VANCOUVER -- A long-term care home that saw one of the deadliest outbreaks of B.C.'s first wave of COVID-19 infections is taking extra pandemic precautions again, after a staff member at the facility tested positive for the disease.
In a post on its website Wednesday, Langley Lodge said it had put "enhanced monitoring" in place, suspending social visits and only allowing fully vaccinated essential visitors. Residents were also being screened for coronavirus symptoms twice daily.
Communal dining and activities for residents are unaffected by the changes.
"Vaccination rates at Langley Lodge are high, with 96 per cent of residents and 90 per cent of staff vaccinated and counting," the care home said in its post.
"Despite this, you can still acquire COVID-19 if vaccinated. The COVID-19 vaccine is effective in preventing severe illness."
In an update Thursday, the care home said social visits for fully vaccinated visitors were allowed to resume for residents on Floors 1, 2 and 3. Enhanced monitoring continued to be in place for Floors 4 through 6.
"If we continue moving forward without any additional cases, enhanced monitoring will conclude on Sept. 4," the facility said. "We will wait for direction from public health before we can announce a reopening of social visits to affected floors."
Langley Lodge saw one of the deadliest COVID-19 outbreaks in B.C. during the pandemic's first wave. A total of 51 residents and 16 staff members tested positive during the outbreak, and 26 residents died.
The outbreak ended on July 3, 2020, and would go on to be eclipsed in size by many of the outbreaks at B.C. care homes during the second wave.
Veronika Korzhakova and Oxana Bratisheva scored in a 3:08 span early in the third period and the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) beat short-handed Germany 3-2 on Sunday to advance to the fifth-place game in the women's world hockey championship in Calgary.
"It was difficult for us because we knew we didn't have a chance to win a medal anymore," Korzhakova said. "But it was a new day and a new game. We rebooted and had a fresh mind, fresh legs, fresh everything."
The ROC will face Japan on Tuesday, with the winner getting a spot in Group A next year. Japan beat the Czech Republic 3-2.
Anna Savonina also scored for the ROC.
🚨 A nice feed to Oxana Bratisheva puts <a href="https://twitter.com/russiahockey?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@russiahockey</a> up 3-2 over <a href="https://twitter.com/deb_teams?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@deb_teams</a>! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ROCGER?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ROCGER</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WomensWorlds?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WomensWorlds</a> <a href="https://t.co/JRnp32wwqY">pic.twitter.com/JRnp32wwqY</a>
Tanja Eisenschmid and Kerstin Spielberger scored for Germany, limited to 15 skaters because of injuries. Spielberger gave Germany a 2-1 lead on a long shot with 2:38 left in the second, prompting Russian coach Yevgeni Bobarik to replace goalie Nadezhda Morozova with Valeria Merkusheva.
"This was an important game for us because we are playing for fifth place, which would give us the right to be in Group A for the next world championship," Bobariko said.
Morozova made 15 saves, and Merkusheva stopped all nine shots she faced. Franziska Albl made 23 saves for Germany.
Hanae Kubo, Rui Ukita, and Akane Shiga scored for Japan and Nana Fujimoto made 31 saves. Alena Mills and Daniela Pejsova scored for the Czech Republic.
Akane Shiga with 1:58 to go barrels down the ice and makes it 3-1 for Japan! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SmileJapan?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SmileJapan</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WomensWorlds?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WomensWorlds</a> <a href="https://t.co/GVYcnot0Ne">pic.twitter.com/GVYcnot0Ne</a>
Alena Mills and Daniela Pejsova scored for the Czech Republic, which fired 17 shots in the third period.
Shiga put Japan up 3-1 with 1:58 left in the game before Pejsova replied 43 seconds later. It made for a frantic finish with goaltender Klara Peslarova pulled with time winding down but the Czechs could not find the equalizer.
In the semifinals Monday, the five-time defending champion United States will face Finland, and Canada will play Switzerland. In the quarter-finals Saturday, the United States beat Japan 10-2, Canada topped Germany 7-0, Finland edged the Czech Republic 3-0 and Switzerland beat the ROC 3-2 in overtime.
OTTAWA -- Situated on the banks of the Ottawa River, Zibi Canada says it is building a city within a city, a unique development, combining residences, businesses and recreation in one place.
Breaking ground in 2015, the 34-acre site now has about 600 residents and 800 employees working in buildings built on the reclaimed industrial lands.
With zip lines, performance spaces and a beer garden, not to mention a growing retail presence, Zibi Canada says its goal is to create a livable and sustainable community where you can find everything you need without having to drive your car.
Jeff Westeinde, president of Zibi Canada, says building a sustainable community is about more than just the environmental footprint, it is about the overall quality of life for residents, employees and visitors to the site.
Westeinde says the heating and cooling systems create zero carbon emissions but that’s just a start.
"A big part of it is social inclusion. We get rated every year on the happiness of the people that live here," Westeinde said. "How often do you have to get into your car when you need to get a bag of milk or coffee is a great indicator of how happy and healthy you are."
James Dean, who was visiting the site with his wife to try the new interprovincial zipline, was pleased to see the lands being redeveloped but has concerns that the Zibi site may turn into a playground for those that can afford it. With prices for condos starting in the mid $300,000 range, he’d like to see a more mixed community.
"I think it’s it a pretty neat thing to do when you have undeveloped area along the waterfront," Dean said. "But you can build all the great condos you want but that’s going to be for people on the high-end. People of low income don’t have the ability to find a decent place to live."
Recently Zibi received a $10 million loan from the federal government to build 200 affordable rental units in Gatineau.
Westeinde saying Zibi sits on the site of the first European settlement in Ottawa Gatineau, he believes it will become once again heart of the region. With the site only 20 per cent complete, it will take at least another decade to complete the project.
"This will be the hub of everything that happens on both sides and more importantly a real physical and social link across the river," said Westeinde."
Shell Canada President Susannah Pierce is among a group of prominent Alberta CEOs who have come together to form a task force with the aim of coming up with long-term solutions for the Alberta economy.
Amber Bracken/The Globe and Mail
Susannah Pierce’s children aren’t interested in following in her footsteps.
The president of Shell Canada Ltd., one of Canada’s largest integrated oil companies, heads up a work force of 3,500 Canadian employees, earned public recognition as the face of the $40 billion LNG Canada project, and has lived and worked around the world.
But Pierce’s 15-year-old son and 13-year-old daughter don’t see a future for themselves in the industry where their mother has thrived.
The oil and gas sector is simply “not as attractive as it once was” to today’s young people, Pierce says bluntly, an uncomfortable fact she and other energy executives are being forced to face up to – even within their own households.
“If the conversation isn’t, ‘I want to work in the same business as you, Mom and Dad,’ then we have to ask ourselves why,” Pierce said in an interview.
The dinnertime conversations between Pierce and her children are a scaled-down version of a wider discussion taking place in Alberta right now as an entire province tries to decide on its path forward.
While Alberta’s historic oil and gas sector still makes an outsized contribution to the Canadian economy, it has been battered and bruised by seven years of low prices, pipeline protests and cancellations, layoffs, and consolidation. The province’s unemployment rate is 8.5 per cent, and close to 30 per cent of downtown Calgary’s office market sits vacant.
Alberta’s long-term unemployment rate – the portion of the population that has been without work for more than a year – is 2.4 per cent, significantly higher than the national average of 1.4 per cent.
Even now, with crude prices higher than they’ve been in years, there is widespread acknowledgment that the energy landscape has permanently shifted.
Climate change and the transition away from fossil fuels have moved to the forefront of the national and international conversation. Investment dollars are increasingly flowing to industries with favourable environmental performance, and companies – Shell included – are investing in green technology and decarbonization as part of their own net-zero commitments.
In the past several years, there have been various government attempts to address Alberta’s challenges, from tax credits aimed at boosting the province’s rapidly growing tech sector to incentives for petrochemical development and investments in hydrogen technology.
Recently, a group of prominent Alberta CEOs – including Pierce – came together to form their own task force with the aim of coming up with long-term solutions for the Alberta economy.
“It’s a service in support of what governments might be able to do, without asking governments to do it for us,” Pierce said. “The world is changing, in terms of the energy product it needs. And as a result, we must change too.”
The task force aims to come up with a series of economic strategies, policies and incentives that will attract investment and jobs to the province. It will also look at ways to keep young people in a province that is viewed by some as stuck in the past.
Also involved in the project, dubbed “Define the Decade,” are other heavyweights like Enbridge’s Al Monaco and Cenovus Energy’s Alex Pourbaix. And the task force includes executives of some of the province’s rapidly growing tech firms, such as artificial intelligence company AltaML and life sciences company DynaLIFE.
Diversification has been a buzzword in Alberta during previous commodity price downturns. It has always fallen by the wayside, though, when oil prices start to climb again, said Adam Legge, president of the Business Council of Alberta.
This time, however, it’s different, he said, and there’s no time to waste.
“Alberta’s history of riding these boom and bust cycles … is frankly, gone,” Legge said. “But we believe our best days are ahead of us. So many of the things that are happening In the world, the trends, the evolutions that are happening – Alberta really has a shot to be a global leader.”
David Taras, a political analyst based at Calgary’s Mount Royal University, said the idea of a group of Alberta’s top CEOs joining together to lobby for diversification, green energy, and the startup economy would have been unfathomable 10 or even 5 years ago.
The public relations message has clearly shifted away from defending traditional oil and gas, he said, to establishing Alberta’s role in the public eye as a future-forward investment destination.
“The global tide has shifted, and shifted dramatically,” Taras said. “And the industry has not only caught up, but realized they have to move on, they have to be in a different place.”
The Calgary and Edmonton Chambers of Commerce are not involved in the “Define the Decade” initiative but recently released a joint wish list for the federal election that calls for commitments from all the parties with respect to diversifying Alberta’s economy.
Deborah Yedlin, president and chief executive of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, said the organization is asking for everything from federal investments in grants and equity deals to foster the growth of the startup tech sector, to the creation of national Centres of Excellence within Alberta for sectors ranging from clean technology, artificial intelligence, and sports.
“We (Alberta) have the willingness to lead, but we can’t do it on our own,” Yedlin said. “We need federal support.”
Your time is valuable. Have the Top Business Headlines newsletter conveniently delivered to your inbox in the morning or evening.Sign up today.
Lando Norris will take a five-place grid penalty for today's Belgian Grand Prix after McLaren confirmed they have changed the gearbox in his MCL35M following his high-speed crash in qualifying on Saturday.
The 21-year-old had topped Q1 and Q2 at Spa, and looked to be in contention for his first ever pole position, before he crashed early in Q3 at Raidillon in a dramatic shunt that did substantial damage to his car, and saw him taken to hospital for checks and a X-ray on his elbow.
He was released on Saturday evening and cleared to race, as McLaren assessed the damage to his car. And on Sunday morning they confirmed they had changed the gearbox - but not the chassis - meaning he will have to take a five-place grid penalty, but not start from the pit lane.
"After assessing the damage to Lando's car, we have decided to change the gearbox, resulting in a five-place grid penalty," a McLaren spokesman told F1.com.
It means Norris will start the race from 14th position - pending any further penalties. Having failed to set a time in Q3 he was classified 10th, but was moved up to ninth as Valtteri Bottas, who qualified eighth, already had a five-place grid penalty to serve in Belgium, following his involvement in the Lap 1 multi-car crash in Hungary last time out.
2021 Belgian GP Qualifying: Lando Norris has big crash at Eau Rouge
Norris said on Saturday evening that he was bruised but was ready to race - and said he thought he could have been in the fight for pole had he not crashed.
“First of all, I’m doing good, but I’ve been better! I think just a bit bruised. Obviously, it was quite a big impact and I think my body’s just been thrown around a little bit but I’m good. I’m ready to race tomorrow and I want to get back on track already because it didn’t end the way I wanted it to," he said.
“Everything was going extremely well. Since the first lap in Q1, things were going perfectly and the car was feeling hooked up. I felt confident with the car. It was tricky going out in Q3 because, even on the out-lap, I was saying how wet it was because I was aquaplaning quite a bit.
"It was just a difficult situation to be in. How much do you want to push? How much do you not? I think, a combination of pushing a bit too much for the weather at that point and aquaplaning a little bit in the middle of Eau Rouge obviously didn’t end too well.
“I feel bad because things were going very well. I think I could have fought for pole position, but I’ve now given the team a lot of work to do. We’ll see where we start and try to score as many points as possible. Finally, a big thanks to all the marshals and medical staff for their help and hard work today.”
Norris bruised but 'ready to race' after spectacular Q3 crash
OTTAWA -- For the first time in 667 days, the Ottawa Redblacks took to the field at TD Place for a CFL football game.
The largest event in Ottawa since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic saw 15,000 fans pack the stadium at Lansdowne to watch the Redblacks face the B.C. Lions. The Lions spoiled the party, beating the Redblacks 24-12 Saturday night.
"Touchdown right? This feels like some sort of a touchdown today that we're back," said Mark Goudie, CEO of the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group.
It's the first Redblacks game in Ottawa since November 1, 2019.
”You got that nervous energy on game day here, probably amplified when we haven’t had a game for a couple of years," said Goudie. "But, you know there’s excitement for what’s to come and then there’s that ginormous game day to do list that everybody's feverishly trying to get done”
The game generated a buzz at Lansdowne Park and in the Glebe for the first time since large events were shutdown at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.
"Feels pretty good. I'm excited to be here with my brother," said one fan outside TD Place before kick-off.
The return of CFL football and thousands of fans at TD Place a boost to fans spirits, and businesses in the area.
"It's incredible. We've had this day marked on a calendar for a little bit of time now," said Noah Busschaert, general manager of Jack Astor's Bar and Grill at Lansdowne.
"This is the probably as close to normal as we've gotten, so it's a good feeling for our group of people."
Under COVID-19 protocols, a maximum of 15,000 fans were permitted inside TD Place for the game.
Other COVID-19 measures in place under the TD Place COVID-19 Fan Safety plan include:
Mandatory face masks while inside the perimeter of TD Place
Digital tickets
TD Place is now cashless, with only debit and credit cards accepted
Guests will be assigned a mandatory gate for entry
Guests will no longer be permitted to re-enter the venue throughout the event
The Redblacks next home game is Friday, Sept. 3 against Montreal.
OTTAWA -- For the first time in 667 days, the Ottawa Redblacks took to the field at TD Place for a CFL football game.
The largest event in Ottawa since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic saw 15,000 fans pack the stadium at Lansdowne to watch the Redblacks face the B.C. Lions. The Lions spoiled the party, beating the Redblacks 24-12 Saturday night.
"Touchdown right? This feels like some sort of a touchdown today that we're back," said Mark Goudie, CEO of the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group.
It's the first Redblacks game in Ottawa since November 1, 2019.
”You got that nervous energy on game day here, probably amplified when we haven’t had a game for a couple of years," said Goudie. "But, you know there’s excitement for what’s to come and then there’s that ginormous game day to do list that everybody's feverishly trying to get done”
The game generated a buzz at Lansdowne Park and in the Glebe for the first time since large events were shutdown at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.
"Feels pretty good. I'm excited to be here with my brother," said one fan outside TD Place before kick-off.
The return of CFL football and thousands of fans at TD Place a boost to fans spirits, and businesses in the area.
"It's incredible. We've had this day marked on a calendar for a little bit of time now," said Noah Busschaert, general manager of Jack Astor's Bar and Grill at Lansdowne.
"This is the probably as close to normal as we've gotten, so it's a good feeling for our group of people."
Under COVID-19 protocols, a maximum of 15,000 fans were permitted inside TD Place for the game.
Other COVID-19 measures in place under the TD Place COVID-19 Fan Safety plan include:
Mandatory face masks while inside the perimeter of TD Place
Digital tickets
TD Place is now cashless, with only debit and credit cards accepted
Guests will be assigned a mandatory gate for entry
Guests will no longer be permitted to re-enter the venue throughout the event
The Redblacks next home game is Friday, Sept. 3 against Montreal.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/tgam/2OCTYOGG7FBA5MHHZDULRCNMHA.JPG)
