Health-care worker among 5 new COVID-19 deaths recorded in Alberta

Alberta reported 284 new cases of COVID-19 around the province on Sunday, as well as five additional deaths recorded in the last 24 hours.

There are now 5,215 active cases in the province, down slightly over Saturday, when Alberta reported 5,271 active cases.

Provincial labs completed 7,972tests for the disease on Saturday, for a positivity rate of about 3.7per cent, slightly lower than the 8,070 tests completed the previous day, for a positivity rate of 3.8 per cent.

Hospitalizations also dropped to 351 people in hospital with the illness on Sunday, including60 in intensive care unit beds, from 359 people in hospital with the illness on Saturday, 64 in intensive care.

Since the pandemic began, 1,780 people have died from COVID-19 in Alberta.

Of the five deaths reported Sunday, four occurred in the Edmonton zone, including one linked to the outbreak at Lynwood Capital Care, and one death took place in the Calgary zone. The deaths occurred between Feb. 11 and Feb. 14.

One of those who died, a man in his 50sin the Edmonton zone, was a health-care worker. Itis the sixthhealthcare worker death that has been reported in Alberta.

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An update on the number of the more contagious COVID-19 variants has not been reported by the province since Friday, when 171 cases were reported in Alberta, including 15 new cases reported in the previous 24 hours.

Of those, 164 cases are of the B117 variant first identified in the United Kingdom have now been found in Alberta. The other seven are of the B1351 variant, first discovered in South Africa.

On Sunday, 145,841 doses of vaccine had been administered in Alberta.

Of Alberta's 5,215 active cases, here's how they break down by region:

• Calgary zone: 2,022 cases
• Edmonton zone: 1,453 cases
• North zone: 735 cases
• Central zone: 678 cases
• South zone: 321 cases
• Unknown: 6 cases

The next live update from Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta's chief medical officer of health, will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 16.