Thousands of individuals who participated in Canada’s largest indoor agricultural exhibition this year may have been exposed to measles, as per Manitoba health authorities. The public is advised to monitor for symptoms of the highly contagious disease if they attended Ag Days in Brandon, Man., or were present at surrounding locations like hotels, restaurants, and shops during the three-day event from Jan. 20-22. The potential exposure could have also happened before or after the event, extending to sites not explicitly mentioned in the bulletin.
The annual Ag Days event, held at Brandon’s Keystone Centre with about 35,000 attendees and nearly 600 exhibitors, received notification from Manitoba Health regarding the exposure risk. Event organizers emphasized the importance of transparency, urging attendees to stay vigilant and seek medical assistance if symptoms emerge.
Individuals who visited the event center between Jan. 20-22 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. are advised to monitor for measles symptoms until Feb. 11, 12, or 13. Additionally, those who attended the “agriculture in the classroom” event at the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Dome Building on the same dates should also monitor their health until the mentioned dates.
The bulletin highlights three other potential exposure locations outside of Ag Days, including Stacked Pancake and Breakfast House in Winkler on Feb. 1, the Boundary Trails Health Centre public health office near Winkler on Feb. 2, and the Boundary Trails emergency department on Feb. 3. Monitoring for symptoms at these locations is recommended until the specified dates.
Manitoba recently reported the highest monthly measles case count since the onset of the current outbreak, with 74 confirmed cases in January. This brings the total number of confirmed cases in the province to 393, along with 37 probable cases since February 2025.
