REGINA -- Two more people have died from COVID-19 complications, according to the Government of Saskatchewan.
The two people, one in their 80s and the other in their 60s, are both from the far north region.
These are the ninth and 10th COVID-19 related deaths recorded in Saskatchewan.
“Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the two people who have recently passed away,” Dr. Saqib Shahab said in the province’s daily update on Wednesday.
One of the deaths includes the one reported as under investigation on Tuesday.
The person in their 60s has been identified to CTV News as Nelda Maurice by her family. The 64-year-old died Monday, weeks after testing positive for COVID-19.
The province also announced three new COVID-19 cases in Saskatchewan on Wednesday. Two cases are in Regina and one is in the far north. There are now a total of 637 cases in the province. Of those cases, 68 are considered active.
“This is a reminder to all of us as we engage in safely in the reopening of Saskatchewan, it is still all around throughout Saskatchewan and we need keep taking all the precautions,” Shahab said.
The province also announced 10 new recoveries on Wednesday, for a provincial total of 559.
There are currently four people in hospital, including three in the ICU in Saskatoon. One person is receiving inpatient care in Regina.
OUTBREAK DECLARED IN SASKATOON
Shahab said the Saskatchewan Health Authority has declared a community outbreak in Saskatoon from two private gatherings that exceeded the 10-person limit.
He said the situation is “contained” since they were closed events. One person has tested positive and another is considered presumptive positive. Others are self-isolating after the events.
Shahab said health officials believe they were outdoor family events where people were sharing food, which he said has proven to be high-risk for transmission at large gatherings throughout the province in the past.
Shahab said food itself is safe and there haven’t been any cases of people contracting the virus from takeout food from restaurants.
However when people are sharing food, he said it likely won’t be possible to maintain physical distancing.
GATHERINGS STILL CAPPED AT 10 PEOPLE
As the weather continues to improve in Saskatchewan, the province says public and private gatherings still have a maximum of 10 people under the public health order currently in place.
The province also says people should keep maintaining two metres of physical distancing. People can form extended households as long as the groups remain consistent.
“We cannot go back to business as usual,” Shahab said. “We still need to minimize transmission where we can.”
People should always be aware of who they’ve been in contact with for the past two weeks, since those people will need to be contacted by public health if you test positive for COVID-19.
STATE OF EMERGENCY EXTENDED
The government said Wednesday the provincial state of emergency has been extended for another two weeks.
It was originally declared by Premier Scott Moe on March 18 and has been extended every two weeks since then.
COVID-19 CASES IN SASK.
There have been 253 total cases in the far north, 167 in Saskatoon, 111 from the north, 78 from Regina, 16 from the south and 12 from the central region.
Saskatchewan is recording 141 cases from travel, 363 from community contacts, 77 with no known exposure and 56 are under investigation.
Ages breaks down into 93 cases in people under the age of 19, 227 cases between 20 and 39, 195 between 40 and 59, 104 between 60 and 79, and 18 over the age of 80. The cases are 51 per cent female and 49 per cent male.
There have been 10 deaths recorded in Saskatchewan.
To date, the province has performed 45,118 COVID-19 tests.
Shahab says it’s too early to say if there’s been an increase in testing due to expanding criteria in Saskatchewan.
SHA CEO Scott Livingstone said there has been an uptick in calls to HealthLine 811 and referrals, but reiterated that it’s still too early to say if there’s an increase.
“I think we’re going to see more growth in that trend over the weeks to come,” he said.
“We want anyone living anywhere in Saskatchewan if they have any symptoms, but also to get if they have any additional concerns,” Shahab said.
He also encouraged people who have mild symptoms to seek testing while the economy works to reopen in the province.
