What you need to know about COVID-19 in Alberta on Friday, May 29
CBC News | Posted: May 29, 2020 4:29 PM | Last Updated: May 29, 2020
Calgary begins reopening its 1,100 playgrounds today
The latest:
- Alberta reported 24 new cases of COVID-19 Friday, but no new deaths.
- CEMA announced Thursday the city will begin reopening its 1,100 playgrounds today — three days ahead of schedule.
- Calgary's quickly proliferating expanded outdoor restaurant patios are getting mixed reviews.
- There are now 616 active cases in the province, down from 652 on Thursday.
- Alberta's sexual violence helpline saw a 57 per cent increase in calls during the first month of the pandemic and a 42 per cent increase during the first two months.
- The Alberta government has scaled back the provincial COVID-19 news conferences it had been offering every weekday and is now holding them on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
What you need to know today in Alberta:
Alberta has partnered with a number of fast-food chains to provide free, non-medical masks starting in early June.
The Alberta government is distributing 20 million masks meant to help limit the spread of COVID-19. They will be available for pick up from the drive-thrus of A&W, McDonald's and Tim Hortons.
The Alberta Opposition says Premier Jason Kenney's United Conservatives have a new "sugar daddy" in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and should not accept a federal COVID-19 wage subsidy the party has applied for.
There have been 143 deaths due to COVID-19 in the province. Of those, 108 were residents of continuing care facilities.
There are 55 people in hospital and four in intensive care. More than 250,000 tests have been completed.
What you need to know today in Canada:
Canada's economy shrank at an 8.2 per cent annual pace in the first three months of 2020, as an already weak economy in January and February was walloped by COVID-19 in March.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is being pressured by some of his own Liberal backbenchers to implement enforceable national standards for the operation of long-term care homes in Canada.
As of 4:53 p.m. ET Friday, Canada had 89,388 confirmed and presumptive coronavirus cases, with 47,454 of them considered recovered or resolved. A CBC News tally of deaths based on provincial data, regional information and CBC's reporting stood at 7,029.
Self-assessment and supports:
Alberta Health Services has an online self-assessment tool that you can use to determine if you have symptoms of COVID-19.
The province says Albertans who have returned to Canada from other countries must self-isolate. Unless your situation is critical and requires a call to 911, Albertans are advised to call Health Link at 811 before visiting a physician, hospital or other health-care facility.
If you have symptoms, even mild, you are to self-isolate for 10 days from the onset of symptoms.
The province also operates a confidential mental health support line at 1-877-303-2642 and addiction help line at 1-866-332-2322, available from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week.
Online resources are available for advice on handling stressful situations and ways to talk with children.
There is a 24-hour family violence information line at 310-1818 to get anonymous help in more than 170 languages, and Alberta's One Line for Sexual Violence is available at 1-866-403-8000, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.