N.B. reports outbreak at Moncton long-term care facility; two new cases

Two COVID-19 cases at nursing home Public health working to contain outbreak at Moncton facility. Eilish Bonang reports.

HALIFAX — The province of New Brunswick is reporting an outbreak of COVID-19 at a special-care home in Moncton, as two new cases were identified at the residence on Tuesday.

The two new cases have been identified at Notre-Dame Manor, a  special-care home in Moncton which has 112 residents and 56 employees. One resident is between the ages of 70-79 years old, and the other is between the ages of 80-89 years old.

Two previous cases are now considered recovered, as the active number of cases in the province remains at five.

“An outbreak is everyone’s greatest fear and please be assured that our overriding priority is the health and safety of the residents and those who care for them,” said Dr. Jennifer Russell, N.B. chief medical officer of health. “Today’s news is a clear reminder that we must all be vigilant and follow public health advice.”

N.B. Public Health started an investigation Monday night, sending additional staff and resources to the facility, and started contact tracing and rapid testing of the facility’s residents and staff on Tuesday.

All admissions and visits to the manor are on hold until further notice. All other facilities are to follow current public health guidance under yellow phase unless otherwise directed.

“New Brunswick has been successful over the last few months in keeping the spread of this disease contained,” said Premier Blaine Higgs. “We did this by continuing to take the precautions Public Health was asking us to take. Those low numbers caused some to wonder why we were still under a state of emergency and why all the precautions were still necessary. Today’s announcement is why. We have to do what is needed to protect our vulnerable family members and friends.”

Dr. Russell said the province had a "great summer" keeping the number of cases down, and said this is a wake-up call.

"This is a reminder to all New Brunwickers that the virus is still among us and can affect the most vulnerable among us," Dr. Russell said. "Our continued success depends on your resolve to maintain these actions and follow the rules."

On Monday, the province reported two new cases. One in the Saint John region (Zone 2), an individual between 60 and 69, who had travelled outside of the Atlantic bubble and is now self-isolating.The other case in the Moncton region (Zone 1), involving an individual between 20 and 29, who had travelled internationally and is now self-isolating.

On Monday, the province completed 549 COVID-19 tests. To date, a total of 80,809 tests have been conducted in the province.

New Brunswick has had 205 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Of those, 198 are recovered and two people have died.

There is currently no one in hospital as a result of COVID-19.

COVID-19 CASES IN NEW BRUNSWICK

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases are broken down by New Brunswick’s seven health zones:

The province recently announced that residents can take an online self-assessment if they are experiencing mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms.

POTENTIAL FLIGHT EXPOSURE

On Tuesday, New Brunswick public health advised of the following potential exposure on a pair of flights from Mexico City to Moncton.

Individuals who travelled on these flights should self-monitor for symptoms for 14 days after the flight. Should symptoms develop, they are directed to self-isolate and to call 811.

VEHICLE TRAFFIC INFORMATION

New Brunswick's online dashboard also includes information about vehicle traffic attempting to enter the New Brunswick border.

On Monday, 8,156 personal and 3,809 commercial vehicles attempted to cross the border into the province.

Of the vehicles attempting to cross the border, 36 were refused entry, for a refusal rate of 0.3 per cent.