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Active COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Alberta, 173 new cases identified

Active cases of COVID-19 in Alberta grew by 123 since the previous update. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press - image credit)
Active cases of COVID-19 in Alberta grew by 123 since the previous update. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press - image credit)

Alberta reported 173 new cases of COVID-19 Friday, while two more people died from the illness earlier this week.

The province's COVID-19 death toll is now 2,322 after two more Albertans died from the illness.

One of the people was a man in his 50s living in the North zone who died Tuesday. The other was a woman in her 70s from the Edmonton zone who died Wednesday.

Meanwhile, 173 new COVID-19 cases were reported Friday — 162 confirmed and 11 probable cases.

The total of known active cases in Alberta increased by 123 since Thursday's update to 799. Most of active cases are in the Calgary zone:

  • Calgary zone: 473

  • Edmonton zone: 155

  • North zone: 75

  • Central zone: 39

  • South zone: 56

  • Unknown: 1

There had previously been a discrepancy between the total of new COVID-19 cases and the increase in known active cases that was reported by the Alberta government.

The discrepancy was due to the net increase in cases — which subtracts probable cases that labs confirm are negative — being reported rather than the total number of new cases. The province typically reports the net increase in its daily update.

The province also removed "a small number" of cases that had been entered twice in the system, a spokesperson for the health ministry said.

Removing the duplicate cases was part of a server upgrade conducted Thursday, the spokesperson said.

Alberta labs identified a 96 more cases of coronavirus variants of concern. Variants now account for 469 of the province's known active cases — or around 59 per cent.

Twenty-two cases of the highly infectious delta variant were also identified in the last 24 hours.

COVID-19 hospitalizations, meanwhile, continue to decline. There are now 84 people being treated in hospital in Alberta, including 26 patients in intensive care units.

Around 7,600 COVID-19 tests were completed Thursday. The test-positivity rate is 2.14 per cent.

Another 27,657 COVID-19 vaccines were administered throughout the province Thursday.

Roughly 75.2 per cent of eligible Albertans have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 62 per cent have had two doses.