Manitoba records over 2 dozen new cases during long weekend, public concerned

#Manitoba, #SpikeInCovid19

​Manitoba, Aug 4 (Canadian-Media): Confirmation of over two dozen new cases of COVID-19 in Manitoba over the long weekend including 18 on Sunday, the highest single-day jump in new cases since early April,  had caused great concern to the public, media reports said.

Cameron Friesen. Image credit: Official Website

The health officials tried to quell public fears about rising COVID-19 infections in Manitoba.

During a news conference on Aug 4, Shared Health Chief Nursing Officer Lanette Siragusa said that almost all the new cases had been traced back to known clusters or travel.

"It's not indicative of community spread, at this point," Siragusa said.

A number of businesses in Steinbach announced they were closing temporarily out of caution, although there was no recommendation from the  Manitoba Ministry of Health for businesses to close, he said.

"People are doing the right things. Public health did their job, contact tracing was successful, the people involved have gone home to self-isolate and they're being monitored, and I think that should give people a lot more comfort in terms of their decision today of whether they want to move around or not," Cameron Friesen, Manitoba's Minister of Health said in the news conference.

Both Siragusa and Friesen said that all except two of the new cases over the long weekend were linked to travel or known contacts, while the others are still under investigation.