EDMONTON — An online festival is raising money to help local cat rescue organizations and celebrate all things feline.

The Edmonton International Cat Fest — Alberta’s biggest celebration of cats, cat culture, and cat people — began Saturday and continues Sunday with online programming from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on both days.

Thirty different interactive online activities, speakers, and educational events are scheduled for the two days. Some of the events include virtual cat yoga, how to make cat food, and local rescue panels, and live kitten cameras.

To take part in the cat-themed festivities visit the Edmonton International Cat Fest page. 

Tickets are based on a pay-what-you-can model, where any donation of $20 or more will give you access to both days of online programming.

The festival will have some on-demand programming for people to enjoy for three weeks after, and it  has Alberta’s first and only cat-themed online market for cat products. 

All of the proceeds from the event will be donated to three local cat rescue organizations, including Little Cats Lost, Second Chance Animal Rescue (SCARS) and the Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society.

Since 2014, the Cat Festival has raised $117,000 to aid cat rescue organizations.

“The pandemic won’t stop this paw-ty,” said Cat Festival founder Linda Hoang, in an email statement.

“During the last 14 months, cats have proven to be a source of happiness and comfort for many,” she added. “We hope our virtual weekend event will give cat lovers a brief paws, and inject some pawsitivity into their days.”

To help mark the occasion, Mayor Don Iveson proclaimed May 29, 2021 as “Cat Day” in the city of Edmonton.

“38 purrcent of Canadian households are home to at least one feline family member, and there are more than 33,000 licensed cats registered in Edmonton,” the declaration read.

“Cats are great companions to many, and have had a pawsitive impact over the past 14 months on the mental health and wellbeing of their humans.” 

In an interview with CTV News Edmonton, Hoang said this is the second time the festival has been hosted online.

“Normally we have thousands of people packed in a room,” she said. “But this year we are spread out from all over the world.

“We are hoping with the virtual cat fest is that the year has been a bit of a downer and pretty negativity. With this virtual cat fest weekend we are hopefully giving people a positive break.”

KAMLOOPS, B.C. — Plans are being made to identify and return home the remains of more than 200 children found buried at the site of a former residential school in British Columbia’s Interior, says a provincial Indigenous leader.

The Kamloops Indian Band wants to undertake the “heart-wrenching” process to eventually tell the stories of the children and bring peace to their families, said Terry Teegee, Assembly of First Nations regional chief.

The effort could involve the B.C. Coroners Service, the Royal B.C. Museum and forensics experts, he said.

Teegee said he has been meeting with Indigenous leaders from across B.C. to decide what steps to take next.

“Really, I think what needs to occur is perhaps some sort of discovery and perhaps some forensics about who these children were, where are they from if that’s possible,” he said in an interview from Prince George.

“And perhaps repatriation to their respective communities because the students come from not only the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc area but also neighbouring communities and as far north as Fort Nelson,” he said.

Chief Rosanne Casimir of the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc First Nation said the remains of 215 children, some as young as three years old, were confirmed last weekend with the help of ground-penetrating radar.

She described the discovery as “an unthinkable loss that was spoken about but never documented at the Kamloops Indian Residential School.”

Teegee said he spoke with Casimir about the discovery of the remains and to offer the support of Indigenous leaders and groups from across Canada.

He said they discussed what the best way forward would be to continue the search and provide supports to the Tk’emlups nation and those who may have lost a loved one.

Casimir said on Friday that more bodies may be found because there are more areas to search in the school grounds.

Teegee said the investigation may require working with the Royal B.C. Museum on how to best manage the area and it could also mean exhuming the remains with the goal of repatriating the children to their communities.

The discovery of the remains confirms the many comments from school survivors about children disappearing, he said.

“I think it speaks to those stories of those children who said, ‘There were always stories of these burials, and whatever happened to this kid who went missing in a supposedly random way,”‘ he said.

Dan Muzyka, board chair of the Royal BC Museum, said his team is providing support to the Nation by searching records held in the BC Archives for historical information related to deaths or burials at the school.

“The most significant, relevant records in the BC Archives are those of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the religious order that operated the school,” Muzyka said in a statement.

“The museum is committed to fully supporting the Nation through this archival research.”

Prof. Nicole Schabus, of the law faculty at Thompson Rivers University, said each of her first-year law students at the Kamloops university spends at least one day at the former residential school speaking with survivors.

“I’m so grateful to the survivors who had so generously shared their stories,” she said.

Schabus said she did not hear survivors talk about an unmarked grave area, “but they all talk about the kids who didn’t make it.”

Survivors started calling her Thursday when the discovery was made public, saying they can’t sleep because the reports triggered horrible childhood memories, she said.

Teegee said the Kamloops discovery has shed more light on Canada’s dark residential school history.

“This really resurfaces the issue of residential schools and the wounds from this legacy of genocide towards Indigenous people,” he said.

The Kamloops residential school operated between 1890 and 1969. The federal government took over the facility’s operation from the Catholic Church and ran it as a day school until it closed in 1978.

The National Truth and Reconciliation Commission has records of at least 51 children dying at the school between 1915 and 1963.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 29, 2021.

EDMONTON — Premier Jason Kenney says the province is doing everything it can to ensure every Alberta gets their COVID-19 immunization, including considering incentives for getting vaccinated.

In a media availability Friday, following a funding announcement for students in K-3 who have fallen behind in their learning due to the pandemic, Kenney was asked if the province is considering offering incentives for Albertans who receive their vaccines.

Several businesses in Alberta have offered perks, discounts, free food or beverages for those who have been immunized against COVID-19. The University of Lethbridge created a contest to grant free tuition to nine lucky vaccinated students.

States like Ohio down south have created vaccination lotteries as an incentive to help boost the number of people receiving vaccinations.

“We want to leave no stone unturned when it comes to getting as many people vaccinated as possible,” Kenney said.

He added that he has asked the province’s health department to consider implementing creative incentives to encourage vaccinations.

“We’ll take a look at that,” Kenney said. “As soon as we start to see a significant decline in first dose demand, we will consider options like that.”

The premier said there are other “creative” efforts already underway that are helping drive vaccination numbers including setting up temporary clinics, reaching out to employers of large work sites, breaking down barriers to accessing vaccines, and sending a mail-out to every home in the province.

“We’ll be sending out a lot more information to people who might be hesitating or on the fence about getting vaccinated,” he said.

“Vaccines are (Albertans) ticket back to normal, and to reclaiming all of our freedoms,” Kenney said. “The vaccines are safe and they are effective.”

The province has already unveiled a marketing campaign to help drive the number of people booking appointments for a first dose. Another one with “refreshed” messaging will also be released in the near future.

READ MORE: ‘Your vaccine is your ticket’: Alberta government pushes vaccination through ad campaign 

“I think there is nothing more Albertan than doing something together to help others, and that’s exactly what getting the jab means.

“Maybe incentives like that will be helpful,” Kenney said. “No decision have been made at this point.” 

EDMONTON — Tours of the Columbia Icefield have resumed nearly a year after a tragic accident last summer killed three people and injured two dozen others.

There are now seatbelts in all the six-wheel Ice Explorer buses that take visitors directly onto the Columbia Icefield.

Last July, one of the tour buses lost control and rolled down the mountainside, ending up on its roof.

READ MORE: Three dead after bus rollover south of Jasper: RCMP

The Columbia Icefield is located about 100 kilometres south of Jasper, Alta. and is one of the largest non-polar icefields in the world.

Tours began on Friday and are scheduled to run throughout the summer season.

The website for tours made no mention of the accident, but noted there is a “safety promise” to ensure guests can “travel with confidence” from COVID-19 transmission.

Pursuit, the company that owns and operates the tours at both the Columbia Icefield and the Skywalk above Sunwapta Valley, told CTV News Edmonton that new safety changes to the Ice Explorer fleet of buses includes seat belts, a new road maintenance and conditions management system, and new additional driver training.

Tanya Otis, a communications manager for Pursuit, said in an emailed statement that the company has undergone an internal review.

“The incident at the Columbia Icefield last July was tragic and we continue to extend our deepest condolences to everyone involved,” Otis said.

“We engaged a team of internal and external experts to identify any additional safety measures to add to our current operation.”

According to Otis, the review included all elements of the tour bus operation from fleet management to road maintenance, and driver training.

She added that all recommendations the review identified have been implemented.

“We have implemented additional measures to our current safety and training programs that adhere to and exceed current industry best practices,” Otis said in the statement.

The RCMP continue to investigate the July 2020 crash. A final report is scheduled to be released this spring. Mounties say they will not comment on the accident or the investigation until the final report is completed.

A class-action lawsuit has since been filed against a number of parties including the tour company and the unidentified driver of the bus.

READ MORE: Class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of passengers in fatal Icefield bus crash

EDMONTON — As Albertans wait to hear the province’s strategy for rolling out second doses of COVID-19 vaccines, some are finding their own ways to get that follow-up shot.

The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) released new guidance on Friday, now saying with an increased supply of vaccine doses in Canada second rounds should be given “as soon as possible.” 

The NACI had previously recommended second shots be delayed by up to four months. 

When asked about the new NACI guidance on Friday, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney reiterated that the province’s plan for second doses would be announced “early next week.”

“It is important to underscore that we are well ahead of the rest of Canada already, in administering second doses,” the premier said.

Government of Canada data shows, as of May 28, 4.61 per cent of the total population in the country had received a second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. 

According to Government of Alberta statistics, as of May 26, 8.1 per cent of the total population in the province had been given a second shot. 

Provincial stats also show over 70 per cent of Albertans over the age of 75 are now fully vaccinated. 

Kenney said more than 1.1 million vaccines are expected to arrive in the next month, and as of Thursday there were close to 550,000 appointments booked for first doses.

“That shows you that we’re now getting enough quantity that we can do both,” said the premier.

‘PHARMACIES HAVE BEEN WORKING INCREDIBLY HARD’

With over 60 per cent of eligible Albertans having received their first dose, at least some of the 1,300 Alberta pharmacies assisting with the vaccine roll out are already doling out second round shots.

One Edmonton pharmacist told CTV News Edmonton his pharmacy has vaccinated roughly 3,000 Albertans since March. Access Pharmacy co-owner Dennis Cai said they have yet to waste a single dose.

“It seems like most of the waitlist patients that we do call, they have already received their first dose,” Cai said. “Sometimes if you’re unable to find another first dose patient on short notice, we’ll call someone who received their first dose in March to get their second dose slightly earlier.”

Cai said there are times when administering a second dose is the only option besides wasting it.

“When we open a vial we only have six hours to administer it,” he said. “So let’s say someone doesn’t show up, that’s usually when we’ll call for a second dose, if we absolutely can’t find a first dose.”

Several Edmonton pharmacies CTV News Edmonton spoke to said they too have been giving out second doses in order to prevent wastage.

According to Alberta Health spokesperson Tom McMillan, pharmacies have vaccine wastage guidelines that include the distribution of second doses to prevent them from expiring before being used.

“The order of waitlist priority in these situations, if no one needing a first dose is available, is first those who are currently eligible for a second dose, and then the oldest person available,” McMillan said in a written statement to CTV News Edmonton.

Current provincial vaccine guidelines show Albertans are eligible for second doses of:

• Pfizer or Moderna no later than four months after the first dose.
• AstraZeneca no later than four months and no earlier than three months after the first dose.
• Three to four weeks for those in long-term case, designated supportive living or profoundly immunocompromised.

“Pharmacies have been instructed to administer second doses in keeping with the provincial timelines,” said McMillan. “Pharmacies have been working incredibly hard to support Albertans during this challenging time. We could not safely rollout this vaccine without them.”

One day before the new second dose guidance was released by NACI, Alberta Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw hinted that the province could soon change its position too.

“We are looking closely at our available supplies and shipments,” Hinshaw said on Thursday, “and we expect to be in a position soon to shorten the wait time between first and second doses. We will outline how this rollout will occur as early as next week.”

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Amanda Anderson