COVID-19

Officials announced on Tuesday, October 5, that AHS would be posting COVID-19 case counts in schools online.

Education Minister, Adriana LaGrange said, “As we have said all along, as the pandemic evolves we will make adjustments when necessary to keep students and staff safe. The actions we are taking right now will help students to continue learning safely in person as we combat this fourth wave. Keeping students, parents, and school communities safe remains our top priority.”

As of Wednesday, October 6, schools in Cochrane are reporting:

People around town may be scrambling to fill their tanks as gas prices soared in Kenora this morning by as much as 13 cents at some stations.

Three stations around town upped their price today (October 6, 2021) to $1.549 from $1.419 that Kenora has been at since early summer.

This significant increase is due to the price of Crude Oil which is what is used to make gasoline has hit a seven-year high of $78.41 a barrel.

Patrick DeHaan a Petroleum Analysis for GasBuddy says the reasoning behind the spike in Crude Oil is an energy crunch seen globally.

To further protect residents and staff of long-term care homes from COVID-19 the provincial government has implemented a mandatory vaccine policy.

The new mandate will come into effect on November 15, 2021, for all in-home staff, support workers, students, and volunteers.

At the local level, the Kenora District Homes did their part to stay ahead of COVID-19 and protect their staff and residents as they implemented their own vaccine mandate prior to the government's announcement.

The second annual CochraneNow Fall Food Drive was once again a success.

Eric Ruttle and Lauren Meister broadcast LIVE in front of Save-On-Foods on Wednesday in an effort to collect donations for the Cochrane Activettes Food Bank. 

Just like in 2020 we were able to drop off a truck load of donations to the food bank as well as hundreds of dollars in cash and gift cards. 

Cochrane is reporting 143 active COVID-19 cases only two less than Rocky View County which has 145. 

There were 1,263 new cases reported in the past 24 hours with a positivity rate of 8.2 per cent. 

Hospitalizations decreased by 11 for a total of 1,083 and ICU admissions decreased by five for a total of 247.

Total active COVID-19 cases in Alberta have dropped to 18,912.

Sadly, another 26 deaths have been reported with the total in the province at 2,804. 

Oil prices have reached a seven-year high and everyone including Cochranites are going to be feeling it at the pumps. 

The bad news is the rising prices at the pumps are expected to continue for a while as the economy starts to slowly gain momentum out of the pandemic. 

As demand increases around the world, the price will continue to register at the pumps and Cochrane will not be immune. 

Manitoba is opening up its third COVID-19 vaccine dose eligibility even further Wednesday, and could fully expand by the end of the year.

There are currently no requirements to get three COVID-19 vaccines, but for those wishing to get a booster shot, the criteria is expanding.

Healthcare workers and those who received two doses of AstraZeneca, or a single dose of Janzen, will be eligible for a third COVID-19 shot.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the federal government won’t be taking any half-measures when it comes to protecting the health and safety of Canadians who wish to travel and will be introducing mandatory vaccination requirements for all travellers by next month.

By the end of November, anyone over the age of 12 will be required to be fully vaccinated to travel by plane or by train, and COVID-19 rapid testing before boarding will no longer be an option.

For the second day in a row, the Northwestern Health Unit has reported zero new COVID-19 test results in the district. 

Currently, there are 15 active cases connected to the NWHU catchment area. 

At least two individuals at Points West Living in Cochrane have tested positive for COVID-19.

The local supportive living facility is currently listed under 'Outbreak Status' on the Alberta Health Services (AHS) website.

Acute care and continuing care facilities meet provincial outbreak criteria once two or more cases have been identified; indicating that transmission within the facility has occurred.

According to the AHS site, outbreaks are declared to be over once four weeks have passed since the last case was identified.