What you need to know about COVID-19 in Alberta on Friday, Oct. 9

The latest:

• Alberta reported 277 new cases Friday and one new death.
• In the biggest activeoutbreak in Alberta,at Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary, 11 people have died and 86 have tested positive for COVID-19. The latest death makes the outbreak as deadly as the Misericordia outbreak in Edmontonover the summer.
• Outbreaks of COVID-19 have been declared in two units at the Misericordia Community Hospital in west Edmonton, Alberta Health Services said Thursday.
• Eight patients and two health-care workers have tested positive, AHS said in a news release. Another 29 health-care workers are in isolation.
• Alberta's chief medical officer of health unveiled additional voluntary measuresdesigned to slow the surge of COVID-19 cases in Edmonton.
• The Edmonton zone reported1,329cases on Friday, up from 1,250on Thursday.
• Another 277 COVID-19 cases were reported on Friday in Alberta, down from 364 on Thursday. Thursday's case count represented the highest new case count ever.
• That brings the province to a total of 2,225 active cases, up 128 from the previous day. At the peak in late April, there were nearly 3,000 active cases in the province.

• As of Friday, there were 76 schools with outbreaks (ofthe more than 2,400 schools across the province) including 14on the "watch" list, meaning they have five or more cases.
• The City of Calgary on Tuesday joined the province in saying it isn't cancelling Halloween but issued a number of tips to help people mark the holiday safely.
• Doctors and governments say the COVID-19 pandemic makes it more important than ever to get the flu shot. The influenza vaccine won't be available to the general public in Alberta until Oct. 19, but pharmacies say appointments to get the shot in the first two weeks are filling up fast.

What you need to know today in Alberta:

Alberta has never recorded more cases of COVID-19 among school-aged kids and teensthan it did over the past week. Data from Alberta Health shows the number of new daily cases has continued to rise among five-to nine-year-olds and has shot up, especially, among 10- to 19-year-olds.

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta' s chief medical officer of health,introduced new voluntary measures to slowthe spread of COVID-19 in Edmontonas the province surged pastthe all-time high of new cases, with364 new cases of COVID-19 and two more deaths reported Thursday.

Surging case numbers in the Edmonton zone are a big concern for Alberta public health officials. Of the 2,225active cases reported in Alberta on Friday, 1,329 were in the Edmonton area.

The capital region is experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases and Dr. Lynora Saxinger an associate professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Alberta says Edmontonians should be concerned.

Some Calgary doctors are calling on health officials to be more transparent about recent COVID-19 outbreaks at hospitals and publicly release investigations into those outbreaks.

Dr. Joe Vipond,an ER physician in Calgary and a co-founderof the Masks4Canada advocacy group, said he wants to know what Alberta Health Services learned from theinitial outbreak atMisericordia Community Hospitalin Edmonton.

Grades 6 and 9 students in the Calgary Catholic School District will not be required to take part in provincial achievement tests this year after the province allowed school authorities the discretion to cancel thembecause ofthe pandemic.

And in the capital,Edmonton Public Schools will ask the province to suspend diploma exams for high school students in the 2020-21 academic year, the board agreed unanimously at a meeting Tuesday.

Board trustees said requiring students to take the provincially-administered tests would add pressure to an already stressful learning environment in the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Tuesday, theCity of Calgary issued some tips for navigating Halloween, which echoed ones released by the province last week, onhow to safely trick-or-treat, give out candy or celebrate the holiday in non-traditional ways.

You can find a roundup of tips and ideas for Halloweenfrom the province, the city and creative members of the public here.

A total of 86 people are in hospital, and 11 are in intensive care, as of Friday. Labs have now performed1,498,064 tests on 1,110,134 Albertans.

Here's the regional breakdown of active cases reported on Friday:

• Edmonton zone: 1,329 cases, up by 79 from Thursday.
• Calgary zone:628 cases, up by 24.
• North zone:105 cases, up by 8.
• South zone: 102cases, down by 10.
• Central zone: 50cases, up by 11.
• Unknown: 11cases, down by 3.

Find out which neighbourhoods or communities have the most cases, how hard people of different ages have been hit, the ages of people in hospital, how Alberta compares to other provinces and more in: Here are the latest COVID-19 statistics for Alberta and what they mean

What you need to know today in Canada:

As of 2:30p.m. ET on Friday, Canada had 177,699confirmed or presumptive coronavirus cases. Provinces and territories listed 149,244of those as recovered or resolved. A CBC News tally of deaths based on provincial reports, regional health information and CBC's reporting stood at 9,586.

The federal government says targeted aid is coming for some businesses hit by closures as a second wave of COVID-19hits parts of the country. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, flanked by the prime minister and other cabinet colleagues, announced the new program at a news conference in Ottawa Friday.

Ontario reported939 new cases of COVID-19 on Fridayits highest-ever daily number of newcases. It is also the second day in a row the province is seeing record-breaking daily figures, trumping Thursday's previous record of797 set Thursday.

Friday's updateprompted Premier Doug Ford's cabinet to hold an emergency meeting where it was decided that Ontario will bring intargeted temporary measures in Ottawa, Toronto and Peel by moving them into modified Stage 2 restrictions for a period of at least 28 days.

The measures includeclosing indoor dining, gyms, cinemas, casinos, performing arts andracing venues. Schools will remain open.

Ottawa is lifting COVID-19 cross-border travel restrictions for a wider range of family members as of Thursday, which means someCanadians will soon be able to reunite with loved ones outside the countryafter being separated for months.

The changes,announced on Oct. 2,will allow for the entry of certain extended family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents, including couples who have been dating for at least a year andtheir children, as well as grandchildren, siblings and grandparents.

Self-assessment and supports:

Alberta Health Services has an online self-assessment tool that you can use to determine if you have symptoms of COVID-19, but testing is open to anyone, even without symptoms.

The province says Albertans who have returned to Canada from other countries must self-isolate. Unless your situation is critical and requires a call to 911, Albertans are advised to call Health Link at 811 before visiting a physician, hospital or other health-care facility.

If you have symptoms, even mild, you are to self-isolate for at least 10 days from the onset of symptoms, until the symptoms have disappeared.

You can find Alberta Health Services' latest coronavirus updates here.

The province also operates a confidential mental health support line at 1-877-303-2642 and addiction help line at 1-866-332-2322, both available 24 hours a day.

Online resources are available for advice on handling stressful situations and ways to talk with children.

There is a 24-hour family violence information line at 310-1818 to get anonymous help in more than 170 languages, and Alberta's One Line for Sexual Violence is available at 1-866-403-8000, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.