Skip to content

COVID-19 outbreak reported at George McDougall again

Just over a week into the return of in-class learning, an outbreak has been reported at George McDougall High School.
COVID-19

Just over a week into the return of in-class learning, another COVID-19 outbreak has been reported at George McDougall High School.

"We have received information that individuals from George McDougall High School have tested positive for COVID-19," reads a statement posted to the school's website on Jan. 15. "We are working closely with Alberta Health Services (AHS) to ensure the necessary precautions are taken to protect students and staff. For privacy reasons, we will not be sharing more information about the individuals."

The statement went on to say the school will remain open for in-class learning, and additional cleaning of the school was completed before students returned on Jan. 18.

According to the provincial COVID-19 school status map, George McDougall High School is listed under "outbreak" status, meaning anywhere from five to nine, or more than 10 cases have been reported.

Throughout Airdrie, there are currently 145 active cases of COVID-19, according to the provincial relaunch status map. In total, Airdrie has reported 1,696 total cases of the virus. Of those cases, 1,537 people have recovered and 14 deaths have been reported.

The only Airdrie-based location on the Alberta government's list of COVID-19 outbreaks is Bethany Care Centre. According to the facility's daily bulletin, 13 residents and 12 employees currently have the virus.

Outside of Airdrie, Rocky View County (RVC) is reporting 77 active cases, which is a decrease of nine since Jan. 16. On the east side of the county, Chestermere is now at 47 active cases, while on the west side of RVC, Cochrane is reporting 44 cases.

Provincially, there have been a total of 117,311 cases of COVID-19 in Alberta as of Jan. 17. Of the total cases, 11,923 are considered active, 103,941 people have recovered, 739 patients are in hospital and 120 Albertans are in intensive care units. In total, 1,447 deaths have been reported in the province due to the virus.

The COVID-19 vaccine continues to be administered across the province, though on Jan. 18, Premier Jason Kenney announced Alberta's supply of vaccine would run out by Jan. 19, due to a shipment disruption issue at Pfizer-BioNTech's European plant. According to the federal government, Pfizer's shipments will be reduced until the middle of next month.

In a news conference, the premier said Alberta government is temporarily halting the first dose of COVID-19 vaccinations to ensure there will be a sufficient supply to provide a second dose to those who have already received their first incoculation.

"By pausing first appointments, we can ensure enough vaccine is allocated for committed second-dose appointments," Kenney said, adding second-dose appointments will not be cancelled.

"We believe that we could administer second doses to all those who need them within the recommended time frame."

As of Jan. 17, 89,814 doses of COVID-19 vaccine were administered in Alberta. This equates to 2,031.1 doses per 100,000 population.

push icon
Be the first to read breaking stories. Enable push notifications on your device. Disable anytime.
No thanks