COVID-19 Live Updates: News on coronavirus in Calgary for June 2

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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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Flouting Calgary’s mandatory mask bylaw will now get you a $500 ticket

The fine for failing to wear a mask in a place where Calgary’s bylaw requires one is now $500.

City council gave third and final reading to the change late Tuesday after a technical move delayed the approval last month. In the 11-2 vote, only Coun. Sean Chu and Coun. Joe Magliocca were opposed. Coun. Jeromy Farkas was absent.

The discussion about boosting the fine from $100 to $500 happened just three weeks ago, but the course of the COVID-19 pandemic has changed dramatically.

In early May, frustration around enforcement of health restrictions was running high as Alberta was at the peak of the third wave, with more than 25,000 active coronavirus infections.

Now, daily cases are declining rapidly and the province is proceeding through its three-step reopening plan. If vaccination targets are hit as the government expects, the province-wide mask mandate could be removed as early as late June, and Calgary’s bylaw would likely follow suit.

Read more.

Calgary councillor calling for review of safety plans for Stampede as K-Days announces cancellation

A Calgary councillor on the Stampede Board is looking for answers to a number of questions she has about the safety of this summer’s Calgary Stampede following an announcement that Edmonton’s large-scale event has been cancelled.

City councillor and mayoral candidate Jyoti Gondek said in a news release Tuesday that, as a council-appointed member of the Stampede Board, she is calling for a closer review of the public safety plans for Stampede.

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“Before we rush headlong into a Calgary Stampede event, we must review the proposed plan and ask the questions Calgarians are posing,” Gondek said in the release.

“We must ensure that guests, Stampede employees, performers, volunteers, vendors and artists are all protected.”

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Tuesday

Drive-through vaccine clinic opening in northeast Calgary next week

A drive-through immunization clinic will open in northeast Calgary starting on Monday next week.

The clinic, open by appointment only, will be located at 911 32 Ave. N.E. and will be open from 8:20 a.m. to 9:20 p.m., seven days a week.

Alberta Health Services said in a news release that up to 1,000 appointments can be scheduled at the site daily.

The site was previously used for COVID-19 testing, but will now only offer vaccinations, AHS said.

Tuesday

Some Albertans able to book for second dose of COVID-19 vaccine as province eases restrictions

Albertans who received their first COVID-19 vaccine in March are able to start booking appointments for a second dose Tuesday.

Every Albertan who has received their first dose of vaccine will be able to book an appointment for their second shot by the end of June, Premier Jason Kenney promised during Tuesday’s press conference.

Second dose appointments will open on June 14 for those who received their first vaccine in April, and those who got the jab in May will have to wait to start booking until June 28.

“This is the start of opening Alberta for summer and getting our lives back to normal. This is where we start to live the promise that these vaccines have brought,” said Kenney.

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Tuesday

209 new cases, one death; second dose booking begins today for those who were vaccinated in March

Premier Jason Kenney joined Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw at her Tuesday afternoon COVID-19 update.

• 209 new cases on ~4,100 tests
• 438 in hospital; 127 in ICUs
• One additional death; 2,228 total
• 6,771 active cases; 218,719 recovered
• 2.81 million doses administered in Alberta; 433 adverse events
• 63.4% of Albertans have received at least one dose; more than 10% have received two doses
• All positive cases will be screened for variants starting this week
• Those who received AstraZeneca can book AstraZeneca or an mRNA vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna) eight weeks after their first dose

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Watch for the full livestream below.

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Tuesday

K-Days cancelled for second-straight year in Edmonton

Edmonton’s upcoming summer festival season will be without K-Days for the second year in a row due to COVID-19.

Northlands announced the cancellation of the 2021 event on Tuesday, a week after Premier Jason Kenney announced it would be one of the large-scale festivals that could go ahead as part of stage three in the province’s reopening plan.

In a statement Tuesday, the organization said the limited timelines and resources impacted the ability to deliver a high-quality festival. The event was scheduled to run from July 23-Aug. 1 and planning was underway. With the popular fair no longer on the summer docket, Northlands said this will also create more space for festivals working toward holding an event this summer.

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Tuesday

‘It feels unreal’: Hospitality industry hopes June is month of pandemic rebirth

As her staff hustled to prepare pub patios for another pandemic re-opening Tuesday, an excited Joanne Lowden said she hopes it’ll be the last.

“All of my employees are coming back to get their feet wet again – there’s a positive energy to keep it going,” said Lowden.

But after nearly 15 months of frustration, the owner of the Pig & Duke Pubs said it’s impossible to completely banish those uncertainties.

Even the city’s pilot project to allow alcohol consumption in parks is another distraction and hurdle to a full recovery to a business that’s been battered by a stop-and-start gauntlet, she said.

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Tuesday

Stage 1 of reopening starts today

Just in time for hot and sunny weather, Alberta restaurants will be allowed to open their patios starting today, as Stage 1 of the reopening begins.

Personal services such as hair salons and tattoo shops are allowed to open by appointment.

Up to 10 people can gather outdoors, and youth can practice sports in groups of up to 10, as long as they remain distanced.

More details on Alberta’s staged re-opening can be seen in the chart below.

Tuesday

Canadians who got AstraZeneca vaccine can be offered Pfizer or Moderna for second shot: NACI

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization says people who got the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine for the first dose can be offered either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna for the second.

The advice affects more than two million Canadians who received the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine before provinces stopped using it for first doses last month.

The vaccine is potentially linked to a rare but serious blood clotting syndrome.

In Canada, 41 confirmed or suspected cases of vaccine-induced thrombotic thrombocytopenia have been diagnosed and five people have died.

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