Alberta surpasses 1000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, now 25 in Red Deer

In the Central Zone, there are now 62 cases, up three from Thursday.

That includes one new case in Red Deer, and two new cases in Red Deer County. The city of Red Deer now has 25 total cases; five in the north, four in the southwest, and 16 in the southeast.

Central Zone data (as of April 3):

City of Red Deer – 25 (1 new)
Red Deer County – 10 (2 new)
Wetaskiwin County – 8
Lacombe – 3
Camrose and County – 3
Olds – 2
Vermilion River County – 2
Vegreville/Minburn County – 2
Tofield – 2
Ponoka – 1
Stettler and County -1
Innisfail – 1
Sundre – 1

“Looking at the graph of confirmed cases you see posted on our website, it may appear we are seeing a spike in the number of people infected in the last few days,” said Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the province’s chief medical officer of health. “What we are actually seeing is the excellent work of lab services to work through a backlog of swabs that were waiting to be tested.”

Hinshaw further explained that cases related to the sudden increases daily represent the date the lab completed the test, not when a person became ill.

Hinshaw also announced further restrictions to hospital visits, effectively barring visitors. There will be exceptions when it comes to a child patient, or delivery of a baby, and they will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. Hinshaw is encouraging virtual visits when possible.

“One of the most important numbers we have been tracking all along is the number of new cases we are seeing who don’t have a link to another known case. We have called these community acquired,” she continued.

“Although we have announced additional cases in that group over the past few days, what I can tell you is that when we look at the number of these cases by the day the swab was collected, instead of the day the lab tested the swab, we are seeing that our new daily numbers of community acquired cases have remained relatively constant over the last 10 days.”

Premier Kenney added that next week, the province will share modelling and projections for how drastically the disease could spread in Alberta. Ontario released projections today showing what the disease could cause by the end of the pandemic.

“I can assure Albertans today however that the modelling indicates that we have the health care equipment, personnel and supplies needed to cope with anticipated hospitalizations, including in intensive care units, and including the usage of ventilators,” Kenney said.

The premier also commented on a report from Friday morning that U.S. President Donald Trump had asked Minnesota-based manufacturer 3M to stop shipping medical supplies to Canada.

“We do have orders for masks that are not from the United States. We are doing everything we can to get additional supplies. We’re very intentionally trying to source from many different countries because of the risks posed to supply lines,” Kenney stated.

“The announcement today is extremely disappointing, and it reminds me of what happened in 1939 and 1940 when Canada was part of the fight against global fascism. The United States sat out for the first two or three years and initially refused to provide supplies. I would remind [President Trump] about Canada’s solidarity following 9/11 and the global fight against terrorism. We have made very real sacrifices to stand by our American allies, so as a Canadian, I am insulted.”

More information is at Alberta.ca/covid19.

by Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

Alberta surpasses 1000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, now 25 in Red Deer

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