COVID-19 alerts active at nine Grande Prairie schools, two outbreaks

Feb 11, 2021 | 4:22 PM

Parkside Montessori School in Grande Prairie has been added to Alberta Health’s COVID-19 alert list Thursday, meaning between two and four cases of COVID-19 have been identified at the school.

That is the ninth school to be placed under an outbreak alert status in the city since students returned to the classroom on January 11. The other schools on alert can be seen below.

Courtesy of Alberta Health

Two Grande Prairie schools are also under an outbreak status, those being École Nouvelle Frontière and Hillside Christian School. Ten or more cases have been linked to those schools, with École Nouvelle Frontière moving classes virtually this week amid the outbreak.

Alberta’s chief medical officer of health, Dr. Deena Hinshaw, said Thursday that 311 schools in the province are under at least an alert status for COVID-19, meaning public health officials are investigating the risk level within the school.

Outbreaks are then declared when at least five cases have been linked to the school.

Dr. Hinshaw says 897 cases have been linked to Alberta schools since Jan. 11, with 155 of those cases believed to be acquired within the school setting.

by Shaun Penner