The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada for Thursday, July 15, 2021

The latest news on COVID-19 developments in Canada (all times eastern):

6:25 p.m.

Alberta is reporting 53 new cases of COVID-19 and one additional death.

The province says 107 people are in hospital due to the virus, including 31 in intensive care.

There are 576 active cases, with 315 being from the more contagious variants of concern.

A total of 2,312 people in Alberta have died of COVID-19 since the pandemic began.

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5:20 p.m.

British Columbia is reporting its first death in several days due to COVID-19 for a total of 1,761 fatalities since the pandemic began.

There are 54 new cases and 650 active cases.

Sixty-three people are in hospital and 12 of those are in intensive care.

The vaccination rate for those 12 and older for a first shot is 79.4 per cent, and 48.6 per cent are fully vaccinated.

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3:35 p.m.

Saskatchewan is reporting 30 new cases of COVID-19 today, and no new deaths.

Nine more people have recovered, leaving the province with 373 active cases.

The province is also reporting 52 people in hospital, including nine in intensive care.

The seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases in the province has dropped to 27, its lowest mark since Oct. 13, 2020.

Provincewide, 73 per cent of those aged 12 and older have now received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine.

Fifty-seven per cent of those 12 and older are fully vaccinated.

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1:35 p.m.

Manitoba is reporting 41 COVID-19 cases and one additional death. 

There are 128 Manitobans in hospital, including 31 in intensive care. 

There has also been a sharp drop in daily case counts of late and the province will be moving into the second stage of its reopening plan on Saturday. 

The five-day test positivity rate is 3.4 per cent provincially.

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1:20 p.m.

Twenty-three new COVID-19 cases have been confirmed among crew members on a Portuguese fishing vessel anchored off the coast of Newfoundland.

Newfoundland and Labrador health authorities say that with today’s cases, 31 of the ship’s crew have now tested positive for the disease, including one seafarer who is now in hospital.

Karl Risser, an Atlantic Canadian inspector with the International Transport Workers’ Federation, told The Canadian Press Wednesday there are 39 people on board the ship.

Meanwhile, 14 crew members tested positive last week for COVID-19 aboard an oil tanker anchored near the fishing vessel, and public health officials say that number remains unchanged.

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1 p.m.

New Brunswick is reporting seven new cases of COVID-19 today, all related to travel.

Health officials say six new cases are in the Moncton region and one is in the Fredericton area.

New Brunswick has eight active reported cases and no one in hospital with the disease.

About 55 per cent of New Brunswickers over the age of 12 are fully vaccinated and about 80 per cent have received at least one dose.

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12:15 p.m.

Nova Scotia is reporting no new cases of COVID-19 and six recoveries.

As of today, Nova Scotia has 22 active cases.

Of those, two people are in hospital COVID-19 units, including one in intensive care.

Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health, warned against complacency, saying the Delta variant can spread easily and more quickly than past outbreaks.

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11 a.m.

Quebec is reporting 65 new cases of COVID-19 today and one more death attributed to the novel coronavirus.

Health officials say hospitalizations rose by two, to 81, and 23 people were in intensive care, a drop of two.

The province says 101,686 doses of COVID-19 vaccine were administered Wednesday and 51 per cent of people over 12 are considered fully vaccinated.

Health Minister Christian Dubé tweeted today that people aged between 12 and 17 years are now able to advance their second-dose appointments of COVID-19 vaccine.

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10:30 a.m.

Ontario is reporting 143 new cases of COVID-19 today and 10 more deaths linked to the virus.

Health Minister Christine Elliott says 25 of the cases are in Waterloo Region, 25 are in Grey Bruce and 20 are in Toronto.

Elliott also says the province administered just over 166,200 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine yesterday.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 15, 2021.

The Canadian Press