441 new COVID-19 cases, 3 more deaths in Manitoba on Sunday

There are 441new cases of COVID-19 and three more deaths linked to the illness in Manitoba on Sunday, the province says in a news release.

Manitoba's five-day test positivity rate a rolling average of the COVID-19 tests that come back positive is now 9.2 per cent, the release says.In Winnipeg, that rate is now 8.9 per cent.

One of the deaths announced Sunday was a woman in her 90s linked to an outbreak of the illness at the Seine River Retirement Residence in Winnipeg. The other two women in their 70s and 80s, respectively were also in the Winnipeg health region, the release says.

The fatalities bring Manitoba's coronavirus-linked death toll to 106.

Most of the new cases announced Sunday 318 are also in the Winnipeg health region. Another 86 are in the Southern Health region, 16 are in the Interlake-Eastern health region, 12 are in the Northern Health region and nine are in the Prairie Mountain Health region.

Sunday's update is Manitoba's second-highest one-day increase in new cases, after 480 cases were announced on Oct. 30.

There are now 173 people in hospital with COVID-19 in the province, including 25 in intensive care, the release says.

There have now been 8,130 cases of COVID-19 detected in Manitoba.In total, 3,175 people have recovered, while 4,849 are listed as active, though health officials have said that number is skewed because of a data backlog.

Manitoba marked its deadliest day of the pandemic on Saturday, when the province announced seven deaths linked to the illness caused by the novel coronavirus.

Possible COVID-19 exposures are updated on the province's website.

Meanwhile, the province's Southern Health region is moving to the critical red level of the pandemic response system on Monday.

That move will bring in new rules similar to the ones already in place in the Winnipeg area, which moved to the response system's highest level earlier this week.

On Saturday, 3,590 more COVID-19 test were done in Manitoba, bringing the total completed in the province since early February to 285,269, the release says.

The province also reminded people that testing capacity should be kept for people with symptoms of COVID-19. Unless people are advised by public health to get tested, those without symptoms may be turned away from test sites, the release says.