The cases are all related to international travel

On Sunday, the government of Nova Scotia announced that the province has three presumptive cases of novel coronavirus.

At a press conference, Nova Scotia's chief medical officer of health Dr. Robert Strang told the public that the three cases are not related to each other.

The cases include a 61-year-old female from King's County who travelled to Australia, a 50-year-old male who lives in HRM and travelled to the United States, and a male in his 30s who travelled extensively throughout Europe.

The three travellers all returned to the province between March 8 and March 13.

Strang says all the presumptive tests are going to the National Microbiology Laboratory in Manitoba for confirmation of COVID-19. The three patients are all managing their symptoms at home.

A small number of people may have been exposed to these three cases, but Strang says they are already being monitored.

"We were able to say that there are a small number of Nova Scotians who were in close contact with these individuals and all those individuals are now being asked to quarantine themselves for 14 days," he explained.

Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil also expressed his well-wishes for those who have been affected by the virus.

"My thoughts are with those individuals and I want to wish them a speedy and thorough recovery," he said.

As of March 15, Nova Scotia has completed 418 tests for COVID-19, with 415 negative results and 3 presumptive positive cases.