Natuashish reporting double-digit case numbers as COVID hits community for first time

COVID-19 has entered the isolated community of Natuashish for the first time in a large way and contact tracers are having difficulties, according to Mushuau Innu First Nation Chief John Nui. 

Nui said he and council got their first update from their health workers on Tuesday. The community has since reported 30 cases in the community of 935 people, located 295 kilometres north of Happy Valley-Goose Bay. 

Those cases don't include the number of people who were a close contact and have symptoms but are being advised to not be tested due to a backlog of tests in the province. 

"With the size of our community, that number is very big to us and we are very concerned and rightfully so," Nui said. "Everybody is concerned. Most people are isolated in their own homes and stay within their bubble…we can beat this if we work together."

The community isn't allowing any commercial flights to land as a precaution. 

The youngest case is a two-year-old while the current oldest case is a 55-year-old, Nui said. Contact tracing is ongoing, but he says it comes with challenges.

"It's very hard for them because some of them are new and they have to have help from the community members to make this work…sort of getting in contact with the people that are on the list," he said. 

Some people in the community don't have phones and have to be contacted on social media or in other ways, he said, adding the community does have enough testing supplies at the moment. CBC has contacted Labrador-Grenfell Health to ask what supports are being put in place in the community.

Nui said the exposure is believed to have happened at the community store, claiming a person who tested positive went into the store and created an exposure site, but a public health investigation is ongoing. The community store has since changed from walk-ins to appointments.

Cases throughout Labrador-Grenfell Health continued to rise on Wednesday with 97 new cases reported by the province. 

Labrador-Grenfell Health has 725 active cases as of Wednesday. That doesn't include people who are a close contact of a positive case and have symptoms but are being advised by the province to not be tested due to limited testing capacities. 

At last report, the Inuit community of Nain has 15 confirmed cases and three presumptive cases. The Sheshatshiu Innu First Nation is reporting 14 active cases.

Jordan Brown, MHA for Labrador West, says the region has 60 active cases.

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