COVID-19 on P.E.I.: What's happening Wednesday, May 5

P.E.I.'s Home and School Federation wants outdoor learning to be part of the official curriculum so that schools will get children outside more often. 

Open Door Outreach, a P.E.I. group dedicated to helping women in jail get their lives back on track, has been kept out of the Provincial Correctional Centre by public health guidelines, but is still finding a way to help.

Some leadership students at Souris Regional High School have created "grab and go" bags with personal care products, including soap, shampoo, razors and toothpaste. 

Charlottetown airport highlighted optimism for the future at its annual general meeting, after suffering the worst year on record during the pandemic in 2020.

P.E.I. has been approached as a possible host for the International Ice Hockey Federation women's world championship Aug. 20-31, tourism officials say. The tournament, originally scheduled for Nova Scotia, was cancelled last month due to COVID-19.

Prince Edward Islanders returning to the province now have to submit an isolation plan online in advance, Dr. Heather Morrison said at her regular weekly briefing. There are some exemptions, though. 

She also said the Island has one more case of COVID-19, though the number of active cases has fallen to seven since the previous update on Sunday. As well, Morrison said P.E.I. has confirmation that two previous cases involved the B1617 variant first identified in India.

A large-scale study launched 12 years ago to help researchers learn more about the health of Atlantic Canadians has started to harvest data about COVID-19. Toenails are involved.

Fans of the Charlottetown Islanders won't be able to watch any QMJHL playoff games at home this spring. Due to COVID-19 safety measures, the Maritime Division final between the Islanders and Acadie-Bathurst Titan will be played in Shawinigan, Que., beginning this weekend.

The owner of the Brackley Drive-in says he's optimistic but also concerned about the season ahead. The drive-in opened last weekend, its earliest yet.

P.E.I. has seven active cases of COVID-19. There have been 183 positive cases in total, with two hospitalizations and no deaths.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic region:

• Nova Scotia announced 175 new cases of COVID-19 Wednesday, and has 1,203 active cases.
• New Brunswick is reporting 11 new cases, and one death after a person developed blood clots following vaccination with the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine. There are 145 active cases.
• Newfoundland and Labrador has six new COVID-19 cases. There are 58 active cases in the province. 

Also in the news

• Conservation officers on P.E.I. are spending a lot of time following up on calls from the public about people allegedly entering the province illegally and others who aren't following public health measures.
• Outbreaks around the Maritimes have prompted the organizers of the 70-Mile Yard Sale in eastern P.E.I. to cancel for the second year in a row.
• Charlottetown police handed out another $1,000 fine for hosting a large gathering in defiance of COVID-19 public health rules, the force said in a news release on Monday. 
• The University of Prince Edward Island is citing the pandemic as one reason it is keeping this year's tuition increase to just one per cent. Holland College announced last week that it is raising its tuition rates by two per cent.
• P.E.I. student loan payments are being suspended this year from April 30 to Sept. 30.
• The Summerside Farmers' Market is considering its options after a man refused to wear a mask on the premises this weekend, calling market staff "idiots" for wearing them. 
• After a year-long delay because of the pandemic, the City of Charlottetown has scheduled a public meeting to talk about options for licensing and regulating short-term rentals. It takes place May 17.

These Islanders are currently eligible for a vaccine

• People aged 30-39 with birthdays from January to September.
• People over 40.
• Islanders over 16 with underlying medical conditions, and all eligible members of their household.
• Pregnant Islanders.
• Front-line workers over 16 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.
• Health-care workers not on the front line 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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