COVID-19 Update: Kenney declares state of public health of emergency | New restrictions on social gatherings, businesses | 1,119 new cases, 16 deaths
Kenney #Kenney
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.
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Kenney declares state of public health emergency in Alberta, announces new mandatory restrictions
Alberta premier Jason Kenney announced wide ranging new restrictions at a press conference Tuesday while declaring another state of public health emergency in Alberta.
Gatherings across the province are under new restrictions:
In regions under the province’s “enhanced status”:
The measures will be in place for a minimum of three weeks. The province also mandated masks in all indoor workplaces in Alberta Health Services’ Calgary and Edmonton zones. Kenney also called on workers who can work from home to do so.
Those who break rules will be subject to fines, $1,000 for ticketed offences and $100,000 through the courts; province will also look at ways to allow peace officers to enforce the new restrictions.
Kenney also announced changes to schools in the province.
The province also released the latest COVID-19 statistics.
You can watch the full update below.
Fred Sasakamoose, hockey pioneer, dies of COVID-19 at age 86 
Fred Sasakamoose, a Saskatchewan-raised residential school survivor who went on to play in the National Hockey League, died Tuesday at age 86 after being hospitalized with COVID-19.
Sasakamoose, born on the Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation near Shell Lake, was the first treaty Indian to play in the NHL.
Read more .
AHS orders restaurants, fitness clubs closed for breaking COVID rules 
Alberta Health Services is continuing to monitor and close establishments caught breaking restrictions brought in to combat the COVID-19 pandemic
On Nov. 20, inspectors issued closure orders to Ember Restaurant & Lounge, located at 11670 Sarcee Trail N.W., and Aladdin’s Casbah Inc. located at 109-12445 Lake Fraser Drive S.E.
At Ember Restaurant & Lounge, patrons were observed dining and smoking shisha after 11 p.m. Shisha service has not been allowed during the pandemic.
Aladdin’s Casbah was ordered closed after hosting an indoor wedding reception with more than 15 attendees.
In addition to the two restaurants, AHS also ordered the closure of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Fight Club on Nov. 19. According to AHS’s report, eight kids and an instructor were observed doing a high-intensity group activity, while upwards of 10 spectators watched from seats, not socially distancing.
All three establishments must submit written plans detailing how they will operate under current COVID-19 restrictions.
Nenshi says new local state of emergency is possible
Mayor Naheed Nenshi told reporters that he has heard more restrictions are definitely coming from the provincial government, although he doesn’t know specifics.
He also said a local state of emergency could be declared, if it makes sense in conjunction with the province’s new restrictions.
Read more .
Poll: New restrictions in Alberta
The provincial government will be announcing new restrictions today in an attempt to curb the spread of COVID-19. There’s clearly lots of options on the table, but we’d like to hear your take on what you’d like to see happen.
Premier Jason Kenney is scheduled to speak with reporters at 4:30 p.m. today.
Poll shows 71 per cent of albertans support a circuit breaker lockdown 
A new poll from Leger shows more Albertans are looking to get vaccinated for COVID-19, once it becomes available.
The poll shows 71 per cent of Albertans a very likely or somewhat likely to get immunized when a vaccine becomes available.
The poll also asked people if they have stayed within their own bubble in the past month. Eighty-two per cent of respondents claimed they had.
According to Leger, Albertans are supportive of a short term “circuit breaker” lockdown. Across the entire province, 71 per cent are in favour of a lockdown, with slightly more support in Edmonton and Calgary. In both of those cities, respondents were 74 per cent in favour of a lockdown.
The poll surveyed 1,003 Albertans on Leger’s LEO Panel between Nov. 20 and 22. Although not a random sample, if it had been, the margin of error would be plus or minus 3.1 per cent 19 times out of 20.
Many Canadians gaining weight during COVID-19 pandemic: Poll
A new poll suggests many Canadians are gaining weight because they’re eating more and exercising less during COVID-19 pandemic.
Nearly one-third of respondents in the survey conducted by Leger and the Association for Canadian Studies said they have put on weight since March, compared to 15% who said they lost weight over that time.
As well, about one-third of respondents said they’re exercising less, while 16% said they’re working out more since the first wave of the pandemic landed in Canada in the spring.
Read more .
Trudeau warns COVID-19 vaccine will come later to Canada than other countries 
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canadians won’t be front of the line when COVID-19 vaccines become available, because the first doses will be made outside of our borders.
“One of the things to remember is Canada no longer has any domestic production capacity for vaccines,” Trudeau said outside Rideau Cottage Tuesday. “Countries like the United States, Germany and the U.K. do have domestic pharmaceutical facilities which is why they’re obviously going to prioritize helping their citizens first.”
Trudeau said Canada’s doses would follow shortly after, and he expects to see them in the first quarter of next year. But he said the first doses from the assembly line will go to the countries where the vaccine is made.
Read more .
COVID-19 delays national park 2021 camping bookings 
A resurgence in COVID-19 cases has forced a delay in the booking of camping spots in the national parks for next year.
Rather than the usual January start to staking out camping sites, the first online and phone bookings will be made in April for the months spanning May 2021 through March 2022, Parks Canada said Tuesday.
“This will give you more time to consider the latest COVID-19 measures,” stated an advisory on the Parks Canada website.
“It may also help reduce the need for cancellations.”
Read more .
Trudeau focuses on aid to Alberta in morning update 
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made special mention of the aid feds have sent to Alberta during his morning pandemic update.
Trudeau noted that the federal government has sent face masks, rapid tests and cash to the province for the COVID-19 fight.
Trudeau said the government has sent more than 300,000 rapid tests to Alberta and 444,000 face masks. He also mentioned $1.3 billion in pandemic aid that was sent to Alberta, and $260 million for Alberta schools.
Reporters peppered Trudeau with questions about potential vaccines, and when Canadians might see them. Some countries are beginning vaccine rollouts next month, but Canada is looking at the early spiring.
Trudeau explained that part of that delay is because Canada no longer has the capacity to produce its own vaccines, and that’s something they hope to rectify for future pandemics.
Watch the press conference live below.
Players test positive at World Juniors hockey tryouts McDonald’s closes for sanitization after employee tests positive
A McDonald’s located in the Foothills Industrial Park shut down for cleaning on on Monday after it was learned an employee had tested positive for COVID-19.
The location at 5326 72 Ave S.E. was closed on Monday as soon as staff learned of the positive test. It has since reopened.
The employee last worked on Nov. 18 from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. Anyone who may have visited that location is asked to take direction from AHS by visiting their website.
Why COVID-19 vaccines requiring two doses worry some experts 
As a third company announced exciting results Monday for its COVID-19 vaccine, the public health world increasingly turned its focus to the daunting task of administering those shots to billions of humans.
Officials must manage immunization logistics on an unprecedented scale, decide who gets the shots first and overcome mounting anti-vaccination sentiment.
But one of the least-discussed hurdles lies in a more prosaic fact — that most of the front-running contenders require people to receive two separate doses each.
That’s potentially a problem, given research has consistently found as many as 70 per cent of adults prescribed a multi-dose vaccine don’t come back after the first injection.
Read more .
Alberta is bracing for more restrictions: Here are three ways to stem COVID-19 damage 
Leading medical experts from around the world believe they have come up with the best way to minimize the damage to public health and our society from COVID-19.
But, as certain as each expert is, they are divided into three large camps — COVID zero, bend the curve and focused protection — with widely differing views on how best to proceed.
Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, and Alberta’s provincial cabinet will make public new restrictions on Tuesday, with Hinshaw now saying strong new measures are needed.
The virus is spreading faster here than ever before, Hinshaw said Monday, with hospitalizations and death counts rising, and our health-care system now challenged.
Read more .
Monday Braid: UCP has to set aside ideology and turn hard against COVID-19 
Columnist Don Braid writes: There’s still resistance to mandatory measures from UCP MLAs, especially from outside the big cities. They oppose compulsory masking in particular.
But most Albertans have already lost patience with all the tip-toeing around.
Sometimes a crisis blows right past a government’s ideology. This is one of those moments.
Read more .
Monday Hinshaw to make unspecified recommendations to cabinet; new measures expected from Kenney Tuesday 
Alberta’s top doctor vowed to recommend new restrictions to Premier Jason Kenney and his government on Monday aimed at slowing the rapid spread of COVID-19 in the province, but it’s unclear what direction the province will take.
Chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw’s advice comes as Alberta reported another 1,549 new COVID-19 cases and five deaths connected to the novel coronavirus on Monday.
Read more.
Monday ‘Pretty sobering’: ICU doc says province could face potentially deadly patient triage 
If Alberta’s dangerous COVID-19 trends continue, physicians could be forced to make life-or-death priority choices for patients, a Calgary ICU doctor said Monday.
With the province’s initial allotment of 70 COVID-19-designated ICU beds nearly filled and infection cases continuing to hit new peaks, Dr. Dan Niven said a failure to halt that trajectory could lead to difficult decisions regarding who gets those beds.
Read more .
Monday Province calling on police to apprehend vulnerable Albertans with COVID-19 who refuse to self-isolate
Calgary police officers responded to a call early Sunday morning that has become another part of enforcing public health measures amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Calgary Police Service Cst. Chris Martin tweeted at 2:10 a.m. Sunday that officers had been directed by Alberta Health Services to apprehend a person who had tested positive for the novel coronavirus but refused to self-isolate in accordance with public-health guidelines.
Police took the person to hospital, where they will be for the duration of their isolation period. However, many of those who have been apprehended in this way are from Calgary’s homeless population and could later be taken to the assisted self-isolation site being operated by The Alex.
“These have become common for us and are difficult and hazardous for us,” Martin tweeted.
Read more .
Monday ‘It’s very serious’: Banff council concerned about local testing abilities as cases soar 
Banff’s mayor and town council expressed concerns Monday over rapidly rising COVID-19 cases in the community as they “anxiously” await for more information from the province on further restrictions Tuesday.
At the beginning of November, there were fewer than 10 active COVID-19 cases in the town of Banff. Cases started to rise considerably mid-month to 45 by Nov. 15. As of the end of day Nov. 22, there are 152 active cases of COVID-19 in Banff.
Read more.
Monday Majority of Albertans support mask mandate, ‘circuit breaker’ lockdown to tackle COVID-19: poll
More than 60 per cent of Albertans support a ‘circuit breaker’ lockdown, and more than 80 per cent back a provincial mask mandate to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, a new poll finds.
With the province set to roll out new measures Tuesday, a poll from Calgary-based pollster ThinkHQ shows there’s a great deal of support for stronger measures to prevent spread of the virus, and crack down on those breaking public health orders.
Read more .
Monday 1,549 new cases, five deaths
With stronger measures expected to be announced Tuesday, Alberta chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw provided updated COVID-19 statistics this afternoon.
You can watch the full update below.