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SHA announces COVID-19 “outbreak” in Saskatoon

The Saskatchewan Health Authority has announced what it called a "community outbreak" of COVID-19 in the Saskatoon area. The outbreak is linked to two large family gatherings in early May that exceeded public health order of 10 people.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority has announced what it called a "community outbreak" of COVID-19 in the Saskatoon area.

The outbreak is linked to two large family gatherings in early May that exceeded public health order of 10 people. It is being declared an outbreak as it involves different households with transmission linked to a large gathering.

Chief medical health officer Dr. Saqib Shahab said as Saskatchewan continues to reopen, the public should consider other means of interaction to avoid further outbreaks in the province.

“If you do choose to have any gathering of whatever size, [ask] are people who are attending vulnerable and what can we do to minimize the risk of transmission,” said Shahab during a press conference.

According to a statement released by the SHA, the outbreak situation in Saskatoon is contained, with all close contacts isolating at home with “no further risk to the public.”

Shahab said although the public needs to engage in the reopening of the province and re-engage socially, nothing is risk free.

“What this underscores is that we cannot go back to business as usual,” said Shahab.

“Even though summer is beginning, even though we see more traffic on the roads and people outside, we still have to be very cautious. We still need to minimize transmission risk wherever we can,” he added.