335 new cases of COVID-19 in B.C.; 1 more death

PROVINCIAL Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix on Wednesday announced 335 new cases, including seven epi-linked cases, for a total of 16,135 cases in British Columbia.

There was one new COVID-19-related death, and the total number of deaths in the province now stands at 273.

There are 3,120 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, 7,133 people who are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases, and 12,659 people who tested positive have recovered.

Currently, 92 individuals are hospitalized with COVID-19, 25 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation.

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 5,097 cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 9,439 in the Fraser Health region, 274 in the Island Health region, 803 in the Interior Health region, 432 in the Northern Health region and 90 cases of people who reside outside of Canada.

There have been three new health-care facility outbreaks at Hawthorne Seniors Care Community, White Rock Senior Village and Village at Mill Creek. The outbreak at Peace Portal Seniors Village has been declared over. In total, 29 long-term care or assisted-living facilities and two acute-care facilities have active outbreaks.

There has been one new community outbreak at La Casa resort in West Kelowna. The outbreak at Tim Horton’s in Merritt has been declared over. There also continue to be exposure events around the province. Public alerts and notifications are posted on the BC Centre for Disease Control’s (BCCDC) website and on all health authorities’ websites.

Henry and Dix said: “While our experiences with COVID-19 may be unique, when it comes to how our province fares through this pandemic, we are all connected.

“Here in B.C., we have one COVID-19 curve because the risks are everywhere and no community or person is immune. The virus doesn’t recognize community boundaries or regional borders.

“As we have seen before, a small cluster in one region can quickly become an outbreak in another. That is why provincewide orders are in place throughout B.C. and why we all need to use our layers of protection – all the time.

“When transmission increases in one area, we focus our public health efforts to contain the further spread and ask everyone to step up their own efforts and preventive actions at the same time.

“Our layers of protection are how we protect each other and, importantly, work best when used together. Let’s remember to wash our hands frequently and wear a mask when inside close or public spaces, and let’s also keep our groups small inside and outside our homes.

“Doing these things together is what keeps our communities strong and keeps everyone safe. These actions are what ensures capacity within our health-care system, protects those who are most vulnerable and allows our well-being to continue.”