2 more presumptive cases of COVID-19 identified in Alberta

Mar 8 2020, 5:24 pm

Two more people are presumed to have COVID-19 in Alberta, health officials said Sunday.

This brings the total number of cases in Alberta to four.

One of the new patients is a man in his 60s who lives in the Edmonton area. He returned from a cruise on the Grand Princess on February 21. That ship is off the coast of California right now dealing with an outbreak of coronavirus among its current passengers.

The other new patient is a woman in her 30s who lives in the Calgary area. She’s a close contact of someone who recently travelled in Europe. Her travel companion lives in Alberta too, and that person has been tested for COVID-19 as well. Their results have not yet come back.

Both of the patients are in isolation at home.

They’re called presumptive cases because their test for COVID-19 came back positive, but a second test at the national microbiology lab in Winnipeg will confirm that result.

Alberta’s second presumed case of COVID-19, in a man in his 40s from the Edmonton area, has been confirmed by that lab, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said.

Alberta has seen four cases of COVID-19 so far, and three of them are tied to the Grand Princess cruise ship, Hinshaw said. Dozens of Albertans were on the cruise, and public health officials have been tracking down the passengers to get them tested.

 

Megan DevlinMegan Devlin

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