State of Local Emergency lifted in Calgary as of Monday
The State of Local Emergency (SOLE) is being lifted in Calgary effective Monday, Mayor Naheed Nenshi announced.
The city has been under a State of Local Emergency since November 2020, which was renewed most recently on May 21 for 90 days. With it now lifted, Nenshi said most people won't notice much of a difference. The city's emergency management plan will remain in place, said Calgary Emergency Management Agency (CEMA) Chief Sue Henry, to ensure various departments are able to communicate and coordinate effectively.
The use of adaptive roadways (closing down lanes to allow pedestrians and cyclists more room) will remain in place through the summer, and masks will still be mandatory at indoor public places and on transit.
"For citizens, I will encourage you to keep doing what you're doing, wash your hands, wear your mask and get your shot," said Nenshi.
"This is another step in our movement toward a brighter future."
City council is set to debate the city's mask bylaw on Monday and Nenshi said he would like to see the benchmark for removal tied to second doses.
The province has said 68.5 per cent of Albertans age 12 and up have now received a first dose. The province will move to Stage 3 of its reopening plan when it reaches 70 per cent, which will see all provincial health measures removed.
Nenshi said he is also concerned by the outbreak of Delta variant at Foothills hospital, but noted the city will likely remove the mask mandate within weeks of when the province does.
"Ultimately, we're probably talking about a difference of a few weeks at most," he said. "If the province chooses to lift their mask mandate by July 1, let's say, and we choose to keep it in place until we have a higher second dose percentage, if people continue to get their second dose at the rate they're getting them, the difference would probably be a couple weeks."
Nenshi said he would be surprised if the city hasn't lifted the mask mandate "by the end of July."
As the city begins moving back toward a sense of normalcy following the pandemic, Nenshi asked Calgarans to treat each other with kindness.
"People will have different comfort levels on how to move forward," he said.
"Some people are excited about going to the Stampede. Some people will not go to the Stampede this year. Some people cannot wait to rip their mask off, some people are saying, 'I'm going to keep my masks on when I'm in crowded places for the near future,' and it's all OK ... I just want to remind everyone to be kind."
The reason for the lifting of the SOLE, said Calgary Emergency Management Agency Chief Sue Henry, is because vaccination availability is increasing and hospital rates continue to decline.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
'We hoped for this day, but we were scared that it would not never ever come because it took so long.' That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.