New Brunswick reports nine new cases of COVID-19, revises case count

New Brunswick Public Health reported nine new cases of COVID-19 on Friday.

There are six new cases in Zone 4 (the Edmundston region), two in Zone 1 (the Moncton region) and one in Zone 2 (the Saint John region.)

Of the six cases in Zone 4, four are contacts of a previously confirmed case and two are under investigation. Three of the cases involve people younger than 19 and there is a confirmed case at Garderie Mélubulles, a child-care facility in Edmundston.

REVISED CASE COUNT

Public Health said in a news release on Friday that it is revising the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported in New Brunswick.

“Two previously reported cases in Zone 4 (Edmundston region) have been removed from the confirmed list of cases due to the identification of false positive results,” public health wrote in a news release. “The lab is working to determine the cause of these false positives.”

The revised total of confirmed cases in New Brunswick is 1,767. Since Thursday, six people have recovered for a total of 1,592 recoveries. There have been 33 deaths, and the number of active cases is 141. Twenty people are in hospital, and there are 12 patients in an intensive care unit. On Thursday, 1,382 tests were conducted for a total of 273,193.

TRANSFERRED PATIENTS IN STABLE CONDITION

Horizon Health Network’s CEO says the two patients transported from the Edmundston Regional Hospital to Fredericton’s Everett Chalmers Hospital last week are stable.

And if the hospital needs help again, they’ll be there.

“We would absolutely do it again, because we work with our sister organizations and we help each other out,” Karen McGrath said. “Once these two patients are stabilized they will be repatriated back to their communities. Right now, they are stable in the ICU, but we’re not expecting transport in the next few days.”

There are also two ongoing outbreaks in Zone 4: one at an adult residential facility, the other at a special care home.

In total, 31 residents and staff have come down with the virus. Further testing took place Thursday, and public health is expecting those results Friday or Saturday.

UPDATE ON VACCINES

“We have now received the 16,100 doses of Moderna that had been expected to arrive last week. Also, this week we received 6,500 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine that had also been expected to arrive last week. As scheduled, we also received 21,060 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech this week,” said New Brunswick Health Department spokesperson Shawn Berry.

He says the province is aware of the announcement by Moderna and are “awaiting notification from the federal government of the impact for New Brunswick.”

EXPOSURE NOTIFICATIONS

Public Health has identified potential public exposures to the virus at the following location:

Subway at the Edmundston Regional Hospital, 275 Hébert Blvd.
Friday, April 9, between 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.
REMINDER OF LOCKDOWN, ORANGE AND YELLOW LEVELS
A section of Zone 4, including Edmundston and the upper Madawaska region, remains in lockdown.

A list of lockdown restrictions, including what can remain open and what must close, is available online.

The communities of Saint-Léonard, Grand Falls, Drummond, New Denmark and Four Falls are in the Orange level.

All other zones and communities in the province, including the Saint-Quentin and Kedgwick regions in Zone 4, remain in the Yellow level.

“No travel is permitted in and out of the lockdown area or within the lockdown area except when necessary, such as for vaccinations, medical appointments, work or to purchase essential goods,” public health wrote in a news release. “No travel is recommended in or out of areas in the Red or Orange levels. This recommendation includes no travel to sporting or entertainment events in other zones. Travel among Yellow level areas is permitted.”