HALIFAX -- New Brunswick is reporting seven new COVID-19 cases Monday, as well as its first case of the B.1.617 variant, originally identified in India.

The variant is in Zone 3 (Fredericton region) and is connected to a previously reported case.

“With the arrival of this more aggressive variant, now more than ever, New Brunswickers must be vigilant and follow all Public Health measures to reduce the spread and protect our health-care system,” Dr. Jennifer Russell, chief medical officer of health, said in a release.

The Dr. Georges-L-Dumont University Hospital Centre’s microbiology laboratory in Moncton identified the sample as the B.1.617 variant.

Three of the seven new cases reported Monday are in Zone 2 (Saint John region). They include a person age in their 50s and two people in their 70s. All cases are contacts of previously confirmed cases.

The two cases in Zone 3 (Fredericton region) include a person in their 40s and a person in their 60s. One case is a contact of a previously confirmed case and the other is under investigation.

The remaining two cases are in Zone 4 (Edmundston region). One is a person in their 40s and the other is a person in their 50s. Both cases are contacts of previously confirmed cases.

N.B. COVID-19 CASE DATA

There are currently 122 active cases of COVID-19 in New Brunswick.

The province has had 1,858 cumulative cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic.

In total, 1,700 people have recovered, and 35 people have died in the province from COVID-19-related causes.

Seven people are currently in New Brunswick hospitals with COVID-19, with three in intensive care units.

Public health says 283,253 total tests have been conducted since the start of the pandemic.

The number of cases are broken down by New Brunswick’s seven health zones:

  •  Zone 1 – Moncton region: 388 confirmed cases (12 active cases)
  •  Zone 2 – Saint John region: 261 confirmed cases (18 active cases)
  •  Zone 3 – Fredericton region: 264 confirmed cases (12 active cases)
  •  Zone 4 – Edmundston region: 696 confirmed cases (70 active cases)
  •  Zone 5 – Campbellton region: 182 confirmed cases (no active cases)
  •  Zone 6 – Bathurst region: 40 confirmed cases (9 active cases)
  •  Zone 7 – Miramichi region: 27 confirmed cases (one active case)

VACCINE UPDATE

New Brunswick's COVID-19 online dashboard provides an update on the number of vaccines administered to date.

As of Monday, 244,473 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in New Brunswick.

Approximately 33 per cent of the province's population eligible for the vaccine has received at least one dose, according to the province’s online COVID-19 dashboard.

REMINDER OF LOCKDOWN, ORANGE AND YELLOW LEVELS

A section of Zone 4, including Edmundston and the upper Madawaska region, remains in lockdown.

The communities of Saint-Léonard, Grand Falls, Drummond, New Denmark and Four Falls are in the Orange level.

All other zones and communities in the province, including the Saint-Quentin and Kedgwick regions in Zone 4, remain in the Yellow level.