COVID-19 case found in Kinngait a week after hamlet’s count dropped to zero

A new case of COVID-19 has been confirmed in Kinngait, just seven days after the hamlet of 1,500 dropped to zero cases, Premier Joe Savikataaq reported on Saturday. It means there are two communities in Nunavut where the potentially fatal respiratory illness has been detected.

There are also four new cases in Iqaluit, which entered the second month of its outbreak on Friday, Savikataaq posted in a message on Twitter on Saturday.

There have also been nine recoveries in Iqaluit, bringing the capital’s active caseload to 73. The single case in Kinngait means there’s a total of 74 active cases across the territory, the premier said.

COVID-19 arrived in Kinngait on April 20, almost a week after Iqaluit’s first-ever case was detected. Kinngait’s number of active cases climbed to four. But the Government of Nunavut reported on May 8 that cases there had fallen to zero.

The person who was recently diagnosed in Kinngait is linked to previously identified cases, Savikataaq said. The case is considered to be household transmission, the person is in isolation and the detection of a new case does not require any changes to public health measures in Kinngait, he said.