Possible measles exposure after confirmed cases in Calgary, Okotoks

Alberta Health Services (AHS) has released a list of locations in southern Alberta where people may have been exposed to measles after learning of two confirmed cases in Calgary and Okotoks.

The health agency says anyone who was in the following locations during the specified times may have been exposed:

• Riverbend Campground, 48033 370 Ave E, Okotoks — July 7 to July 15
• Traveller’s Inn Motel, 4611 16 Ave NW, Calgary — July 8 at 10 a.m. to July 9 at 12 p.m.
• Banff Gondola, 100 Mountain Ave, Banff — July 9 at 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
• Calgary Peterbilt, 11550 44 Street SE, Calgary — July 9 at 2:15 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.
• GreatWest Kenworth, 5909 6 Street SE, Calgary — July 9 at 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
• NAPA Auto Parts, 5530 3 Street SE, Calgary — July 9 at 3:45 p.m. to 6:15 p.m.
• South Health Campus Emergency Department, 4448 Front Street SE, Calgary — July 11 at 7:25 p.m. to 10:37 p.m.

Anyone who was at the location during the specified times, was born in or after 1970, and has less than two doses of the measles vaccine, could be at risk.

People who meet those requirements are being asked to self-monitor for symptoms. Measles symptoms can take up to three weeks to show up after exposure.

Symptoms include:

• Fever of 38.3° C or higher; and
• Cough, runny nose and/or red eyes; and
• A rash that appears 3 to 7 days after fever starts, usually beginning behind the ears and on the face and spreading down to the body and then to the arms and legs. The rash appears red and blotchy on lighter skin colours. On darker skin colours, it can appear purple or darker than the skin around it, or it might be hard to see.

If symptoms of measles develop, individuals should stay home and call the measles hotline at 1-844-944-3434 before visiting any healthcare facility or provider, including a family physician clinic or pharmacy.

Alberta has surpassed the U.S. in confirmed measles cases since the beginning of March, after 30 new cases were diagnosed over the weekend.

The outbreak of the highly contagious disease hasn’t led to any deaths so far in Alberta, but three people, including two children, have died in the United States.

With files from The Canadian Press