By Troy Gillard

TUESDAY UPDATE

Red Deer with 420 active COVID-19 cases as provincial total dips below 5,000

Feb 16, 2021 | 4:06 PM

Alberta confirmed 263 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday.

That’s out of 5,216 test results over the past 24 hours for a higher positivity rate of about five per cent.

“This is an increase from where have been in the past few weeks, which is concerning,” Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health said Tuesday.

“It is possible this increase is because in who went for testing over the long weekend. So we will be watching closely in the days to come to see if this is an isolated finding or a concerning trend.”

Dr. Hinshaw said Alberta saw an average of seven new cases per day over the long weekend of the COVID-19 variant originating in the United Kingdom.

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The number of active cases in the province is down to 4,993, a decrease of 229 from Monday. Recoveries are up 483 to a total of 122,554.

There are 365 Albertans in hospital due to COVID-19, up nine from Monday, including 56 in intensive care, down two.

Nine additional COVID-19 deaths were reported to Alberta Health in the last 24 hours to bring the province’s total as of Tuesday to 1,791.

The number of active COVID-19 cases in Red Deer as of Tuesday is 420, a decrease of eight from Monday. There have been 1,882 recoveries, an increase of 27 as the total number of cases attributed to Red Deer rose by 19 to a total of 2,324. The number of deaths in Red Deer because of COVID-19 remains 22.

Active cases across Central Zone as of Tuesday (by municipality):

Red Deer County: 35 (+3)

Sylvan Lake: 14 (–)

Lacombe County: 9 (–)

City of Lacombe: 35 (-4)

Ponoka County: 40 (-9)

Clearwater County: 16 (+2)

Brazeau County: 9 (-1)

Mountain View County: 9 (–)

Olds: 2 (-1)

Kneehill County: 4 (+1)

County of Stettler: 5 (–)

As of Monday there were 192 active cases linked to the COVID-19 outbreak at the Olymel pork processing facility in Red Deer. Total confirmed cases stemming from the outbreak stood at 326. There has been one death as a result of the outbreak.

The Central Zone has 679 active cases as of Tuesday, a decrease of 27, with 30 hospitalizations. Five people are receiving intensive care for COVID-19 at Red Deer Regional Hospital, unchanged from Monday. The zone has had 101 deaths as a result of COVID-19, none of which were reported in the last 24 hours.

Currently, 264 Alberta schools, about 11 per cent, are on alert or have outbreaks, with 861 cases in total. There are 210 schools are on alert (two or more cases), with 425 total cases. Outbreaks (10 or more cases) are declared in 54 schools, with a total of 436 cases. Alberta Health says in-school transmission has likely occurred in 128 schools. Of these, 81 have had only one new case occur as a result.

Hinshaw said during Tuesday’s press conference that many people had been confused about capacity limits in restaurants since the newly-eased restrictions made no mention of it.

“Unlike other public settings like retail stores, we have not implemented specific capacity limits on restaurants, bars, and lounges.”

“Instead, we have limited capacity by putting into place physical distancing protocols that require a minimum of two metres spacing between tables and dining parties. In addition, we have limited the number of people who can be seated at the same table to a maximum of six and these must be members of the same household.”

Hinshaw will deliver her next update on Wednesday.

Also on Tuesday, Health Minister Tyler Shandro said that more than 9,000 eligible Alberta health-care workers that had their vaccinations delayed due to supply shortages can begin receiving their first doses.

“In the coming days, Alberta Health Services will be reaching out to eligible health-care workers to rebook their vaccination appointments,” Shandro said. “Everyone who is eligible should be able to book a time to receive their dose in the coming weeks, pending vaccine supply.”

(With file from David Opinko – Lethbridge News Now)