The province is alerting the public about a possible COVID-19 exposure at a church, noting that the number of cases is not a reflection on the church's efforts.

Dr. Brent Roussin says that the latest announcement of a COVID-19 expose is linked to a previous exposure, creating a significant amount of cases.

St. Michael’s Ukrainian Catholic Church in Sarto, a church in the R.M of Hanover, has seen an instance of a COVID-19 exposure on February 21.

"The latest one has 10 confirmed cases, many more contacts there. So it is significant. It requires two people in hospital," Roussin says.

Roussin says this is connected to an exposure on March 4 at St. Andrew’s Ukrainian Church in Winnipeg.

"This is not a reflection on the hard work of the people who are trying to make their patrons safe. It is a reflection on a highly communicable virus."

St. Michael’s Ukrainian Catholic Church is now being considered an outbreak site, moving to Critical (Red) level on the #RestartMB Pandemic Response System. The province is asking those who have COVID-19 symptoms and attended any events at, or in relationship to, the church on February 21 to test for COVID-19.

As of Friday morning, the 104 new cases include:

• six cases in Interlake–Eastern health region; 
• 51 cases in the Northern health region;  
• five cases in the Prairie Mountain Health region;  
• five cases in the Southern Health–Santé Sud health region; and  
• 37 cases in the Winnipeg health region.

A woman in her 80s from the Winnipeg health region, linked to the outbreak at the Convalescent Home of Winnipeg, has died.

Manitoba's five-day COVID-19 test positivity rate is 4.1 per cent. Winnipeg's is three per cent.

A new confirmed case of the B.1.1.7 COVID-19 variant of concern has been detected from the Winnipeg health region and is related to travel.  

The data also shows:
• 872 active cases and 30,823 individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 (392 cases were recently moved to ‘recovered’ from ‘active)
• 54 people in hospital with active COVID-19 as well as 100 people in hospital with COVID-19 who are no longer infectious but continue to require care, for a total of 154 hospitalizations; 
• 10 people in intensive care units with active COVID-19 as well as 12 people with COVID-19 who are no longer infectious but continue to require critical care, for a total of 22 ICU patients; 
• the total number of deaths in people with COVID-19 is 912; and 
• the total number of confirmed variant of concern cases of B.1.1.7 is 12 and B.1.351 is 11, bringing the total number of confirmed variant of concern cases to 23.

The outbreak has been declared over at Red River Place Personal Care Home in Selkirk.

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