Province taking notice of high city COVID numbers
By Lethbridge Herald on March 19, 2021.
Mayor Chris Spearman speaks with media at an earlier press availability last year. Herald file photo by Ian MartensGillian Slade
Southern Alberta Newspapers
Gslade@abnewsgroup.com
Mayor Chris Spearman is hopeful that Lethbridge’s high COVID numbers attracting the attention of Alberta Health this week may spark some action.
Lethbridge has seen active cases have more than doubled from a month ago to the highest number since the start of the pandemic. The March 20 provincial report has the city’s active cases listed at 515.
At a press conference on Friday Spearman said the province is taking notice.
“Lethbridge is on the radar. We’re certainly high visibility now at the provincial level as an aberration to the provincial trend. We may see the province take exceptional steps with respect to the city of Lethbridge and area,” said Spearman.
The province’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, said there was no single cause for the Lethbridge spike in numbers but family gatherings and faith gatherings where restrictions are not followed are key factors.
“Gatherings allow the virus to spread from one to many in a matter of days,” said Hinshaw.
Spearman said he’s worried the situation will get out of control and if people do not follow health regulations there is the risk of businesses not being allowed to stay open.
Shannon Phillips, MLA for Lethbridge West, does not feel the government has shown the “level of urgency” required to address the situation.
She says the government should have already held a joint briefing for area MLAs, the Lethbridge mayor and city council about a specific action plan being rolled out to address the high numbers.
“This is the usual way of functioning in a democracy,” said Phillips.
Nathan Neudorf, MLA for Lethbridge East, said last week he requested additional help from Alberta Health Services (AHS) and Municipal Affairs.
Neudorf says socio-economic factors, multi-generation families and the number of people for whom English is a second language are contributing factors. Efforts are being made to provide verbal and audio information through his office, schools, Lethbridge Family Services and various agencies.
“It’s mostly an education piece, not a compliance measure per se,” said Neudorf.
Morag Asquith, associate superintendent – instructional services, Lethbridge School Division, says the numbers have increased significantly in the last two weeks.
“I have worked with three schools this morning on positive cases so I couldn’t give you an accurate number at this juncture,” said Asquith on Friday.
The schools are working on creative communication.
“Some of our more compromised or vulnerable families do struggle with written content, whether it’s in English or otherwise,” said Asquith.
Southern Alberta Newspapers reached out to Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Separate School Division for comment. There was no immediate response.
Spearman pleaded with the public to stop gathering with those outside of their households.
Lethbridge Police Chief, Shahin Mehdizadeh, told a media conference on Friday that officers have responded to calls regarding gatherings but the crowds have often dispersed before police arrive. Even if tickets are issued for violations, it still means there was the potential for the virus to have spread at that gathering, he said.
“This is not a joke. People are dying everyday …” said Mehdizadeh.
Spearman says council has not been looking at any additional bylaws to address the issues.
“The big issue right now is not that we don’t have enough regulations, it is the lack of compliance that’s causing a problem,” said Spearman.
Mass COVID testing has helped elsewhere:
When the City of Brooks faced a similar spike in numbers last April, Mayor Barry Morishita lobbied for mass testing by AHS including for people without symptoms.
Brooks even contributed $107,557 towards the costs. Morishita later thanked Premier Jason Kenney for his assistance in making it happen.
Brooks also made hotel accommodation available for those who could not easily isolate in their own homes.
When numbers dramatically declined Morishita credited those two actions.
About 10 months later Morishita says he would do it again if necessary.
“If we were facing the same exponential growth, yes I would want a similar approach,” said Morishita on Friday.
Spearman says the population size between the two cities makes a similar approach more difficult. Brooks has a population of about 14,500 and Lethbridge about 100,000.
“When we’re 10 times the size of the City of Brooks I think that’s a challenge for us. Secondly we don’t have the resources. It would be up to Alberta Health Services to make that decision,” said Spearman. “We are going to rely upon Alberta Health Services to make those medical decisions.”
Spearman said he is concerned some people who are not getting tested may be spreading the virus to others.
“Our numbers could conceivably be higher than what is being reported,” said Spearman.
He said he has not specifically asked for mass testing.
Mass testing could identify the true numbers and also people without symptoms who are COVID positive.
“That may be true. I certainly would leave that to the decision and the discretion of Alberta Health Services. As a lay person I’m not going to direct them at this stage,” said Spearman.
There was a meeting on Tuesday with AHS South zone staff, said Spearman. They said they still have excess testing capacity in Lethbridge.
Asquith says there are two pilot programs of asymptomatic testing at schools in Calgary but it is too early to tell whether it would help in Lethbridge.
“We’re looking to see how it works in Calgary and the success rate of that process…,” said Asquith. “I think it will provide good information for Alberta Health Services to determine how they provide recommendations and supports to more school divisions…”
Neudorf says he believes the focus on providing vaccines may affect the number of staff available for mass testing at the same time.
Vaccination rates and testing numbers:
Alberta Health declined to provide specific numbers for Lethbridge but provided details for the whole of the South zone.
As of March 18 there have been 37,102 vaccine doses administered in the South zone, said Sherene Khaw, spokesperson for Alberta Health. This number does not include doses provided at pharmacies this week.
A total of 116,134 people in the South zone have been tested since November. “Asymptomatic testing province-wide has been paused for people who have no known exposure to COVID-19,” said Khaw in an emailed response.
Neudorf said he does not know how many tests are being done specifically in Lethbridge.
“I just don’t have access readily to that information.”
Saskatchewan provides daily updates online regarding test numbers for various areas.
“That’s something we’ve been asking for as well. And I’m unsure as to the approach or whether it’s a staffing thing in all of the resources on the frontline,” said Neudorf.
Provincial health orders prohibit indoor social gatherings with anyone other than those living in the same household. Outdoor social gatherings are limited to 10 people and cannot have an indoor component such as moving inside a home and going out to a backyard.
*An earlier version of this story included an incorrect information for the city’s Feb. active case count provided at Friday’s provincial press briefing
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Gillian.. It’s not difficult.. this current spike in Lethbridge is obviously (as per AHS web site) from the outbreak at Sunrise Poultry on 9th Ave N… Sunrise has hundreds of workers who have dozens (if not hundreds) of school aged children here in Lethbridge! Many of Sunrise’s workers are unfortunately not fluent in English.
Also from visitors from Pikani, where they have the highest numbers in Alberta
Any references for this? I spoke with a friend who lives there and she intimated that you may not have your facts straight.
The provincial data shows Cardston County to be the highest, followed closely by Lethbridge.
https://www.alberta.ca/maps/covid-19-status-map.htm#jumplinks-1
Cardston county includes Pikani. Look at the map!
Is that really your reply?
Sorry Citi – if you look at the AHS map Cardston Cty encompasses Kainai. The Pikani are encompassed by P. Crk.
Two wholly diff areas with 2 diff sets of numbers.
Exactly, JustObserving.
So, what can we attribute CitiZen’s unapologetic misinformation to, I wonder?
Sunrise is sitting at 75 confirmed cases Next. We have jumped 583 cases since March 1st. I think the answers rest elsewhere. The pic of the Mayor shrugging his shoulders in this article is telling as are the opening words ” Mayor Chris Spearman is hopeful…”. There is a leadership vacuum in this City where hope alone is not cutting it and buckpassing amounts to abdication of responsibility. Council’s weak-kneed passage of a masking by-law with no provision or desire for enforcement , it’s refusal to support enforcement against Churches, businesses and other violators and it’s unwillingness or inability to take any real steps to address this issue is telling.
When the mask by-law was passed many on council touted education over enforcement. Well, it has been over a year. If you have not educated the offending yet they are plainly too stupid to learn and the issue of their endangering the rest of society by their stupidity should be paramount.
We are headed to regional restrictions if those who are elected to take leadership decline to do so. What are you worried about Mr. Mayor? You are not seeking re-election so doing the right thing rather than the political safe thing may actually give your legacy a boost.
“Neudorf says socio-economic factors, multi-generation families and the number of people for whom English is a second language are contributing factors”.
What is this? How have we come to blaming the newest, and possibly most hardworking and struggling members of our community for the spread of Covid? Picture this: many newcomers work marginalized and often unpleasant jobs to provide us with food, care and support. Just because “those people” have an accent or speak together in languages we can’t understand, does this mean that they are not fully aware of the implications of Covid transfer? And yet, they continue to work under adverse and often dangerous circumstances, endangering not only their own lives, but also those of their families. They are not the “other”; they are fully aware of what this pandemic is all about, yet continue to work in unsafe conditions because they have to.
I have no local statistics, but my guess is that the percentage of people who absolutely don’t understand what is happening and how to avoid getting Covid is very very low. It is critical that we not begin to point fingers at groups that are already marginalized, but rather reach out and offer the warm understanding and support that we as Lethbridgites are supposedly renowned for. Blame will get us nowhere. We are all in this together. Think about this the next time you eat your chicken or visit your mother in a nursing home.
amazing how quickly the prejudiced, racist, jaundiced-brained hosers are quick to blame natives and immigrants! shameful.
the reality is the spikes and perpetuation is due to lack of enforcement, and lack of care taken by certain people that feel their sense of rights trump a reasonable concern for others. i have noted here before that certain stores – winners among the worst offenders – do not refuse service to dolts that insist on not wearing masks. moreover, you see these same dumbasses at gyms – despite the staff doing their best to “remind” that masks need to be on at all times, that masks need to cover noses as well…and all in addition to a plethora of extra duties not limited to frequent cleaning and disinfecting.
here are your rights, which should bolster your sense of primacy and privilege: you do not have to wear a mask if you stay at home, if you are in your car, when walking on the street. as for wearing one properly inside a public space, you still have every right to stay away if you do not feel like putting a mask on.
I am recovering from COVID myself, and after being a hermit for most of the year, wearing masks when out, gloves when shopping, sanitizing coming and going at stores, even wearing a mask and face shield or goggles at work when needed, I still contracted it. There is so much more we need to know and are still assuming we know everything about it . . . we don’t!
It needs to be treated like the dangerous virus it is, as it mutants . . . respecting that it kills . . . . respecting that is can have life altering side effects . . . and respecting the fact that masks alone are not enough!
BUT . . . INSTEAD . . . many are saying “we have had enough” . . . “we are tired of all these rules” and then ignore them and endanger everyone aroung them, including themselves! I could care a less about them . . . my concerns are the ‘collateral damage’ they cause around them . . . someone that has no symptoms, infecting someone near them, and that person infecting others, sometimes killing a loved ones parent or grandparent or in some cases, child!
It is not only selfish, but it is shameful! The high costs to the economy so far, especially to small business because people do not follow the rules could not just destroy the downtown business core, but the Canadian economy for decades! We are in trouble . . . and all these selfish idiots don’t care!
We need to get tough on those breaking the rules and you can have all the laws in place, but they are ineffective without enforcement!
These people need to be shown that if you endanger the people around you, there are consequnces! Unfortunately, the world we now live in have been spoiled for so long, they have the attitude of ‘hell no . . . nobody is going to tell me what to do’ . . . while people die!!!
I just got back from grocery shopping at a mall on the northside, with other major names in that mall . . . I left without getting all my groceries!
Aisles were clearly marked one direction, yet people ignored them, making social distancing impossible . . . even the staff were walking the wrong ways! What does that say about the store management . . . I won’t go back!
Call it what you will . . . gunshy . . . whatever, but I never want to get a case of COVID again, and that is possible with the variants!
AND . . . for those that got once shot of their vaccine, or both, it doesn’t matter . . . WEAR YOUR MASK, IT IS THE LAW !!!! Just because you got vaccinated, it doesn’t exclude you or exempt you . . . the law is still in effect!
There are too many unknowns with this virus and the variants are on the rise! Stop living for today and have some consideration for the lives of others and for the economy!
AND . . . it is time we saw some fines being handed out to protect our citizens. We seem to be afraid to hand out fines . . . like we don’t want to offend anyone!
People are dying, businesses are closing, the economy is in serious trouble . . . time to enforce the laws . . . levy a large number of fines and you will see people realize they need to start obeying them!
If I speed, I deserve a ticket . . . if I go through a red light, I deserve a ticket . . . so when people are dying from this virus and there is a high economic impact from people not obeying the laws . . . they deserve tickets . . . big tickets . . . the $1,000 tickets AHS has put in place!
Time for law enforcement to step in to protect the community, since people are not going act like mature, compassionate human peoples that have respect for others . . . but only themselves!!!
Let me remind everyone we are still in a “State of Public Health Emergency” in this province!
May God fill all of us with his spiritual wisdom, understanding and revelation to get us through this pandemic and Bless those that rebel and show them the truth!
For those that are Christians and are defiant . . . read Romans 13 1-5 and instead pray for an end to COVID, for healing and for financial breakthroughs to heal our economy!