There are now several cases under investigation by public health officials, said Dr. Robert Strang, the province’s chief medical officer of health, in a media conference Tuesday.

He said there are two groups of individuals where travel is a factor, but Public Health is trying to determine the source of initial infection and who else may have been exposed.

“There is nothing at this time that points to general community spread here in Nova Scotia,” he said.

But the fact that the province is seeing more and more cases, landing in the double digits for the first time since June, is something Strang said should put everyone on “high alert.”

He referenced Manitoba, a province that had been on a similar track as Nova Scotia in the summertime, but has recently been seeing a massive increase in cases, reporting 241 COVID-19 cases and 5 deaths on Monday.

Upcoming holiday season

The next few weeks, Strang said, are “critically important” for navigating the COVID-19 pandemic in Nova Scotia. As the holiday season approaches, he reminded everyone to follow public health guidelines, including proper mask-wearing and gathering limits.

Over Halloween weekend, police issued fines after responding to some large private gatherings. Strang said it’s especially disappointing because the vast majority of people are following the rules.

He thanked parents and families for finding creative ways to safely distribute Halloween candy from a distance, whether it was clipping sweets to clotheslines or hanging goodies off a hockey stick.

“It’s a reminder that we can still keep our traditions alive while being safe, and we need to think about that while moving into the holiday season,” Strang said.

Specific guidance for Remembrance Day ceremonies will be available soon on the province’s website. It will include things like placing wreaths before the ceremony to minimize movement of people and ensuring any musical performers are a minimum of six feet apart.

“This is not a year to have mass singing. We want to have very small numbers of people, if you have them at all, who are singers,” Strang said.

Testing data currently unavailable

The number of tests completed Monday is currently unavailable while the Nova Scotia Health Authority’s lab is updating its system.

That data will be added to the province’s online COVID-19 dashboard when it becomes available, Strang said.

To date, Nova Scotia has had 1,114 positive cases and 65 deaths. No one is currently in hospital related to the virus.

The latest numbers from around the Atlantic bubble are:

• New Brunswick reported no new cases Monday. It had 29 active cases, down from 33 the day before. 
• Newfoundland and Labrador reported no new cases Tuesday. It has three active cases.
• P.E.I. reported no active cases.

Symptoms

Anyone with one of the following symptoms should visit the COVID-19 self-assessment website or call 811:

• Fever.
• Cough or worsening of a previous cough.

Anyone with two or more of the following symptoms is also asked to visit the website or call 811:

• Sore throat.
• Headache.
• Shortness of breath.
• Runny nose.