Military, Red Cross on the way to help Mathias Colomb Cree Nation's COVID-19 outbreak
101 cases of COVID-19 as of Tuesday, chief says
Members of the Canadian Armed Forces are in a northwestern Manitoba First Nation in response to a worrisome spike of COVID-19 cases, and more help is on the way.
Mathias Colomb Cree Nation, Pukatawagan, has 101 cases of COVID-19 as of Tuesday, up from just 10 cases last week, said Chief Lorna Bighetty.
"More military is coming to our community to help us and the Red Cross is on their way, too," she said during a news conference hosted by Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak on Tuesday.
Bighetty says she asked Indigenous Services Canada and the military for support right after the outbreak was declared.
"I knew we weren't going to maintain the health and safety of the community."
Jason Small of the Canadian Red Cross said a five-member team will be deployed to the First Nation "as soon as possible."
"The team will provide support, as needed, to community leadership and other relevant authorities in the COVID-19 response in the community," he said.
Bighetty says there are six members of the military in the First Nation assessing the situation, and more will come to help out at the nursing station and help share public health messaging in the coming days.
The community, which is about 710 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, has a population of roughly 3,000 people, Bighetty says.
So far, just 200 people have received both doses of the Moderna vaccine.
Even so, Bighetty believes the vaccine gave some members of the community a false sense of security. Some stopped wearing masks and started getting together with others, she said.
"When people got their needles, that's when everything went out of control," she said.
She's pleading with community members to stay home.
"They don't seem to understand the seriousness of this COVID that is ramping right now."
On March 4, a provincial news release said health officials were concerned about the trend of case numbers in Mathias Colomb Cree Nation, Pukatawagan, and were working with the chief, council and other partners to address the situation.
CBC News has reached out to the Canadian Armed Forces for more information.
