2 new COVID-19 cases in N.L. Saturday, source of 3 others now known
There are two new cases of COVID-19 and one recovery in Newfoundland and Labrador on Saturday, bringing the number of active cases in the province to 32.
The first reported case is a woman between the ages of 60 and 69 living in the same household as a previous case. She is a resident of the province and the case is connected to the Grand Bank cluster, but the woman is not a tenant of Blue Crest Cottages.
The second case is travel-related, a man aged 50-59 who recently returned home to the province from the United States.
The two cases are not connected, with both individuals in isolation and contact tracing underway.
As a result of the travel-related case, the Department of Health is advising passengers who travelled on Air Canada Flight 7480 from Montreal to St. John's on Wednesday to get tested out of an abundance of caution.
The two new cases bring the province's total number of cases to 333. Since the pandemic began, 297 people have recovered from the virus, with four reported COVID-19 related deaths.
In total, 61,832 people have been tested for the virus — up by 512 since Friday. The province saw it's largest single-day increase in testing on Friday, when 742 people were tested in 24 hours.
Earlier in the week, the province's department of health asked anyone who had visited a bar in the Halifax area in the past two weeks to get a COVID-19 test.
3 cases with unknown source now travel-related
Public health provided an update on the three cases announced Friday with unknown sources. All three cases are travel-related.
The first case reported in the Eastern Health region is related to travel from Europe, while the second case in the region is related to travel from Asia. Although both cases are located in the Eastern Health region, the cases are not connected.
The third of four announced cases on Friday is a close contact of a worker who returned to the province from work in British Columbia. The individual is located in the Western Health region, and is not connected to the recent cluster in Deer Lake.
Outbreaks at 3 Alberta work sites
The Department of Health was also notified of outbreaks at three Alberta work sites by the Public Health Agency of Canada, as there are workers from the province who work at the sites.
There are outbreaks at the Cenovus Energy Foster Creek oil sands project, the Cenovus Energy Christina Lake oil sands project and the Syncrude Canada Aurora mine site.
Rotational workers returning from these sites must undergo a full 14-day isolation period and contact 811 for testing.
As part of Friday's COVID-19 briefing, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Janice Fitzgerald repeated her warnings against mass gatherings over the upcoming holiday season.
"This has the potential for a perfect storm as the threat of COVID and Christmas collide," she said Friday, adding the next four to six weeks will be a true test for the province.
Fitzgerald has stated in previous interviews that health officials will be closely watching the early weeks of the new year as people return to the province from holiday travel.
