COVID-19 on P.E.I.: What's happening Thursday, April 15

Two new cases of COVID-19 have been reported on P.E.I., prompting a flight exposure warning regarding the Air Canada flight from Montreal on Wednesday, April 7. 

Premier Dennis King tells CBC News the Atlantic bubble reopening was delayed at least in part because of the prospect of crowded hospitals not being able to keep up if there was a COVID-19 outbreak tied to freer regional travel. 

P.E.I.'s resale housing market is roaring, a year after the pandemic set in, with March setting a record for the total value of homes sold. 

Another summer of uncertainty about what public health rules will be in place has led the P.E.I. Red Cross to cancel its water safety day camps for the second year in a row. 

Islanders are being advised to check their home insurance policies to see if it includes a new clause excluding COVID-19 coverage.

P.E.I. Premier Dennis King says he has offered help to New Brunswick in the way of test kits and supplies as it deals with a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases.

The agriculture industry is feeling more comfortable this spring that it will get the temporary foreign workers it needs, though getting them to P.E.I. is still complicated by the pandemic.

Here's how businesses that rely on tourism in Victoria-by-the-Sea are trying to prepare for the uncertain season ahead, with the Atlantic bubble delayed until at least May 3. 

Tourism officials on Prince Edward Island are calling for more information about what the province plans to do if New Brunswick cases continue to rise over the next two weeks, with some backing the idea of a bubble that includes only P.E.I., Nova Scotia and possibly Newfoundland and Labrador. 

Islanders are sharing their thoughts about the delayed bubble. 

Funeral directors are welcoming a relaxing of rules that will now allow two cohorts of 50 people each at P.E.I. memorial services. That doubles the number of mourners who will be allowed to gather to support a grieving family; receptions are still not permitted, though. 

Elsewhere in the Atlantic region:

• New Brunswick has eight new COVID-19 cases, four of them in the Edmundston zone, for a total of 140 active cases.  
• Newfoundland and Labrador reported two new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday. There are now 15 active cases in Canada's easternmost province.  
• Nova Scotia has three new cases for a total of 42 active cases. 

Also in the news

• If you were thinking about buying a boat this year, to get you through another COVID-slowed spring and summer, you might already be too late.
• About 80 per cent of the workers at the Atlantic Beef Products plant in Albany, P.E.I., have taken advantage of COVID-19 vaccinations offered to them as essential workers.
• P.E.I.'s annual festivals and exhibitions are making efforts to put something on this summer, but the events won't be as big as in previous years.
• For the second year in a row, Ramadan on P.E.I. will look a little different because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

These Islanders are currently eligible for a vaccine

• People over 55.
• Islanders over the age of 16 with underlying medical conditions, and all eligible members of their household.
• Frontline workers over the age of 40 who interact with the public and cannot work virtually.
• People providing health care services to the public — including optometrists, pharmacists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists — and their support staff.
• Non-frontline health care workers needed to maintain health care system capacity
• Firefighters, police officers, power-line workers.
• Residents and staff of long-term care homes.
• Adults living in Indigenous communities.
• Residents and staff of shared living facilities.
• Truck drivers and other rotational workers.

You can find more information about how to get a vaccine here.

Further resources

• Here is a chart of COVID-19 cases on P.E.I. since March 2020, and a timeline of pandemic events.
• Here is a look at how coronavirus is spreading across Canada.

Reminder about symptoms

The symptoms of COVID-19 can include:

• Fever.
• Cough or worsening of a previous cough.
• Possible loss of taste and/or smell.
• Sore throat.
• New or worsening fatigue.
• Headache.
• Shortness of breath.
• Runny nose.

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