COVID-19

COVID-19 numbers in Alberta continue to trend downwards.

There are 4,707 active cases in the province, 127 new from the previous day. There are currently 351 people in the hospital, with 94 Albertans in intensive care.

Five more deaths were reported over the weekend, bringing the total to 2,248.
 
There have been 3,084,119 doses of the vaccine in Alberta given out so far, which is 66.7 per cent of the population.

Locally, Grande Prairie currently has 58 active cases while there are 46 active cases in the County of Grande Prairie.

 

The Northwestern Health Unit has confirmed a positive COVID-19 case in the district. The positive case has been confirmed in the Dryden Health Hub region.

The active case count in the NWHU catchment area is up to 4. Kenora Health Hub has 2 active cases, The Sioux Lookout and Dryden Health Hubs each have 1 active case respectively.

Follow up with the persons involved and their contacts have started according to protocol. Anyone who is identified as a contact for these cases will be contacted directly.

Premier Jason Kenney has given an apology after photos of a dinner on the rooftop of the Sky Palace went viral.

The photos showed Kenney and some of his cabinet ministers meeting over dinner on the same day that stage one of the province's reopening plan went into effect.

Last week, Kenney told the legislature that he considered the meeting an outdoor social gathering and had less than 10 people. He was asked to apologize but believed he did nothing wrong.

However, on Monday, he appeared to change course and regretted the decision.

The Northwestern Health Unit has announced its weekly vaccine report. As of Monday, the combined vaccination percentage of people 18+ across the region is 69.9 per cent.

The Kenora Health Hub ended the week with a vaccine percentage of 70.8, Fort Frances led the pack at 74.3 per cent vaccinated, Dryden at 74.1 per cent, Atikokan at 73.7 per cent, Sioux Lookout at 68.5 percent, Emo with a percentage of 67.3 per cent. Rainy River at 59.5 per cent and Red Lake rounds out the pack with 48.4 per cent.

The NWHU has administered 59,186 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to date.

A judge has ruled that the religious freedoms of an Alberta pastor who is on trial for violating COVID-19 regulations were not violated.

Pastor James Coates made a charter application in relation to a ticket he received on Dec. 20 under the Public Health Act.

Provincial court Judge Robert Shaigec dismissed the application on Monday.

"The question today is whether the purpose, manner, or effect of enforcement of that law on December 2020 violated James Coates's religious freedoms. The answer is no," said Shaigec.

Better late than never.

The pandemic has thrown many twists at us, and among them is attempting to schedule timely sod-turning ceremonies.

On June 4, two Alberta cabinet ministers were briefly in Cochrane for a ceremony to recognize the construction of the new K to 9 catholic school in the Fireside neighborhood.

High rates of vaccination, and declining numbers of COVID-19 cases in the province have lead the Ontario government to move up the start date of step one and cautiously start the re-opening phase of the province.

Earlier today the Ontario government announced that, in consultation with the Chief Medical Officer of Health, they have moved up the start to date of step one of the Roadmap to Reopen, beginning at 12:01 a.m. on Friday June 11, 2021. The previous start date of Step One was set for the week of June 14, 2021.

Manitoba's Chief Public Health Officer says while Manitobans may feel more confident after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine, activities like going to the beach with friends remain off-limits for the time being.

This past weekend images of Manitoba's sandy shores being packed circulated online. Manitobans flocked to beaches and other water facilities after the province eased the health orders to allow those without air conditioning a chance to beat the heat. 

For the first time in months, less than 200 new daily COVID-19 cases are being announced.

Vaccine eligibility

Those who received their first COVID-19 vaccine on or before May 1 can book their second dose. All other eligibility, including Indigenous people and those with specific health conditions, continue to be in effect.

All Manitobans aged 12 and older can receive their first COVID-19 vaccine. To date, 946,611 vaccinations have been administered.

The Northwestern Health Unit confirmed today that there are no new reports of COVID-19 in the region.

This is the third day in a row that no new COVID-19 cases were announced in the region.

As of today, there are 3 active cases in the NWHU catchment area. The Kenora Health Hub has 1 active case and the Sioux Lookout Health Hub is reporting 2 active cases.