Two residents at an independent retirement home in southeast Edmonton, who were previously diagnosed with COVID-19, have died, the company that runs the facility told families on Tuesday.
Atria Retirement also said six more residents of Churchill Manor have contracted the virus. Alberta Health Services conducted community testing on Monday, the company said.
This brings the COVID-19 outbreak total to 55 residents and 12 employees.
The community residents are receiving care, as needed, from AHS support staff, Atria said. Quarantine protocols remain in effect at the continuing care facility.
On March 3, Alberta Health officials said the facility was the site of the province’s first outbreak involving a COVID-19 variant. As of March 4, 36 staff and residents had tested positive for COVID-19, including more than a dozen cases of the variant.
Family members of a 94-year-old resident there raised concerns that health precautions were eased too soon — before residents had been vaccinated.
Atria Retirement said AHS would be back on Wednesday to do another round of testing.
The company told families it remains in daily contact with AHS.
Alberta added 255 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, bringing the province’s total to 136,374 confirmed cases since the pandemic began last year.
There were 263 people in hospital with COVID-19 on Tuesday afternoon, 37 of whom were being treated in intensive care.
Alberta Health reported six additional deaths Tuesday, bringing the province’s death toll from COVID-19 to 1,926.
All of the deaths reported Tuesday included comorbidities, according to Alberta Health.