Only one case of COVID-19 in B.C.; one more death

HEALTH Minister Adrian Dix and Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry on Friday announced one new case of COVID-19, for a total of 2,632 cases in British Columbia. One case from Thursday’s total was removed due to a data correction.

Sadly, there was one new COVID-19 related death in the Fraser Health region, for a total of 167 deaths in the province.

There are 193 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 2,272 people who tested positive have recovered.

Of the total COVID-19 cases, 21 individuals are hospitalized, five of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.

Every health region in British Columbia has patients with COVID-19. Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 908 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 1,335 in the Fraser Health region, 130 in the Island Health region, 195 in the Interior Health region and 64 in the Northern Health region. The number of cases in the Vancouver Coastal Health region has been adjusted by one case to reflect a reporting error.

There have been no new health-care facility outbreaks and the outbreak at the Berkley Care Centre has been declared over. In total, five long-term care or assisted-living facilities continue to have active outbreaks.

There have been no new community outbreaks. Public health teams are providing support for the eight ongoing community outbreaks.

Dix and Henry noted: “As the recent B.C. COVID-19 modelling has shown us, we can safely reopen many businesses, return to in-class learning and gradually increase our social interactions, but we have to be cautious that we don’t go too far and risk a resurgence in cases.

“The key is to minimize, manage and modify: minimize the number of new cases and close contacts, manage clusters and outbreaks with rapid contact tracing by public health teams and modify the measures we are all following, as needed.

“This means you should continue to assess your risks with every step and take precautions to protect yourself and those around you. Without exception, always stay home when ill and follow the rules for safe physical distancing. Remember that the provincial health officer’s order limiting gatherings to no more than 50 people remains in place.

“We have learned a lot about COVID-19. Most importantly, we have learned that we must all stay vigilant, that a slow and thoughtful approach will protect us and keep us safe, and that by working together and doing our part, we will get through this.”