New Brunswick COVID-19 Update

Public Health reports one new case of COVID-19 today, the first in New Brunswick since April 18.

The new case is an individual aged 30-39 in Zone 3 (Fredericton region) and the means of transmission is under investigation.

To date, there have been 119 confirmed cases in New Brunswick. The other 118 people have since recovered from their illness.

The latest updates and information on confirmed COVID-19 cases and laboratory testing in New Brunswick are available online.

Dr. Jennifer Russell, chief medical officer of health, said the emergence of a new case was expected, given the prevalence of the virus in neighbouring provinces and states.

“This is part of our new normal,” said Russell. “New cases will appear and, when they do, we will take the necessary steps to isolate them and track down those they have been in contact with.”

Russell urged New Brunswickers to continue taking actions to slow the spread of the virus, including physical distancing, wearing a community face mask, maintaining appropriate hygiene practices and getting tested if they have symptoms.

New case is not connected to WestJet flight to Moncton

Public Health received word on Monday that a person confirmed to have COVID-19 was a passenger on WestJet flight 3456 to Moncton on April 27. The government took immediate steps to inform New Brunswickers as soon as it was made aware of the incident.

Russell said the person was not tested in New Brunswick and that this case is separate from the new one announced today.

“We have determined that the person in question landed in Moncton and, while we believe the person is not in New Brunswick, we are confirming with another jurisdiction the person’s whereabouts,” said Russell. “The established protocol for travel by known cases, where provincial and territorial officials are expected to notify their counterparts in the receiving jurisdiction, was not followed in this case. We have reached out to federal government officials to get information about this situation, and to discuss what can be done to try to reduce the risk of this happening again.”

Russell said any person who travelled on this flight is directed to self-isolate for 14 days and to contact Tele-Care 811 or their primary health-care provider if symptoms of COVID-19 emerge.

Up-to-date information about COVID-19 is available online.