Alberta COVID case numbers show positive signs heading into Halloween weekend

As we prepare for a weekend of trick-or-treating, Halloween parties and social gatherings, the province is reporting COVID-19 numbers that have positive implications.

In the last 24 hours, there have been 603 new cases of the virus reported on 10,505 tests, for a positivity rate of around 5.7 per cent.

Active infections also continue to drop as there are now 8,158 active cases of COVID-19 in Alberta, a 229 case decrease from Thursday.

Hospitalization numbers also continue to drop in the province.

As of Friday afternoon, there are 765 people in hospital with COVID-19, a decline of 14 from the day prior. Of those in hospital, 180 are in the ICU.

Meanwhile, eight new deaths were reported to the province since Thursday.

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On the vaccination front, more than 6.52 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered in Alberta.

Of those 12 and older in the province, 86.9 per cent have received at least one dose, while 79.8 per cent are fully immunized.