the Winnipeg health region, the province said in its news release.

The man's case was linked to travel, the province said, and a provincial spokesperson later said he is "involved in the trucking industry."

The woman's case was linked to contact with a previously known case. The spokesperson said the province is not releasing information on which case that was.

No one is currently in hospital or intensive care for COVID-19, the province said in the release.

More changes to public health rules

Since the start of the pandemic, Manitoba has identified 318 confirmed or probable cases of COVID-19.

A total of 300 people have recovered. Seven Manitobans with the illness caused by the novel coronavirus have died.

On Wednesday, 477 tests were completed, and 935 were done Thursday, for a total of 1,412 between the two days. That brings Manitoba's total to 60,775 tests since early February.

Changes to public health orders, effective Friday, also remove the requirement for people coming to Manitoba to work on film productions to self-isolate before entering the province.

The province had previously lifted the requirement that they self-isolate after arriving, but only if they had self-isolated for 14 days before coming here.

The province also gave more clarity on rules exempting professional athletes from self-isolation requirements after entering the province. The exemption only applies to professional sports teams from Manitoba, the province says, and these teams are not required to self-isolate for 14 days before they return.

In addition, people who are self-isolating under federal or provincial orders will now be permitted to visit family or friends who have life-threatening diseases in health-care facilities, the province says, provided the facility permits the visit and they have no symptoms of COVID-19.