It remains unclear how under control a recent COVID-19 outbreak in the northwestern Saskatchewan community of La Loche actually is.
Late last week, the Saskatchewan Health Authority said there was a coronavirus outbreak in the community after reporting four positive cases.
These cases included two COVID-19 infections in a local long-term care facility – one a patient and the other a staff worker.
The SHA says it believes the virus was transmitted from an oilsands facility near Fort McMurray, Alberta.
On Tuesday, at a daily media briefing, SHA northern medical health officer Rim Zayed told media health officials believe the COVID-19 outbreak in La Loche is under control at five confirmed cases.
However, in an interview less than 24 hours later on Wednesday morning, La Loche Mayor Robert St. Pierre said there are now nine COVID-19 cases in the community and three cases in nearby Clearwater River Dene Nation.
In an emailed statement, the Northern Inter-Tribal Health Authority would only confirm there are four positive coronavirus cases in a northwestern Saskatchewan First Nation.
In the past, as in the case of the northeastern Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation community of Southend, NITHA has been willing to confirm community specific COVID-19 infections.
The Saskatchewan Health Authority has split this area of the province into two vast regions of north and far north and is generally unwilling to release which specific communities have COVID-19 infections.
In spite of the varying coronavirus numbers in the La Loche region from day to day, Mayor St. Pierre said he believes social distancing measures and a recent community curfew are having a positive effect.
“From what I gather, this spread has all been traced and they’ve been tested,” he said. “These are just the results of all the tests that have been done and the tracing. So, there are over 30 plus tests from that tracing and these are the results of those. I’m optimistic, hopefully, there is no further spread.”
Premier Scott Moe is set to announce the province’s re-open Saskatchewan plan on Thursday.