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Riding Mountain National Park has closed Moon Lake to the public, after blue-green algae was found on the lake’s shore.
This algae produces a toxin that causes serious illness to people and animals who come into contact with it.
Symptoms of blue-green algae poisoning include headache, fever, and skin irritation, among others.
People are being advised to not drink or swim in the lake water. Violators could be fined up to $25,000 under the Canada National Parks Act.
The closure went into effect on Sunday, August 2nd, and will last until August 16th.
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- Contributed by Tess Kovach
There have been 30 new cases of COVID-19 added to Manitoba’s total today.
Eighteen of the new cases are in the Prairie Mountain Health region, 11 are in the Southern Health region, and one is in Winnipeg.
Manitoba now has a total of 474 lab-confirmed and probable cases.
The province has 118 active cases, 348 individuals listed as recovered, with 10 people in hospital — 5 of which are in intensive care.
There have been 8 deaths in Manitoba attributed to the novel coronavirus.
At this time, the province has not released any other information about the recent cases regarding any public health risks, but are advising of a potential exposure on Air Canada flight AC 8595 from Montreal to Winnipeg (rows 16 to 22) on July 29.
For more information on COVID-19 in Manitoba, click here.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
For the first time in over 2 months, a healthcare worker in Manitoba has tested positive for COVID-19.
A volunteer worker from the Prairie Mountain Health region tested positive on July 23rd.
The worker had gotten sick through contact with a known case of COVID, but has since recovered. It’s believed they contracted the virus outside of a healthcare setting, according to a Manitoba Health spokesperson.
At this time it’s not clear what kind of work the volunteer did, but officials say there’s no risk to the public’s health.
The last time a Manitoba health-care worker tested positive for the virus was back in May.
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- Contributed by Tess Kovach
UFC Local 832 says Brandon’s Maple Leaf Foods plant has 3 more employees with COVID-19.
Yesterday the union announced one case at the plant but said the worker hadn’t been at the plant since July 28th.
The union found out about the three new cases late, yesterday and say the cases are among non-production, unionized employees.
UFC Local 832 is calling for the plant to stop production until August 10th at least.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
A specialized treatment program, previously only available in Winnipeg, is now being made available to students in rural Manitoba.
13-year-old Rachel Laviolette-Carniel attends Grandview School and suffers from a brain injury that she received during birth, which has resulted in a cognitive delay and difficulties with things like reading, spelling, and math.
Her mother, Jennifer Laviolette, tells CKDM that the specialized “neuroplasticity therapy” has a high success rate of rehabilitating pathways in the brain, allowing some to overcome those learning disabilities and delays.
The treatment is part of the Arrowsmith Program, offered by the Learning Disabilities Association of Manitoba.
Karen Velthuys is the Executive Director for Learning Disabilities Association of Manitoba, and explains the Arrowsmith program “helps strengthen an individuals brain, by isolating the weak cognitive areas that underline their learning difficulties.”
Although this therapy program was previously only available to Manitoba students living in Winnipeg, but the COVID pandemic has led program organizers to begin offering it online — opening the door for students like Rachel to benefit from the specialized therapy program.
“These kind of therapy programs aren’t widely available,” said Rachel’s mother, adding that “most people have to travel to city centres. This is kind of a step moving forward to making some of these therapies more available to rural Manitoba.”
Rachel would be the very first student in Manitoba to take part in the neuroplasticity therapy remotely, however, her mother says the therapy program isn’t covered by the province of Manitoba.
“For the online portion which Rachel would be doing — we’re looking at a cost of $8,000 per year,” which is something her family can’t afford right now.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
A two-car collision around 2:35 p.m. in front of A&W in Dauphin had multiple emergency units on scene.
The Dauphin Fire Department and RCMP were temporarily blocking off the right southbound lane on Main Street, while the vehicles involved in the collision were steered into the A&W parking lot.
The RCMP say officers were only on scene for about 15 minutes.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
Things will look a bit different at the Dauphin Legion when it reopens Thursday, August 6th.
Public Relations Chairman Jean Ste Marie says the Dauphin Legion will operate Monday to Saturday with hours from 11 a.m. — 11 p.m., but that may change depending on how busy things are.
“We’re hoping to be able to maintain those hours, but if business is extremely slow, we just don’t know what’s going to happen because of COVID. That’s kind of a ‘play it by ear’ situation,” she says.
Unfortunately, provincial guidelines mean there will be no Chase The Ace, darts, pool, or cards until further notice, however 3 VLTs will be in operation.
Ste Marie tells us the furniture at the Legion has been rearranged to accommodate social distancing, and patrons will notice a lot more space between tables and chairs.
There will also be sanitization stations, plexiglass barriers at the bar, and masks available for those who want one.
“We have three excellent bartenders. They have all been trained in the sanitization and expectations of how we’re going to proceed. They’re going to be very diligent in keeping the place clean.”
The Legion spokesperson says that once the province lifts its restrictions, the Dauphin Legion is looking forward to safely getting back to normal with their main events.
“When we can get back to normal, we certainly will.”
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
Two new cases of COVID-19 have been identified in Wednesday’s update from public health officials.
This brings the total number of confirmed and probable cases in Manitoba to 444.
The two new cases are both from the Winnipeg health region – a female in her 20s and a male in his 30s.
There are 94 active cases in the province, and 342 individuals listed as recovered. Nine people are hospitalized in Manitoba, with five people in intensive care because of COVID-19.
The number of COVID-related deaths in the province remains at 8.
Officials are warning of a potential exposure to COVID-19 on Air Canada flight AC 873 from Frankfurt, Germany, to Toronto (rows unknown) on July 26 and Air Canada flight AC 265 from Toronto to Winnipeg on July 26 (rows 22 to 28). Full information about affected flights can be found by clicking here.
Public health says the risk to others as low, but it is sharing information about these flights to ensure people are aware and know to seek testing if symptoms develop.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
21-year-old Shawn Francouer is wanted by the Neepawa RCMP and Brandon Police for numerous charges.
Those charges include failing to comply with a release order, numerous firearms offences, assault and forcible confinement.
It’s believed he’s in Winnipeg, however he’s known to frequent Brandon, Portage la Prairie, and Sandy Bay First Nation.
RCMP ask that if you’ve seen him or know his current whereabouts, to call the Neepawa detachment at 204-476-7340 or the Brandon Police Service at 204-729-2345 with tips or info.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
Face masks will soon be mandatory for all Manitoba Liquor Mart employees.
Beginning tomorrow, Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries will mandate mask use for all liquor stores in the province.
Some casino workers in the province are also required to wear masks.
Right now, masks remain optional for customers.
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- Contributed by Tess Kovach
A worker at Maple Leaf Foods processing plant in Brandon has tested positive for COVID-19, according to an email sent by the union which represents the plant workers.
UFC local 832 reported the case, but added that the worker has not been at the plant since July 28th.
The union says staff that have come into contact with the employee have been sent home to self-isolate for 14 days.
It’s not clear at this time what the worker did at the plant.
Back in May, a security guard at the Brandon plant also tested positive for the virus. The union claimed that the employee had been away from the plant for more than 2 weeks prior, and believed he got the virus after his last shift.
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- Contributed by Tess Kovach
