New Brunswick reports 6 new COVID-19 cases Sunday; 4 cases confirmed at Edmundston school

Maritime COVID-19 roundup Nova Scotia health reported two new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, including a U.K. variant, while New Brunswick reported 6 new cases.

HALIFAX — Public health in New Brunswick reported six new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday. Two previously reported cases are now considered resolved, with the total number of active cases in the province increasing to 114.

Five of Sunday's new cases were identified in the Edmundston region (Zone 4). They involve:

One case was identified in the Miramichi region (Zone 7) involving an individual in their 40s. Public health says it is travel related, and all six cases are now self-isolating.

Of the province's 114 active cases, 91 are located in the Edmundston region, which has seen 54 new cases in the last four days.

“We went back from lockdown to red, to orange, and then to yellow, and last week we heard the news of what’s going on in the area, and the number of cases have risen again. That’s unexpected,” says Jean-Claude D’Amours, MLA for Edmundston Madawaska Centre.

Mass testing clinics for residents of the Edmundston region drew around 3,100 to the Sainte Basile Arena over the last two days, in an attempt to help public health get a better understanding of the outbreak.

“It was the right thing to do and thousands of people decided to do it voluntarily and I’m very proud of that,” says D’Amours.

N.B. COVID-19 CASE DATA

New Brunswick has had 1,577 cumulative confirmed cases since the pandemic began. In total, 1,432 people have recovered, and 30 people have died in the province from COVID-19.

Five people are in hospital as a result of COVID-19, with one person in the intensive care unit.

Public health says 1,266 tests were completed on Saturday in New Brunswick, and 252,232 total since the start of the pandemic.

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

FOUR CASES CONFIRMED AT EDMUNDSTON SCHOOL

New Brunswick health has confirmed four additional positive cases of COVID-19 have been identified at École Régionale Saint-Basile, bringing the total number of cases connected to the school to five.

Public health says the school community has been notified, and students will engage in distance learning until Wednesday, April 7.

If you or a family member have been in close contact with a case, you will be notified by Public Health for contact tracing. If you do not hear directly from Public Health, you have not been identified as a close contact.

EXTENDED HOURS FOR N.B. TESTING CENTRES

The COVID-19 assessment centres at the Edmundston Regional Hospital, 275 Hébert Blvd., and the Grand Falls General Hospital, 625 Everard H. Daigle Blvd., will be open extended hours on Sunday, with additional testing capacity.

The Edmundston centre will be open 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. and the Grand Falls centre will be open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Asymptomatic individuals who wish to be tested and who are NOT supposed to be self-isolating can go online and register or call Tele-Care 811.

VACCINATION CLINICS FOR HIGH SCHOOL STAFF

New Brunswick health continues to offer vaccination clinics for high school staff in the province.

Public health says since March 22, 4,500 high schools provincewide continue to have the opportunity to receive a COVID-19 vaccination at a clinic in one of 16 locations.

Schools have been closed to students on the days that local clinics are being held to allow staff to be vaccinated and to plan for the full return to school.

Vaccination clinics in the Shediac region will be available for staff from the following schools on Monday, March 29:

Due to the weather forecast, two of the final vaccination clinics for staff from high schools scheduled for Monday, March 29 in Campbellton and Bathurst will be postponed to Tuesday, March 30, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The following schools will be closed on Tuesday for the vaccination clinics:

More detailed information about the clinics and registration will be sent directly to the appropriate school staff.

In the coming weeks, additional vaccination clinics will be available for staff in elementary and middle schools, including bus drivers, and for early childhood service providers and child-care staff as part of the large employer section of the vaccine rollout plan.

VACCINE UPDATE

New Brunswick's COVID-19 online dashboard provides an update on the amount of vaccines that have been administered to date.

As of Saturday, 87,266 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered so far. Of those, 75,046 were first doses and 12,220 people have received two doses of vaccine.

As of Friday, the province has received a total of 123,115 doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

POTENTIAL EXPOSURE AT EDMUNDSTON WALMART

Public Health has identified a potential public exposure to the virus at the at Walmart in Edmundston:

People who were in this facility during those dates and times should self-monitor for symptoms for 14 days after their visit. Should any COVID-19 symptoms develop, they are directed to self-isolate and take the self-assessment online or to call 811 to get tested.

REMINDER OF RED AND YELLOW LEVELS

The Edmundston area circuit breaker moved to the Red level at 6 p.m. on March 25. All other zones, including the communities outside the circuit breaker in Zone 4, remain in the Yellow level under the province’s mandatory order.