HALIFAX -- Prince Edward Island reported no new cases of COVID-19 on Friday. With one previously reported case recovered, the number of active cases on the island has dropped to 12.

During a news update on Friday, Dr. Heather Morrison said the province is currently discussing the possibility of ending the two-week 'circuit break lockdown' that began on Monday, sooner than originally scheduled.

“We’re currently reviewing how we many be able to come out of the circuit breaker, maybe a little bit earlier than anticipated, but much will depend on the next few days,” said Dr. Heather Morrison, P.E.I.'s chief medical officer of health.

"We aren't out of the woods here yet, but we sit here before you knowing we are in a much better place today than we even could have thought last Sunday," added P.E.I. Premier Dennis King.

Morrison says P.E.I. health has seen record testing this week, after they asked on Sunday for anyone 20-29 years old who is living in the Charlottetown area to be tested.

"I would have never predicted that so many young people would come out and get tested," said Morrison.

Over 4,000 tests were conducted this week, with no positive results since Monday. Morrison says 3,500 of those tests have come back negative, while approximately 1,300 results are still pending.

“Not only did you show up in droves to follow the advice, you were patient, you were kind, you didn’t complain, you didn’t overreact and you stayed united with your peers to stay apart to ensure we stop the spread of the virus,” added King. “Our province is in good hands with this next generation.”

Eleven of P.E.I.'s 12 active cases were reported between Saturday and Monday and are linked to a group of fast-food workers, and close contacts, in Charlottetown.

Morrison says those active cases have at least 200 close contacts who have been tested and will continue to remain in self-isolation for 14 days, regardless of their test results.

VACCINATION TO BEGIN WEDNESDAY

Morrison says P.E.I. will begin vaccinating frontline health-care workers and long-term care staff against COVID-19 on Wednesday.

The province expects its initial 1,950 doses of the Pfizer vaccine to arrive early next week, and a clinic will be set up at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Charlottetown.

Morrison says because of specific handling requirements set out by Pfizer, the immunizations must take place near where the doses are received and stored.

The province will administer the doses to priority groups including residents and staff of long-term care homes, and health-care workers, who will be contacted in the 'new few days'.

"While eventually there will be enough vaccine for everyone on P.E.I. who wants to be immunized, these next few months will focus on priority groups, as advised by the National Advisory Committee on vaccination," said Morrison on Friday.

Morrison added that a succesful dry-run of the vaccine happened this week, which she described as a 'practice run of shipping the boxes, making sure it's received, stored properly and hooked into the controls and monitoring systems'.

“It all went very well and we were pleased and excited because it signalled that the vaccine really is going to start coming,” said Morrison of the dry-run.

The owner of a bluefin tuna exporting company in eastern Prince Edward Island has offered up two freezers to the provincial government as public health officials prepare to vaccinate Islanders against COVID-19.

Jason Tompkins, owner of One Tuna in North Lake, P. E. I, said in an interview to the Canadian Press on Thursday, that he has loaned two of his laboratory-grade freezers to the province to store the recently approved Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.

The vaccine needs to be kept at a frosty -70 C, according to Pfizer, whose vaccine got the green light from Health Canada on Wednesday. The freezers on loan average about -87 C, Tompkins said.

"I know that they're not something that everyone just has laying around," he said. "If we can do anything to help out, it's kind of our duty."

He said he emailed P.E.I.'s chief public health officer Dr. Heather Morrison to offer up the freezers when he learned the Pfizer vaccine was being considered for approval in Canada.

After discussion with Morrison's team about the suitability of the equipment, the province picked the freezers up earlier this week.

“We were so pleased to have Jason reach out to us with that offer,” said Morrison. “These are great new freezers, one will be used for storage and one for backup. We didn’t anticipate a vaccine arriving as early as it is going to, so he reached out very quickly and we were just thankful.”

One Tuna usually uses each of the freezers to store up to 500 pounds of tuna loin, Tompkins said, but the season for the large fish recently ended, freeing up the equipment.

CIRCUIT BREAKER LOCKDOWN

While Morrison and King said they are evaluating the province's 14-day 'circuit breaker lockdown' announced on Dec. 6, it remains in effect until further notice.

"We aren't out of the woods here yet, but we sit here before you knowing we are in a much better place today than we even could have thought last Sunday," King said.

The new health protocols are scheduled remain in place until at least Dec. 21, and include closing all dining rooms in restaurants, fitness facilities, bingo halls and libraries. Organized gatherings will be limited to no more than 10 people, and retail stores must limit capacity to 50 per cent.

Four island high schools -- Charlottetown Rural, Colonel Gray, Bluefield and École François-Buote -- have moved to online learning this week. All P.E.I. school sports and extra-curricular activities have been temporarily suspended.

Hospitals and care facilities across the island will be limiting their visitors as of Monday. Only one designated ‘partner in care’ will be allowed to visit patients and residents at hospitals, long-term care facilities or any other care facilities on the island.

Patients and residents of hospitals, long-term care facilities, or any other care facilities may designate one ‘partner in care’, a family member of friend who helps provide additional care for a patient or resident.

No other visitors will be allowed, except for compassionate circumstances, such as when a patient is nearing the end of life, when special permission may be granted by Health P.E.I.

UPDATED CASE NUMBERS

As of Thursday, P.E.I. has seen 67,064 negative test results and 84 total cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic was declared in March. With 72 cases now considered recovered, there are 12 active cases in the province. There have been no deaths and no one is in hospital as a result of COVID-19.

Four new cases were reported on Monday, involving two males in their 20s, a male in his 30s, and a female in her 20s. All were close contacts of the cases previously reported over the weekend.

Contact tracing is underway and all close contacts of confirmed cases will be tested and required to self-isolate for 14 days, despite their test results.

“At this point the source of the outbreak is not known and is still under investigation," said Morrison, who added that none of Monday's new cases had recently travelled outside of the province.

Seven new cases were identified over the weekend, all linked to fast-food restaurants in Charlottetown.

Four cases were announced on Sunday involving three women in their 20s and one woman in her 30s.

Those cases were linked to the three cases identified on Saturday, which involved three women in their 20s who were employees at the Wendy's and A&W restaurants on University Avenue in Charlottetown.