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The Manitoba government is telling us more about the plans for COVID-19 vaccinations in the coming months.
The eligibility criteria will be expanded in the coming weeks as more vaccine doses are delivered — and immunization appointments will gradually open up to a broader range of healthcare workers, care home residents, and elderly Manitobans.
The Manitoba government will use daily COVID-19 vaccine bulletins to inform health-care workers and other Manitobans when they become eligible to be immunized.
The province says the key limiting factor at this time is the vaccine supply procured by the federal government. Supplies are expected to be limited until April 2021 across Canada.
With additional vaccine supplies expected to arrive in Manitoba in January, an estimated 15,000 residents of personal care homes, who are most at risk of serious and potentially life-threatening illness, will become eligible to be vaccinated.
Provincial officials say a public health evidence-based formula will be used to determine where vaccines will be deployed (ie. assessing the risks of each personal care home, based on the number of residents and the use of shared rooms where infection is more likely to spread).
During the month of January, the province expects enough vaccine supplies to provide approximately 10,000 immunizations per week.
Once larger, additional supplies of vaccines are made available to Manitoba, the province says the next phase of the immunization campaign will add seniors as a priority group, starting with the oldest Manitobans.
Based on projected deliveries of vaccine to Manitoba, this may not begin for several months.
An immunization super site — the province’s 1st — is expected to open at the RBC Convention Centre in Winnipeg on Jan. 4.
On Jan. 18, Brandon’s Keystone Centre in Brandon is expected to begin operating an immunization clinic.
The province says a new online system for booking immunization appointments will launch in early 2021. The current phone line will continue to be available for those without internet access.
The province will also be launching an online dashboard to provide updates and statistics on the vaccine campaign.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
Health Canada has announced its approval of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine.
After reviewing the clinical trial data, the vaccine was found to be 94.1% effective.
Earlier this month Health Canada approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and have already distributed the vaccine across the country.
There are some similarities between the Moderna vaccine and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Both require two doses for maximum immunity and they both use mRNA technology.
The major difference is how the vaccines are stored. Moderna’s vaccine can be stored at -20 degrees Celcius while being transferred and then remains stable at 2 to 8 degrees after thawing, for 30 days. The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine needs to be stored at -70 degrees Celcius until its destination when it can then be stored for 5 days at 2-8 degrees.
Up to 168-thousand doses are due to arrive in Canada before the end of the month and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said deliveries could begin within 48 hours of approval.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
The winter storm warning ended overnight leaving us with lots of snow to deal with this morning.
Snow ploughs have been working hard all morning to clear the streets.
Throughout the morning as crews have been working, highways have started to reopen.
Highway 5 has completely reopened.
The highway from Rossburn to Russell is open and roads are partly covered.
Highway 20 is open but is covered with snow and ice.
For up to date information on Manitoba roads go to the speedy glass road conditions report.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
The Dauphin Fire Department responded to a single-vehicle crash on Tuesday afternoon around 2:30 p.m.
The incident occurred on Highway 20, two miles south of Provincial Road 267.
Fire Chief Cam Abrey is asking motorists to drive with extreme caution due to the snowy conditions and slippery roads.
He says the collision resulted in only minor injuries.
As of 4:30 p.m., he says Highway 20 is now back open to regular traffic.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
A Minnedosa man is facing impaired driving charges after police say he narrowly caused a head-on collision with an RCMP cruiser.
On Friday, Dec. 11 around 7:30 p.m., an RCMP officer travelling on Highway 16 had to quickly move over to the shoulder to avoid colliding with the vehicle driving on the wrong side of the road.
On Dec 11, Spruce Plains #rcmpmb patrolling on #MBHwy16, had to move onto the shoulder to avoid a head-on collision with a vehicle going the wrong way. The officer stopped the vehicle & the 30yo driver was arrested for Impaired Driving & more. Investigation ongoing. pic.twitter.com/OhDoPcYtC9
— RCMP Manitoba (@rcmpmb) December 22, 2020
Police say they received two other 911 calls with reports of almost being hit by this vehicle.
The 30-year-old from Minnedosa is facing charges of Impaired Operation, Refusal to Comply with a Breath Demand, along with charges under the Highway Traffic Act for Drive without a Licence, Drive an Unregistered vehicle and Drive without Insurance.
He is scheduled to appear in court in Minnedosa on February 23.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
Public health officials are reporting 155 new cases of COVID-19 and 18 deaths on Tuesday.
Two of the deaths announced are in the Prairie Mountain Health region — including a woman in her 90s linked to the Grandview Personal Care Home outbreak.
Seven more deaths are also being reported at Winnipeg’s Oakview Place personal care home.
The full list of the most recent deaths in Manitoba due to COVID-19 can be found at the bottom of this article.
The number of active cases in Manitoba as of yesterday was 5,736 — that number is now down to 4,382 today.
Acting deputy chief provincial public health officer, Dr. Jazz Atwal, explains the drop in active case numbers is due to the province addressing a data backlog — moving older cases to the “recovered” category.
“Our case numbers are trending in the right direction,” says Dr. Atwal.
When might the province start looking at relaxing lockdown measures? The World Health Organization says test positivity rates should be below 5% before governments loosen their restrictions.
The current five-day COVID-19 test positivity rate is 11.5% provincially and 10.5% in Winnipeg. The total number of lab-confirmed cases in Manitoba is 23,180.
There are 4,382 active cases and 18,208 individuals who have recovered from COVID-19. There are 275 people in hospital with 36 people in intensive care due to COVID-19.
The total number of deaths due to COVID-19 is 590.
Today’s COVID-19 data shows:
• nine cases in the Interlake–Eastern health region
• 27 cases in the Northern health region
• 10 cases in the Prairie Mountain Health region
• 17 cases in the Southern Health–Santé Sud health region
• 92 cases in the Winnipeg health region
According to the province’s data, there are active cases in the following Parkland health districts: Dauphin (2), Riding Mountain (0), Swan River (2), Porcupine Mountain (92), Duck Mountain (6), Asessippi (7), Little Saskatchewan (5), Whitemud (3), and Agassiz Mountain no longer has any active cases. Brandon has 123 active cases.
In the Interlake, the Eriksdale/Ashern health district has 32 active cases, while Fisher/Peguis has 31, according to the province’s latest update.
Public health officials advise 18 additional deaths in people with COVID-19 have been reported today including:
• a female in her 80s from the Interlake–Eastern health region, linked to an outbreak at Kin Place in Oakbank
• a female in her 80s from the Prairie Mountain Health region, linked to an outbreak at Fairview Home in Brandon
• a female in her 90s from the Prairie Mountain Health region, linked to an outbreak at the Grandview Personal Care Home in Grandview
• a female in her 100s from the Southern Health–Santé Sud health region
• a female in her 60s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Charleswood Care Centre
• a male in his 70s from the Winnipeg health region
• a male in his 70s from the Winnipeg health region
• a female in her 80s from the Winnipeg health region
• a female in her 80s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Oakview Place personal care home
• a male in his 80s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Oakview Place personal care home
• a male in his 80s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the St. Norbert Personal Care Home
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Oakview Place personal care home
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Oakview Place personal care home
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Oakview Place personal care home
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the N3E family medicine unit at Concordia Hospital
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Oakview Place personal care home
• a male in his 90s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Oakview Place personal care home
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
The provincial government is giving the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce $5 million to develop a program for dine-in restaurants.
Premier Brian Pallister made the announcement saying the restaurant community has made significant sacrifices to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
“Many businesses have taken on additional costs to adapt their operations to comply with public health orders and safely provide Manitobans with the services they rely on while supporting their efforts to stay home. Our government continues to work with the business community to identify industry needs and help target our support to help offset new expenses.”
The Manitoba Chamber will deliver the $5-million Dine-in Restaurant Relief Program. The program will be designed for dine-in restaurants that have shifted to a delivery model due to the province being on the critical level of the pandemic response system.
Executive Director of the Dauphin and District Chamber of Commerce, Stephen Chychota, shares his thoughts on the announcement.
“Really, a great move that the Manitoba Chamber can work with the Restaurant Association and the province to allocate some funds to supporting restaurants because they have been severely impacted during this time of COVID. So, hopefully, that going forward, the programs that they can develop and further implement, that they will not exactly make up for them but help them as best they can to keep them going and come out the other side of this whole thing.”
Chychota says there’s not a lot of details shared about the announcement, but there’ll be more to come.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
The winter storm watch issued by Environment Canada has now been upgraded to a winter storm warning, as of 3:21 p.m. on Monday.
Hazardous winter conditions are expected as a low-pressure system moves in from the U.S. border on Tuesday, with heavy snowfall expected for most of the day.
The warning is in effect for southern Manitoba, including the Parkland.
Heavy snow is expected to begin Tuesday morning, with strong northerly winds gusting 60 to 70 km/h may develop through the day, drastically reducing visibility on the roads.
Near-zero visibility can be expected in heavy, blowing snow -- and Environment Canada suggests postponing travel until conditions improve.
A swath of 20-25 cm is likely from Minnedosa eastward to Bissett. The snow and winds will both ease Wednesday morning as the system departs to the east.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
Manitoba’s daily case count is below 200 for the first time since November 3rd — with 167 new cases announced Monday.
There were also four deaths reported, including three individuals from the Winnipeg health region, and one from the Southern Health region.
The full list of the most recent deaths in Manitoba due to COVID-19 can be found at the bottom of this article.
Health officials have now declared the outbreak at the Swan Valley Health Centre in Swan River over.
Manitoba’s test positivity rate has dropped to the lowest in a month — at 11.5% provincially and 10.5% in Winnipeg. The total number of lab-confirmed cases in Manitoba is now 23,025.
There are 5,736 active cases and 16,717 individuals who have recovered from COVID-19.
There are 310 people in hospital with 42 people in intensive care due to COVID-19. The total number of deaths due to COVID-19 is 572.
Today’s COVID-19 data shows:
• nine cases in the Interlake–Eastern health region
• 25 cases in the Northern health region
• seven cases in the Prairie Mountain Health region
• 43 cases in the Southern Health–Santé Sud health region
• 83 cases in the Winnipeg health region
The province no longer has any active cases listed in the Riding Mountain health district (which includes Gilbert Plains, Winnipegosis, Ethelbert, and the R.M. of Dauphin).
According to the province’s data, there are active cases in the following Parkland health districts: Dauphin (2), Riding Mountain (0), Swan River (2), Porcupine Mountain (89), Duck Mountain (9), Asessippi (7), Little Saskatchewan (9), Whitemud (3), and Agassiz Mountain (1). Brandon has 144 active cases.
The Riding Mountain health district no longer has any active cases according to the provincial data | Photo courtesy of the Government of Manitoba
In the Interlake, the Eriksdale/Ashern health district has 32 active cases, while Fisher/Peguis has 31, according to the province’s latest update.
Public health officials advise four additional deaths in people with COVID-19 have been reported today including:
• a female in her 60s from the Southern Health–Santé Sud health region
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Charleswood Care Centre
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Park Manor Care
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
A helicopter rescue on Lake Winnipeg this weekend saved two 22-year-old men after the piece of ice they were fishing on broke off from shore and began drifting away.
RCMP say they received the call around 1:20 p.m. on Saturday, and that initial attempts to rescue the men by boat were unsuccessful due to four-foot waves.
A nearby helicopter service was called in as strong winds continued to push the ice further away from shore.
RCMP say the two men were rescued from the drifting ice without injury.
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- Contributed by 730 CKDM
A woman in her 80s from the Grandview Personal Care Home is one of 13 deaths announced in Manitoba on Sunday.
Health officials also reported 229 new cases of COVID-19.
The full list of the most recent deaths in Manitoba due to COVID-19 can be found at the bottom of this article.
The current five-day COVID-19 test positivity rate is 12.2% provincially and 11.4% in Winnipeg. The total number of lab-confirmed cases in Manitoba is now 22,859.
There are 5,749 active cases and 16,541 individuals who have recovered from COVID-19. There are 302 people in hospital with 43 people in intensive care due to COVID-19.
The total number of deaths due to COVID-19 in Manitoba is 569.
Today’s COVID-19 data shows:
• 16 cases in the Interlake-Eastern health region
• 27 cases in the Northern health region
• 17 cases in the Prairie Mountain Health region
• 39 cases in the Southern Health-Santé Sud health region
• 130 cases in the Winnipeg health region
According to the province’s data, there are active cases in the following Parkland health districts: Dauphin (3), Riding Mountain (8), Swan River (3), Porcupine Mountain (85), Duck Mountain (12), Asessippi (8), Little Saskatchewan (9), Whitemud (3), and Agassiz Mountain (2). Brandon has 157 active cases.
In the Interlake, the Eriksdale/Ashern health district has 32 active cases, while Fisher/Peguis has 30, according to the province’s latest update.
Public health officials advise 13 additional deaths in people with COVID-19 have been reported today, including:
• a female in her 50s from the Northern health region
• a female in her 80s from the Prairie Mountain Health region, linked to an outbreak at the Grandview Personal Care Home in Grandview
• a male in his 90s from the Southern Health-Santé Sud region
• a male in his 30s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at St. Amant
• a female in her 40s from the Winnipeg health region
• a female in her 70s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at Holy Family Home
• a male in his 70s from the Winnipeg health region
• a male in his 70s from the Winnipeg health region linked to an outbreak at the Charleswood Care Centre
• a male in his 70s from the Winnipeg health region
• a female in her 80s from the Winnipeg health region
• a female in her 80s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the GA3 unit at Health Sciences Centre Winnipeg
• a male in his 80s from the Winnipeg health region
• a female in her 90s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to an outbreak at the Charleswood Care Centre
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- Contributed by 730 CKDM
