Brooks, Alta. residents live under the shadow of COVID-19

There are more than 1,000 cases of COVID-19 in Brooks, Alta. or about seven per cent of the community's population.

Brooks, Alta. — For many communities across the province, it’s starting to feel like all the social distancing measures are paying off, but one southern Alberta community has been on high alert for some time now.

"Two weeks ago we were at zero, now we're just under a thousand," said Brooks mayor Barry Morishita. "We’ve managed to calm it as we came into the weekend and we’ve seen the numbers kind of go and we’ve seen the recoveries come around."

The city currently sits at 1,005 cases with five deaths. They have also recorded a ton of testing.

"We have tested a lot more than any jurisdiction. I think that’s why the numbers have grown to the extent they have," said Morishita. "3,500 were tested asymptomatically (that's) nearly a quarter of our population."

The city is also reportedly dealing with cases of discrimination.

"I have heard stories of discrimination against newcomer families with assumptions being made with any workers at Cargill and JBS and their families that are a risk to others," said Alberta's chief medical officer Dr. Deena Hinshaw.

Brooks, known as the city of "100 Hellos" due to its cultural diversity, had immigration services thinking ahead. Many residents come from war-torn areas, like Sudan and Somalia. Those traumatic experience has Brooks and County immigration services inform newcomers they are here for them.

"Letting people know how they can reach us, the mental health support that is available, the social support that's available," said director of Brooks and County immigration services Mohammed Idriss.