New Brunswick: 3 new COVID-19 cases, possible school exposure

Release:

Public Health reported three new cases of COVID-19 today, all in Zone 5 (Campbellton region) as follows:

• one individual 19 and under;
• one individual 40 to 49; and
• one individual 60 to 69.

All of the new cases are self-isolating.

“Our goal is to have all of New Brunswick in the Yellow level of recovery but the number of cases in Zone 5 is not declining and the risk of community spread remains a factor,” said Dr. Jennifer Russell, chief medical officer of health. “I urge everyone in Zone 5 to limit your contacts. Keep to your two-family bubble. We are seeing too many cases arising from family gatherings, social activities and workplace contacts.”

The number of confirmed cases in New Brunswick is 313 and 207 have recovered. There have been three deaths, and the number of active cases is 103. Four patients are hospitalized with one in an intensive care unit. As of today, 92,899 tests have been conducted.

Zones 1 and 5 are Orange

Zone 1 and Zone 5 remain at the Orange level under the province’s COVID-19 recovery plan. Orange level rules are available online. Russell outlined details on the process that leads to imposing or lifting restrictions during this pandemic.

“Our processes are firmly grounded in science and tempered by our experience and new evidence that arises as we manage this public health crisis,” she said.

All other zones in New Brunswick remain at the Yellow level. During this time, Public Health measures and guidelines must still be followed.

To find out the boundaries of each health zone, see the map available at:

• COVID-19 Dashboard (mobile and most browsers)
• COVID-19 Dashboard (for Internet Explorer users)

“For a region to move from Orange to Yellow, it takes roughly 14 days with targeted tracing and containment efforts,” said Premier Blaine Higgs. “Based on the measures taken, we are accepting the recommendation of Public Health that the Moncton region returns to the Yellow level on Thursday, Oct. 22, as long as we continue to see the current trends. It is our hope that the outbreak in Campbellton will be contained enough to take the same step in the near future, but for now it will remain at the Orange level.”

Possible school exposure

On Sunday, Oct. 18, families of la Mosaïque du Nord school in Balmoral were notified of a positive case in the school. The school closed today to facilitate necessary contact tracing. If you or a family member has been in close contact with the case, you will be notified by Public Health for contact tracing.