There are now 13,875 cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in B.C. after health officials announced 287 new cases Wednesday.
Four of these new cases are epi-linked.
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry reports that there are 4,545 cases in Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), 7,863 in Fraser Health, 253 on Vancouver Island, 727 in Interior Health and 399 in Northern Health.
Additionally, there have been 88 cases of COVID-19 in B.C. of people who reside outside of Canada.
There has been a new health-care facility outbreak at PICS assisted-living facility. The outbreaks at Dr. Al Hogg Pavilion and Delta Hospital have been declared over. In total, 21 long-term care or assisted-living facilities and one acute-care facility have active outbreaks.
There has been one new community outbreak at the Okanagan Men’s Centre. There also continue to be exposure events around the province.
There have been two new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 261 deaths in British Columbia.
Of the total COVID-19 cases, 87 individuals are hospitalized, 25 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation. As well, 5,358 people are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases.
There are 2,316 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 11,244 people who tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered.
Alerts are posted on the BC Centre for Disease Control’s (BCCDC) website, as well as on health authorities’ websites, providing details on where the potential exposure occurred and what actions to take – whether you need to self-isolate or monitor for symptoms.
Our COVID-19 safety efforts start at home, and recently there have been several new cases and clusters directly connected to social events in private homes. That is why there is now a provincial health officer order in place restricting the number of people who can safely be in our homes.
“The new order is about ensuring what happens in our homes is in step with what we are doing elsewhere. Just as we need to keep our groups to no more than six when we go to restaurants, we must also keep our groups small at home," said Henry.
“We can still spend time with our friends and family, but right now we must all keep to our ‘safe six’ only or take our events outside, where it is far easier to maintain a safe physical distance.
“Let’s save the parties for when it is safe for everyone to celebrate. If you are planning a wedding in your home, make it your immediate family only and save the celebration for next year. If you are organizing a birthday party for your children, only invite those small number of friends from your close social circle, not the entire class or sports team. The things we do at parties and celebrations including talking, hugging and eating and drinking together indoors are much riskier than our normal school or work activities.
“And unlike our schools and workplaces, most homes do not have space for everyone to keep a safe distance from others, nor do our homes have the layers of protection – the physical barriers, one-way pathways and the use of masks – that are part of school and work COVID-19 safety plans.
“Now is the time for us to take a step back from our in-person social events and gatherings, and connect virtually instead. This will help to protect our loved ones, our seniors, Elders and our communities as we move forward.”
