PORT HAWKESBURY: The province now has its first confirmed case of novel coronavirus (COVID-19), with another four more presumptive positive cases, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health, Dr. Robert Strang, announced during a press conference Monday afternoon.
The two new presumptive cases, a couple in their 50’s located in the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM), were disclosed earlier in the day, bringing the provincial total to five.
Strang suggested the couple, whose presumptive cases are not related to travel, attended an ‘international event’ somewhere in Nova Scotia, where they likely had close contact with people who had recently been outside the country.
“It’s time to isolate yourself from your family members and loved ones,” Nova Scotia’s Premier said.
Presumptive cases are individuals who have tested positive, but still await confirmation with the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg, which could take up to 48-hours for confirmation.
The province is working to determine what event they attended, where it was hosted and who else was in attendance.
Earlier in the day, the Government of Canada, taking increasingly aggressive steps to keep our families safe issued sweeping travel restrictions asking Canadians to avoid non-essential travel outside the country until further notice, and closed its borders to all international visitors with the exception of Americans, diplomats and flight crews.
“Canadian travellers should return to Canada via commercial means while it’s still possible to do so,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said. “Let me be clear. If you’re abroad, it’s time to come home.”
Trudeau also said the government would also mandate airlines to complete a basic health assessment of anyone travelling, and anyone who may be displaying symptoms would not be allowed to travel to Canada.
International flights will also be redirected starting today, with all flights from overseas being sent to one of four airports – Montreal Trudeau, Toronto Pearson, Calgary International and Vancouver International – to ensure better passenger screening.
The two new cases come only one day after Nova Scotia recorded its first three presumptive cases of COVID-19 – that were related to travel but not connected – and subsequently, Premier Stephen McNeil announced additional prevention measures under the authority of the Health Protection Act.
“Now, more than ever, all Nova Scotians must follow public health direction – that’s how we will reduce the spread of this virus in our province,” McNeil said on Sunday. “We need to work together to protect our most vulnerable.”
The first case is of a 61-year-old woman from Kings County who travelled from Australia on March 8. The second, a man in his late 50’s from the HRM who returned from California on March 13. The third was another man from the HRM in his 30’s who travelled “extensively” throughout Europe and returned on March 10.
The Province of Nova Scotia is now requiring anyone who has travelled outside Canada to self-isolate for 14 days upon return, even if you are symptom-free.
In addition to the self-isolation requirement, long-term care facilities are closed to all visitors, public schools will be closed for two weeks following March Break, all licensed and unlicensed childcare providers are required to close starting March 17 through April 3, bar owners can no longer operate VLTs, and organizations and businesses must practice social distancing of six feet. This applies to restaurants, bars, movie theatres, and other gathering spots.
Following a provincial mandate, all schools within the Strait Regional Centre for Education will be closed 14-days following March Break and all community-use is cancelled until further notice.
StFX University has cancelled in-person classes for the remainder of the year and will move to online or alternative learning by March 23, while the campus still remains open to students and faculty; it is closed to the public for the foreseeable future.
Following suit, the NSCC Strait Area Campus is suspending classes until April 3, allowing time to prepare for alternative forms of learning.
Anyone who has travelled outside Canada or has been in close contact with someone who has and are experiencing a fever above 38°C or a cough should complete the online questionnaire to see whether you need to call 811. The online questionnaire can be found at: 811.novascotia.ca.
811 will provide direction on what to do next. If there is a need for in-person assessment, 811 will refer to one of 11 COVID-19 assessment centres province-wide; locally, there is St. Martha’s Regional Hospital but others in the surrounding area include Cape Breton Regional Hospital and East Side Health Centre in New Glasgow.
The province is asking you to not attend a COVID-19 assessment centre without having been referred by 811. Those directed to an assessment centre by 811 will then have a physical assessment on site and based on that a swab will be taken for patients for whom it is appropriate.
The Government of Canada announced a raft of new measures including closing parliament for five weeks, banning cruise ships with 500 people from docking in the country’s ports until July 1, and is advising against foreign travel and to avoid non-essential travel outside the country.
Trudeau urged Canadians to remain calm during his first national address, delivered during a self-imposed quarantine.
“We will get through this together. No one should have to worry about paying rent, buying groceries, or additional childcare because of COVID-19,” Trudeau said. “We will help Canadians financially.”
In the province’s first briefing on Friday, Premier McNeil announced the province’s initial travel measures for Nova Scotia’s public sector employees.
To reduce the spread of COVID-19 throughout the province, public sector employees who travel outside of Canada, including the United States, were informed they would be required to self-isolate upon their return.
“We all need to do our part to reduce the spread,” McNeil said. “Protect our most vulnerable and keep Nova Scotians healthy and safe.”
The private sector is encouraged to take the same approach and support employees to self-isolate for 14 days after travelling outside Canada, and people are required to stay home if they’re feeling ill, if they have a fever and or a new cough.
The chief medical officer of health is also encouraging individuals, employers and community organizations to limit social gatherings to no more than 150 people to limit spread. This measure will help protect vulnerable Nova Scotians who are at greatest risk and will be reassessed as the situation evolves.
Throughout the Strait Area, numerous municipally and baned-owned recreation facilities, community centres and arenas will close until further notice and all municipal in-person events have been postponed.
The Eastern Counties Regional Libraries will close all libraries for the next three weeks; Strait Area Transit will still be in-service but will focus on providing essential services; and Nova Scotia Power has implemented a pandemic contingency plan.
Concerned by a recent spike in appointment cancellations in several cities related to COVID-19, Canadian Blood Services is also reminding Canadians, that despite the global pandemic, it’s “still safe to donate blood.”
As of March 17, Nova Scotia has completed 941 tests for COVID-19, with 934 negative results, six presumptive positive cases, and one confirmed case.
For perspective, on March 16, Nova Scotia had completed 676 tests for COVID-19, with 671 negative results and four presumptive positive cases, and one confirmed case. While on March 15, Nova Scotia had only completed 418 tests for COVID-19, with 415 negative results and three presumptive positive cases.
Testing numbers are updated daily at https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus.