No New Cases For 11th Straight Day

The number of COVID-19 cases in Manitoba remains at 325, after no new cases were identified by public health officials on Saturday.

It’s the 11th straight day no with new cases reported in the province.

The latest case stats from the province on Friday identified four active cases of the virus; with 314 people listed as recovered.

Seven people have died because of COVID-19.

The total number of cases in the Prairie Mountain Health region remains at 26.

For the latest safety information from the province, click here.

Details: Contributed by Matt Hamel; Published: Jul 11, 2020 - 2:59 pm

Now is your chance to look up in the night sky and see one of the brightest comets in the last 30 years.

If you go outside around 3:30 a.m. and look toward the northeast, you should be able to catch a glimpse of Comet NEOWISE C/2020 F3.

Manitoba Museum planetarium astronomer Scott Young gave details on what to expect.

“Basically when the solar system was formed, there’s still leftover bits floating around out there and the ones mostly made out of rock we call asteroids, and the ones mostly made of ice we call comets. The cool thing about comets is when they come closer to the sun, that ice starts to melt. The snowball is maybe a few kilometers across – we wouldn’t even normally be able to see that at this kind of distance – but because the snow starts melting, it releases dust and gas and all sorts of material that’s trapped in there, and that flows behind it in this beautiful tail.”

Comet 2

Young adds that comets are very unpredictable and that NEOWISE will only be visible for the next few weeks.

For updates and more information about the comet, you can go to the museum website .

Details: Contributed by Tess Kovach; Published: Jul 10, 2020 - 4:15 pm

No new cases of COVID-19 have been identified today, keeping the total number of cases in the province at 325.

There is still no one in the hospital, and the number of deaths remains at 7.

Manitoba has 4 active cases, and 314 people have recovered from the virus.

The total number of cases in the Prairie Mountain Health region remains at 26.

For more information, go to manitoba.ca/covid19.

Details: Contributed by Tess Kovach; Published: Jul 10, 2020 - 1:21 pm

Nearly 1 million jobs were added in Canada last month, according to Statistics Canada.

In Manitoba, about 28,900 more positions were added between May and June – of those positions, around 14,800 are full-time jobs, and 14,200 part-time.

Finance Minister Scott Fielding gave details this morning, saying “With increases in May and June, over 40 percent of Manitobans who lost employment due to COVID-19 are already back at work.”

The province’s unemployment rate dropped to 10.1 percent last month after reaching 11.2 percent in May.

Youth unemployment has decreased by 3.5 percent, to 19.3 percent, the lowest in Canada.

Manitoba currently has the second-lowest unemployment rate in Canada.

Details: Contributed by Tess Kovach; Published: Jul 10, 2020 - 12:26 pm

While there have been reports of some Manitobans doing damage to vehicles with license plates from the US and other provinces, or harassing the drivers, the RCMP say there haven’t been any incidents reported in Dauphin.

In Winnipeg, members of the US military that are stationed in Winnipeg with the North American Aerospace Defence Command have had their vehicles keyed, been told to go home, or even had profanities yelled at them.

Other reported incidents have seen hostility given to other Canadians with vehicles that have US plates or plates from out of province.

The hostility could boil down to Manitobans believing the out of province plates are from tourists or the major outbreak of COVID-19 in America.

Paul Manaigre, media relations officer with the RCMP, gave a statement on the situation.

“We’re asking Manitobans to be cognizant of the fact that it may be possible that these vehicles have been in Manitoba for several months and that we must not assume they have just entered the country. This is why we encourage those with concerns to report it.”

He adds that if anyone has any concerns regarding possible COVID-19 cases to report it to the Government Inquiry line at 1-866-626-4862.

Details: Contributed by Isaac Wihak; Published: Jul 10, 2020 - 11:56 am

Manitoba’s agriculture minister says the online licensing system for the fall hunting season will begin soon, and he’s also giving us with an update on moose populations in Game Hunting Areas.

Fall hunting licenses will be available in August through the new e-licensing system. The website can also be used to search for vendors that sell licenses. You can view the website here.

Hunters should expect a two-week wait for the delivery of game tags.

The Manitoba Hunting Guide 2020 is available now, by clicking here .

When it comes to moose populations, Agriculture Minister Blaine Pedersen says “moose populations appear to be recovering in certain areas. However, the slow recovery suggests they are facing an uphill battle.”

Aerial moose surveys were conducted in January and February in Game Hunting Areas (GHA) 13, 13A (Porcupine Mountain), 18, 18A-C (Duck Mountain) and 26 (Pinawa/Bisset area), and a summary of the results is available online.

The survey results suggest a gradual trend of increasing moose populations in Duck Mountain and GHA 26 since 2010 and a stable population in Porcupine Mountain. The trend over time suggests these populations are recovering, but more slowly than anticipated.

Details: Contributed by Matt Hamel; Published: Jul 10, 2020 - 11:22 am

RCMP are looking for help in identifying human remains found in Portage la Prairie.

On June 24^th, RCMP responded to a report of human remains found near Baker Street in Portage. The investigation has been determined to be a homicide.

The identity of the victim remains unknown; however an autopsy of the victim has confirmed the following information:

Male
Between the ages of 20 – 40
5’7” – 6’2” in height
Has scoliosis of the spine (curvature of the spine)
Brown hair, possibly medium length

RCMP ask that if you know of anyone that fits this description, or if you have any information about the homicide, call the RCMP Major Crime Services tip line at 431-489-8551, or contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477 or www.manitobacrimestoppers.com.

Details: Contributed by Tess Kovach; Published: Jul 10, 2020 - 11:13 am

Yesterday afternoon just before 5, a STARS unit was dispatched to Neepawa.

A 21-year-old man had suffered serious burns in an explosion.

Following initial treatment by Neepawa EMS and staff at the local hospital, he was airlifted to the Health Sciences Centre in serious but stable condition.

Details: Contributed by Isaac Wihak; Published: Jul 10, 2020 - 8:34 am

The province is giving us an update on the flooding in some areas of Manitoba.

Areas in southwest and western Manitoba continue to experience flood conditions following record-high precipitation of more than 200 millimetres.

Water levels at the provincial dam at Rivers on the Little Saskatchewan River have declined steadily, with the rain being less of a factor as of late.

The steady decline in water levels has allowed provincial crews to begin the process of assessing the condition of the dam at Rivers.

The province says the dams at Rivers and Minnedosa are being monitored around the clock.

At this time, 57 people remain evacuated from the RM of Riverdale — 17 remain evacuated from the RM of Whitehead — while evacuees from the town of Neepawa and the RM of Cornwallis have returned home.

The province has still not announced any details about emergency disaster assistance for municipalities and individuals in western Manitoba. Earlier this week, Manitoba Liberal Party leader Dougald Lamont called on provincial and federal levels of government to “step up quickly" and not delay in providing financial assistance.