Presumptive case of COVID-19 reported at N.W.T.'s Diavik mine

The Northwest Territories government says there's a presumptive case of COVID-19at Diavik Diamond Mine.

A worker tested positive upon entry andis said to be an Ontario resident. They were taken to the mine bya charterflight directly from the South,according to a news release Wednesday morning.

The news release states that the person is self-isolating in an isolation area at the mine, which is locatedabout 300 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife.The government says it won't provide further details to protect the individual's privacy.

The government says a "presumptive positive" test means it will be further tested and confirmed at the Alberta Precision Laboratories.

Medical staff at the mine are working with public health officials for next steps, according to the government.

"Contacts at the mine site are isolated in designated areas with no additional risk identifiedfor the Northwest Territories," states the news release.

In July, a worker from Alberta tested positive for COVID-19 at the Diavik mine and had returned home. The positive case was counted toward Alberta's COVID-19 tally, the government said at the time, as the person wasnot from the N.W.T.The office of the N.W.T.chief public health officer closed its investigation into that case, and determined there wasno risk to communities in the territory.

The government said Wednesday that if the Ontario worker's presumptive case is confirmed as positive, the case also won't be included in the territory's tally of confirmed cases.

There are currently no other known active cases of COVID-19 in the territory. All five of the territory's confirmed cases recovered months ago.

According to the government's latest numbers,4,085 tests have been done in the territory, and144 people are currently waiting for their results.

Precautions taken at mine

Rio Tinto, which operates the Diavik mine, introducedCOVID-19 testing for workersback in May. The company said all workers will be tested when they arrive and before they leave Diavik.

"Much like the last case at a remote camp, heightened precautions in accordance with theterritory's public health orders and through additional diligence by the company worked tominimize exposures," states the government news release.

Those include direct charter flights to the mine, mandatory masks on planes and shuttle buses, and physical distancing on-site prior to workers receiving their test results.

"Our focus is keeping our employees and communities safe. We have extensive measures in place to protect people," an emailed statement attributed to a Diavik spokesperson said Wednesday.

Rio Tinto says there have been about 9,000 tests for COVID-19 done at Diavik Diamond Mine since testing was introduced in May.