COVID-19 Live Updates: News on coronavirus in Calgary for March 10

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With news on COVID-19 happening rapidly, we’ve created this page to bring you our latest stories and information on the outbreak in and around Calgary.

What’s happening now

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My COVID Story: How have you been impacted by coronavirus?

Postmedia is looking to speak with people who may have been impacted by COVID-19 here in Alberta.  Have you undergone a travel-related quarantine? Have you received your vaccine, and if so did you feel any side effects? Have you changed your life for the better because of the pandemic? Send us an email at reply@calgaryherald.com to tell us your experience, or send us a message via this form.

Read our ongoing coverage of personal stories arising from the pandemic.

Calgary pharmacies offering COVID-19 vaccine

This map shows all 48 Calgary pharmacies that are offering the COVID-19 vaccine. Currently the vaccine is open to all Albertans born in the year 1946 or earlier. Appointments are still necessary and can be booked by contacting the participating pharmacies. Details on booking your vaccine jab at a pharmacy can be found here.

Public Health didn’t order locks removed from quarantine hotel doors, Commons safety committee told

Public Safety Minister Bill Blair and Health Minister Patty Hajdu defended the government’s COVID-19 quarantine measures Wednesday, as MPs pressed them on the safety of quarantined individuals following the sexual assaults of two travellers.

They were asked why there were no locks on some doors of quarantine rooms, including in the hotel in Montreal where a woman was assaulted by another traveller last month.

Iain Stewart, president of the Public Health Agency of Canada, responded there are locks on all the doors of the designated quarantine facilities PHAC runs.

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“Of course, the private-sector hotels that we’re referring to here had no direction from us at any time to remove locks or any security devices of any nature,” he said.

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Biden says Americans will be first to get vaccines; any surplus to be shared

The U.S. government will first give Americans COVID-19 vaccines, but any surplus would be shared with the world, President Joe Biden said on Wednesday after earlier announcing plans to procure an additional 100 million doses.

“We’re going to start off and ensure Americans are taken care of first, but we’re then going to try to help the rest of the world,” Biden told reporters following an earlier announcement to secure more vaccines with the chief executives of Johnson & Johnson and Merck.

“If we have a surplus, we’re going to share it with the rest of the world,” Biden said, adding that the United States had already committed to providing $4 billion to the COVAX global initiative to distribute vaccines in developing countries.

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Alberta reports 399 new COVID-19 cases as province begins AstraZeneca rollout

More than 11,500 eligible Albertans had booked appointments for the AstraZeneca vaccine by Wednesday afternoon, as the province expanded its COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

Call volumes were high when Health Link’s phone line opened at 8 a.m., Alberta Health Services said on Twitter Wednesday morning, while recommending people turn to the online booking tool if the line was busy or opt to call later in the day.

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The introduction of a third COVID-19 vaccine has sped up the province’s immunization plan, giving the jab to people now who would have otherwise had to wait until May for Phase 2D of the government’s plan.

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Alberta outpaced Canada in excess deaths in fall as COVID-19, opioids devastated: StatCan

Alberta’s excess death rates led Canada in fall 2020, a spike attributed to both the COVID-19 pandemic and opioid overdoses, per new Statistics Canada data.

About 8,700 Albertans died in the fall, 12 per cent more than would have been expected if there was no pandemic. That rate of excess death is more than twice what was logged in the spring, during the province’s first wave of novel coronavirus infections.

In total, nearly 29,000 Albertans died in 2020, compared to the expected 26,900 mortalities in the year — a difference of 2,078 deaths. In the same year, Alberta reported 1,212 deaths from COVID-19 and 1,139 deaths from opioid overdoses.

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As vaccine timelines firm, Alberta post-secondaries eye return to campus life in fall

Some southern Alberta universities are hopeful for a return to on-campus learning this fall amid accelerated vaccine timelines.

Both Mount Royal University and the University of Lethbridge said Wednesday they were planning to welcome students back to their campuses in September, signalling a return to the campus life that vanished when many classes moved online in March 2020 at the onset of the pandemic.

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399 new cases, two deaths

Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw provided a COVID-19 update on Wednesday afternoon.

• 399 new cases of COVID-19 on 10,414 tests; 3.7% positivity rate
• 254 in hospital; 37 in ICUs
• Two additional deaths; 1,928 total
• 4,463 active cases; 130,382 recovered
• 47 new variant cases; 721 total
• Variants represent 9% of active cases, Hinshaw said; they were 3% of active cases in January
• Active alerts or outbreaks in 259 schools; 1,017 in these schools since Jan. 11
• Almost 309,000 doses of vaccine administered; More than 91,000 Albertans fully immunized

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You can watch the full livestream below.

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Alberta fitness industry reps call on province to allow high intensity group workouts amid COVID-19 pandemic

Representatives of Alberta’s fitness industry are calling on the government to further loosen restrictions around gyms, arguing there is little evidence high-intensity workouts have led to the spread of COVID-19 in the province.

Blake MacDonald, the president of Orangetheory Fitness Canada, called on the government Wednesday to allow for group high-intensity group workouts with instructors and proper distancing. If they are not going to allow for such activities, he called for further financial support for owners of fitness centres and a tax credit for customers who want to support their local gyms.

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GraceLife Church charged for violating COVID-19 public health order capacity limits: RCMP

GraceLife Church as an entity has been charged for breaching COVID-19 public health orders, RCMP said Wednesday.

On March 4, legal counsel for the church was served with a summons to attend Stony Plain provincial court on May 5, police said in a news release.

The church was charged for exceeding the 15 per cent allowable capacity for services held on Feb. 21 and Feb. 28, contrary to the Public Health Act.

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Albertans with disabilities and their families want COVID-19 vaccine priority

Alberta’s vaccine plans so far only include information for people with disabilities in group homes. They are part of group C, which includes residents and staff of congregate settings and are expected to receive shots between April and June after groups A and B have finished.

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Group B includes Albertans 18-64 with high-risk underlying health conditions, but what conditions are included hasn’t been released.

Disability communities in other provinces have more information about their positions in line. Ontario’s next phase of vaccinations includes people with intellectual or developmental disabilities like Down syndrome in the “high-risk” category. B.C. plans to vaccinate people with disabilities living in congregate settings in February and March, while people with developmental disabilities who are very medically vulnerable are set to get the jab between April and June.

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More than 10,000 AstraZeneca vaccine appointments booked

More than 10,000 eligible Albertans booked appointments for the AstraZeneca vaccine Wednesday morning, as the province expanded its COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

Call volumes were high when Health Link’s phone line opened at 8 a.m., Alberta Health Services said on Twitter, while recommending people turn to the online booking tool if the line rings busy or opt to call later in the day. The introduction of a third COVID-19 vaccine has sped up the province’s immunization plan, giving the jab to people now who would have otherwise had to wait until May for Phase 2D of the government’s plan.

First Nations, Métis and Inuit individuals aged 49 and other Albertans aged 64 with no severe chronic illness are the first people eligible for AstraZeneca vaccine.

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In an open letter published online Tuesday evening, AHS said that while capacity has been increased with the booking tool, Albertans can help by considering waiting until later in the day to book appointments.

“While we have increased capacity, if everyone tries to access those services at the same time, the queues will fill up and there will be delays,” AHS said in the open letter. “If people are patient and wait until less peak times, the system will work better and more people will have an improved experience.”

The tool has capacity to book about 100,000 appointments over 24 hours, according to AHS.

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High COVID-19 count prompts citywide COVID-19 vaccinations in Prince Rupert, B.C.

Health officials say an entire northwestern British Columbia city will be vaccinated over the next three weeks as the community continues to face persistent outbreaks of COVID-19.

The first clinics for roughly 12,000 residents of Prince Rupert and nearby Port Edward begin Monday and continue until April 1, said Northern Health in a statement.

Prince Rupert has a high COVID-19 case and positivity rate and has not seen the improvements in recent weeks that are happening elsewhere in the region, said Dr. Jong Kim, Northern Health chief medical health officer.

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Braid: Fight with doctors? Never happened, says health minister

Columnist Don Braid writes:

If UCP politicians were asked which fiasco they want every voter to forget, the likely winner would be “the fight with the doctors.”

The great forgetting has already begun.

Health Minister Tyler Shandro claimed Tuesday there was never any conflict between the government and the Alberta Medical Association, which represents physicians.

At a legislature committee meeting he said: “there was no fight with the Alberta Medical Association.”

Politicians will always try to rewrite history, but for heaven’s sake, they can at least wait until the history is actually over.

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Closed since December, Calgary libraries reopen today

After being shut down for nearly three months, Calgary Public Library branches have reopened today with reduced hours.

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All 21 locations will require adherence to health measures still in place, including mandatory masks and prohibiting food and drinks. They’ll be operating at 15 per cent capacity and won’t be running any on-site gatherings or programs.

Mark Asberg, Calgary Public Library’s CEO, said he is pleased libraries were bumped up in the provincial government’s relaunch strategy.

“We know that our community is in need of our services and, for many, the library is a critical resource,” Asberg said in a statement.

YMCA Calgary announced last week that all of its facilities would reopen for drop-in fitness and some group classes on March 12. Brookfield Residential YMCA and Shane Homes YMCA opened on March 8.

More COVID-19 restriction violation charges being dismissed, say lawyers

An increasing number of charges alleging COVID-19 restriction violations are being dismissed by Alberta Crown Prosecutors, say lawyers defending against them.

In recent days, at least nine charges alleging mask violations and a ban on gatherings have been dropped by prosecutors, said Jay Cameron, a lawyer with the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedom.

Some of those dismissed charges included fines of $1,200 and involved people attending protests in Calgary and Edmonton and those ticketed for not wearing masks in stores, he said.

It’s clear prosecutors considered the likelihood of a guilty verdict to be low, reflecting the charges’ frivolous and even unconstitutional nature, said Cameron.

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Tuesday

Alberta prepares for AstraZeneca vaccine rollout, reports 255 new cases of COVID-19

Alberta reported another 255 cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday as the province prepares to administer the first doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine starting Wednesday.

Booking appointments for the AstraZeneca vaccine will start on Wednesday at 8 a.m. for Albertans aged 64 and First Nations, Métis and Inuit individuals aged 49, with no severe chronic illness.

The AstraZeneca vaccine is recommended for people aged 18 to 64 who are less at risk of severe outcomes and do not have a specific chronic condition, are not a caregiver of high-risk individuals or do not live or work in congregate settings.

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Tuesday

Police investigating after observing more than 100 people at party in southwest Edmonton Saturday night

Edmonton police are investigating after breaking up a party in southwest Edmonton attended by more than 100 people Saturday night.

Officers responded to the Khrome Beauty Lounge, located in a commercial complex called Ellwood Corner, at about 1:30 a.m. Sunday, to a complaint of a large gathering, Edmonton police spokesman Scott Pattison said.

It was estimated there were between 100 and 125 people in attendance at the party, where officers also discovered “large volumes of alcohol” and a DJ on the premises.

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Tuesday

255 new cases, six deaths

The latest COVID-19 numbers for Alberta:

• 255 new cases on 5,434 tests; ~4.7% positivity rate
• 263 in hospital; 37 in ICUs
• Six deaths; 1,926 total
• 4,470 active cases; 129,978 recovered

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There was no live update from chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw on Tuesday.

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