No widespread community spread, Fitzgerald says, but “I assume COVID can be anywhere, anytime”

The province now has 25 active cases of COVID-19, with 295 recoveries and four deaths since March.

Fitzgerald said there are still no indications of widespread community transmission of the virus in the province.

“That said, we should always assume that COVID can be anywhere, anytime, and we should act accordingly,” he said.

A small group of cases in Deer Lake have raised concerns from residents in the area, prompting the municipal government to close buildings and recreational facilities. Elwood Elementary closed on Monday after a student tested positive.

On Wednesday, Fitzgerald said everyone in the affected cohort had been tested, more than 30 people, and there were no other positive cases in that group.

To date, 60,199 people have been tested, an increase of 458 since Tuesday’s update.

Watch the full November 25 update:

Travel updates

In a press release Wednesday, the Department of Health informed workers of the rotation about a COVID-19 outbreak at the Imperial Oil Cold Lake work site in Alberta. The department said it was informed of the outbreak by the Canada Public Health Agency as workers from Newfoundland and Labrador work on the project.

Project workers who have returned to the province in the past two weeks must isolate themselves from family members and call 811 to arrange testing and complete a full 14-day self-isolation, regardless of the test result, the statement said.

Starting December 1, Fitzgerald said, the COVID-19 provincial government website will outline acceptable reasons for travelers to enter the province. Fitzgerald said the update serves to make it “very clear” to travelers whether they will be allowed in and what is required of them at the entrance.

Another addition to the travel process is the requirement for essential workers to declare which industry they are working in and their place of work in the province, and to provide their employer’s contact information.

“I want to reinforce that the trip right now should be for essential reasons only,” Fitzgerald said. “Newfoundland and Labrador are still in a public health emergency.”

Provincial government officials will now hold live COVID-19 briefings three days a week, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Premier Andrew Furey said the decision was made to provide the public with the knowledge they need to keep schools and businesses open.

Wednesday’s regular weekly briefing followed a surge in cases this month, most of which clustered in Deer Lake, Grand Bank and St. John’s.

To crack down on the workload, those municipalities blocked some facilities and canceled some events.

More recently, officials asked anyone who has returned from Nova Scotia in the past two weeks and has visited Halifax bars and surrounding metropolitan communities to call 811 to arrange for the COVID-19 test, even if they haven’t symptoms.

Again this week, officials changed the self-isolation rules for rolling workers returning home from other provinces. As of this morning, those workers now have to wait until day 7 – instead of day 5 – to get a COVID-19 test to reduce the chances of a false negative.

Cases on the rise nationwide

Elsewhere in Canada, cases have steadily increased. Nova Scotia, which reported 37 new cases on Tuesday, advised large swaths of its metropolitan population to undergo a test and confirmed the spread in the community, while Alberta and BC report record numbers of positive tests.

Alberta has banned private meetings indoors and has moved all students of Grade 7 and above to home learning, but will keep restaurants, businesses, and casinos open with reduced capacity.

Parts of Ontario also went into isolation this week, with non-essential businesses closed and gatherings limited to one family, with the exception of those living alone. Schools remain open.

Prince Edward Island has a new case Wednesday, a woman who traveled to the province from an offshore location in Atlantic Canada.

Newfoundland and Labrador have so far largely avoided new lockdown measures. Furey said on Monday that this week’s new restrictions on self-isolation for rolling workers and travelers arriving from the Atlantic region could prevent tighter controls.

“The Atlantic bubble has been a source of pride … but that has changed,” Furey said during Monday’s COVID-19 briefing.

Last week, a man returned to St. John’s from Nova Scotia and, under the rules at the time, was not required to isolate himself. This prompted a St. John’s restaurant, of which he had been a customer, to close on its own initiative and ask its employees to take a test.

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