Nunavut surpasses 300 cases since start of COVID-19

Three new cases of COVID-19 were reported in Arviat on Thursday, bringing the active cases count in the territory to nine, up from five at the start of the week.

Nunavut’s now seen a total of 303 COVID-19 cases since the first one was reported on Nov. 6, meaning it took about three and a half months to breach a threshold of 300 cases.

All nine active cases in Nunavut are now in Arviat, where 85 per cent of the territory’s total cases have been reported.

“We can only break transmission of COVID-19 by staying vigilant,” Dr. Michael Patterson, Nunavut’s chief public health officer, said in a news release on Thursday.

He reiterated the importance of staying home as much as possible and wearing masks. Travel restrictions in and out of Arviat are still in place, except for medical or other essential reasons.

“I urge Arviammiut to stay strong and keep focused on the well-being of the entire community.”

Everyone with the virus is doing well and isolating at home, while contact tracing continues, the news release states.

As of Thursday, 1,952 tests done in Arviat have come back negative.

Clinics for the second dose of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine are ongoing in Arviat and will run through Saturday.

Arviammiut who missed the first clinic can still call the health centre for an appointment to get their first dose, but priority will be given to those getting their second dose, according to the release.

To date, 6,185 vaccine doses have been given across Nunavut, according to the Government of Nunavut’s online tracker.