Baffinland Iron Mines’ safety protocols detect and contain presumptive COVID-19 cases at its Mary River Project

15 July 2020

Baffinland Iron Mines Corporation through its robust COVID-19 detection procedures and in cooperation with Nunavut Public Health (“NPH”), has detected and contained two presumptive COVID-19 cases. An employee that initially tested negative upon arrival to the mine site on July 7, then tested as a presumptive positive at the low end of the infection signal during the 5th day residual testing program. The employee and those identified through contact tracing have been placed in isolation.
Test samples from each isolated employee were transported to Iqaluit for additional testing by NPH. These test results identified a second presumptive positive case among those isolated employees. Further contact tracing was immediately initiated on this individual and two others have also been isolated as a result. All test samples are being transported by NPH from Iqaluit to their government-designated lab in Hamilton, Ontario for further testing.
Through the contact tracing on both employees, we can confirm that the transmission of the virus did not occur on site and is a result of a localized southern cluster. The two identified presumptive positive cases tested on the very low end of the infection signal and are very unlikely to have been contagious. Both employees remain asymptomatic along with their contacts. We are working closely with Chief Medical Officer, NPH, Public Health Agency of Canada, and provincial and territorial governments to coordinate our response.  
Baffinland has maintained a strict no contact policy with our valued Nunavummiut partners and communities and there continues to be no threat of transmission.
Baffinland has a robust Pandemic Response Plan in place and we adjust our approach by reassessing and adopting mitigation measures as new information becomes available. Our experience to date has demonstrated our detection and containment protocols are effective.
We will continue to monitor these cases and will provide updates accordingly.