Two new Omicron cases identified in Manitoba; province reports 239 new COVID-19 cases

Moving patients to rural hospitals CTV's Michelle Gerwing has more on patients being transferred from Winnipeg to rural hospitals to make space.

Manitoba health officials say two more cases of the Omicron variant have been found in Manitoba.

The new cases, identified in Friday’s COVID-19 bulletin, brings the total to eight in the province.

Manitoba also reported 239 new COVID-19 cases in Manitoba on Friday, bringing the total during the pandemic to 70,785.

There are now 1,799 active COVID-19 cases.

The province added one new death on Friday, bringing the death toll to 1,360. The death was a man in his 80s from the Prairie Mountain Health Region.

Manitoba also added information on the two deaths reported on Thursday. One was a man in his 30s from the Interlake-Eastern Health Region, while the second was a woman in her 50s from the Northern Health Region.

Of the new cases announced Thursday, 108 were in Winnipeg, 71 were in the Southern Health region, 34 were in the Prairie Mountain Health Region, 16 were in the Northern Health Region and 10 were in the Interlake-Eastern Health Region.

The new cases were in 147 people who were fully vaccinated, 74 people who were not vaccinated and 18 people who were partially vaccinated.

There are 139 Manitobans in hospital with COVID-19, with 84 of those people having active cases. There are 33 people in ICU with COVID-19. Of that number, 24 people have active COVID-19.

The province said 49 people currently in hospital with active COVID are not vaccinated, 30 people are fully vaccinated and five are partially vaccinated.

Of the ICU patients, 21 people are not vaccinated, two people are fully vaccinated and one person is partially vaccinated.

The five-day COVID-19 test positivity rate is 6.5 per cent in Manitoba and 5.5 per cent in Winnipeg.