COVID-19 in Alberta: Omicron count grows by 4 as province adds 287 cases, 1 death on Friday

Injunctions no barrier to Calgary protests Protester, as well as police officers, were again mobilized in downtown Calgary for another freedom rally. Mark Villani reports.

Alberta identified 287 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday as well as four more cases of the Omicron variant, according to the province’s latest data update.

Three of the new Omicron cases were identified in the Calgary Zone and one was counted in the Edmonton Zone, bringing the province’s total to 23.

Variant cases are identified through a second screening done after an initial positive test for COVID-19. The time needed for that further screening means the new Omicron cases are likely from several days ago.

Friday evening, Alberta Health Services announced that contact tracers would begin notifying close contacts of people that have tested positive, or are suspected to be positive, of the Omicron variant.

Close contacts of COVID-19-positive travellers that have recently returned from outside of Canada or the U.S., will also be notified, in case the variant is involved.

AHS will ask the people that they contact to monitor for symptoms, to isolate, and to get tested.

The death of a woman in her 70s from the North Zone was the lone death reported on Friday, bringing the total number of Albertans to have died due to COVID-19 up to 3,272.

There are now 367 COVID-19 patients in hospitals, including 71 in intensive care units.

Among all Albertans, 77.7 per cent have now had at least one dose of vaccine, and 72 per cent of the entire population has had a second dose.

More than 79,000 doses of vaccine have now been administered to children between the ages of five and 11.

Unvaccinated Albertans remain significantly more likely to suffer a severe outcome after contracting COVID-19, including hospitalization or death.

Alberta’s next data update is scheduled for Monday afternoon and will include data from Friday, Saturday and Sunday.