Hay River reported three new Covid-19 cases following potential exposure at a high school as the outbreak in Yellowknife grew once again on Friday.
The NWT chief public health officer’s Friday evening update shows the NWT now has 248 active Covid-19 cases, a jump of 28 since Thursday. There were 30 new cases and two people recovered.
In Yellowknife, the active tally rose by 11 to 145, with 13 new cases reported alongside two recoveries. An exposure advisory was issued for the city’s Capitol Theatre on the evening of Tuesday, September 14. If you went to see Malignant that night or were in the theatre’s common areas between 7pm and 10pm, self-monitor. Isolate and book a Covid-19 test if symptoms develop.
Behchokǫ̀ moved from 38 to 46 active cases, with no reported recoveries in the current outbreak. Whatì moved from 27 to 33 active cases, again with no recoveries in the outbreak to date.
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Hay River and the Kátł’odeeche First Nation now report five active Covid-19 cases, an increase of three (three new cases, no new recoveries). On Thursday evening, the town’s Diamond Jenness Secondary School confirmed some students were isolating after Covid-19 exposure at the school.
The Kátł’odeeche First Nation’s state of emergency expired, though the First Nation asked residents to “stay home and maintain heightened awareness” until at least September 26, the NWT government said.
Across the NWT as a whole, one more person with Covid-19 was admitted to hospital – though not into intensive care. There have been 22 hospitalizations in the territory during this outbreak and 26 since the pandemic began.
In Yellowknife, an emergency day shelter and overnight shelter opened on Friday evening at the city’s community arena, staffed by workers from the NWT government and Canadian Red Cross.
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“The shelter will provide food, washrooms, showers, bedding and cots to underhoused members of the Yellowknife community,” said the NWT government. “It is anticipated that the arena will operate until regular shelter services resume at the day shelter and sobering centre in the downtown core.”
While the Canadian Rangers are now offering support until at least the start of October, it’s not clear in which communities they will continue to take an active role in responding to the outbreak.
The NWT government said on Friday Ranger support was “no longer required” in Sahtu communities.
In Norman Wells, the local state of emergency has now ended, as has the town’s overnight curfew.
Tulita’s state of emergency was extended to September 22. Students in the community return to in-class learning on Monday.
