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Alberta to lift some restrictions; Manitoba to release reopening plan

Prairie provinces unveiling or implementing next step in lifting pandemic restrictions
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A woman jogs past a mural as indoor fitness classes and gyms remain closed in Calgary on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020. Two Prairie provinces hit hard by the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic will be loosening some of their public health restrictions. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Two Prairie provinces hit hard by the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic are moving toward shedding more public health restrictions.

Alberta is entering the second step of its reopening plan, which includes allowing up to 20 people at outdoor gatherings, weddings and funeral services, but still bans indoor gatherings.

Gyms and fitness studios can open today, and restaurants can have a maximum of six people at a table, indoors or on a patio.

Phase 2 of the reopening depended on at least 60 per cent of the eligible population having at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

The province sits at about 67 per cent, but still needs thousands more Albertans to get their first shot to enter the final phase that would lift almost all restrictions two weeks after it hits 70 per cent.

Manitoba, meanwhile, is expected to outline how it plans to reopen.

The province has already announced that, as of Saturday, people will be allowed to gather — outdoors only — in groups of five in a public space or up to 10 people on private property.

—The Canadian Press

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