Officials declare Iqaluit’s COVID-19 outbreak over
It has been 28 days since the last case of COVID-19 was resolved
Iqaluit’s COVID-19 outbreak was officially declared over on Tuesday, after 28 days without a reported case of the virus. (Photo by Mélanie Ritchot)
The COVID-19 outbreak in Iqaluit was officially declared over on Tuesday and there are no active cases of COVID-19 in the entire territory of Nunavut.
As of Monday, it had been 28 days since anyone has had COVID-19 in the capital city, which is the criteria to declare the end of an outbreak, Dr. Michael Patterson, Nunavut’s Chief Public announced in a statement Tuesday.
Iqaluit’s first case of COVID-19 was reported on April 14.
Public health measures remain in place, including mandatory mask-wearing.
“For the next two weeks we will continue to monitor the situation and if there are no additional
cases of the virus identified, we will be able to further ease restrictions,” Patterson stated.
COVID-19 testing will be offered at Cadet Hall, Monday to Friday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. until July 23.
The mobile testing van will also be available Monday to Saturday at different locations around Iqaluit until the end of the month.
Vaccination clinics continue across the territory, with youth between 12 and 17 years old eligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
“I encourage everyone to continue following public health restrictions, wash your hands frequently [and] stay home when sick,” Patterson said.
Iqaluit Mayor Kenny Bell said people in the city have reason to celebrate, now that the outbreak is over.
“Thank you to everyone that helped get us here, but no one more than our healthcare providers,” he tweeted. “Excellent work everyone.”
Good for Nunavut. Glad Iqaluit’s covid outbreak is now declared over. Has Rankin Inlet been declared over? I don’t recall seeing any PSA’s regarding the outbreak over for Rankin Inlet. When Covid first was in Rankon Inlet, there was never an announcement of the outbreak being over, they still had restrictions when other communities has their restrictions lifted and now having no case since early December 2020, other than the 2 that were brought into the community from Iqaluit in April, I do not recall ever seeing Rankin Inlet being declared covid free.
Am I missing published information?
I noticed the same thing, its been business as usual as far as communications go here, which is to say… a total cluster f*&k…
Yes, the outbreak in Rankin Inlet was declared over about 2 weeks ago, as was the outbreak in Kinngait. I don’t recall the exact date but I did notice on the government’s official website (https://www.gov.nu.ca/health/information/covid-19-novel-coronavirus) one day that the outbreaks in Kinngait and Rankin Inlet had been moved to “Over” status. I don’t know if there was any official announcement.
I seen it was available on the Government of Nunavut website, my point was not announced publicly. As you may be aware, not everyone is going to search the Internet, GN website for this type of information. The last case for Rankin Inlet was May 8th, the GN did not announce Covid outbreak being over at all in the first week of June. But Iqaluit has the outbreak declared over on the first day after the required amount. People notice the double standard the GN has and it’s about time people throughout the Territory receive the same treatment from the Government of Nunavut.
You said the last case in Rankin was May 8
So the GN and the CPHO indicated that after a community has had no new Covid cases it must wait 28 days to announce that community is Covid Free
In Rankins case that would make the announcement day to come around June 6 or 7, so am not sure why you are complaining. Going by your comment it appears Rankin got its notification when it was supposed to.
If you want to complain. I would be complaining on why do we still have to wear mask and still have restrictions now that Nunavut is Covid Free.
Why do we have to wait an additional to more weeks to see if any new restrictions will be eased, or lifted.
Feels like Nunavut has joined the communist party. Russia, China, North Korea, and now Nunavut
The gravity inside a black hole is so strong that not even light can escape it. So it is with the Government of Nunavut, where the importance of all things appears to revolve around their proximate effects on the psychological black hole that is Iqaluit.
Real world example; when covid hits Iqaluit, suddenly places as far flung from the center as Cambridge Bay (over 1,000 miles away) are forced to enact safety rituals that were not considered necessary when the worst outbreak raged in Arviat–the antipodes of the territory (psychologically and symbolically speaking).
Your are correct about Iqaluit being a black hole, but be careful what you wish for, because there is more than just one black hole in space, or should I say Nunavut, and there are several other communities fast approaching Iqaluit’s status.
Iqaluit used to be a wonderful place to live and call home. People treated each other with respect, had family values, and community spirit, but that has all changed.
The community is filled with toxic people of all ethnic back-grounds. Elder abuse is a daily occurrence, Break & Enters, Assaults, Public Drunkenness, Greed, Addictions, Murders, Sexual Assaults, Child Abuse, and the list goes on and on.
So if your thinking that people living in Iqaluit have it made, you are more than welcome to take this black hole we are living in.
We did not want it in the first place
What does people of different ethnic backgrounds have to do with living in Iqaluit?
The cultural diversity of this city is one of the best things about living here.
My only point was that as the center of government it is an easy place to project all that happens there as all that is happening everywhere in Nunavut. So when covid lurks in Iqaluit, suddenly it lurks under beds in Grise Fjord, whereas before that, when it rages elsewhere it is not made nearly as big a deal of.
I am so done with your masks and restrictions, i have a perfect place the government can put them. Go ahead and fine me.
Aw poor “Northerner” So done with masks and restrictions. You SHOULD be fined. You have no right to put the lives of other people at risk.
Perhaps pay attention to the increases of covid in southern Canada and the good ol US of A because of the attitude you exhibit.
Thanks to all the people especially the youth who took the vaccine, it really helped with getting the outbreak under control. With so many people here coming and going, we were bound to get Covid, the people of Iqaluit really have shown it works with the high number of people getting vaccinated and getting the outbreak under control, great job Iqaluit!