There are now 2,709 cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in B.C. after health officials announced 16 new cases Friday.
Provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry reports that there are 922 cases in Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), 1,396 in Fraser Health, 130 on Vancouver Island, 196 in Interior Health and 65 in Northern Health.
There have been no new outbreaks at long-term care facilities in Vancouver. In total, five long-term care or assisted-living facilities continue to have active outbreaks.
There have been no new community outbreaks, and public health teams are providing support for the ongoing community outbreaks.
There has been one new death. In total, there have been 168 fatalities from COVID-19 in B.C.
There are currently 12 people in acute care in hospital and three are in intensive care.
There are 187 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 2,354 people who tested positive have recovered.
Henry states that the province has been monitoring its COVID-19 restart activities closely and modifying its approach. This includes amending the provincial health officer’s order for food and liquor service establishments to make restaurants and pubs safer for employees and patrons.
“The amended order goes step in step with enhanced worker guidance that is now available on the WorkSafeBC website," she said.“The requirements for this sector have been adjusted in response to small clusters of new cases in businesses, as employees spend more time together and in recognition that a safe number of patrons is highly dependent on the amount of space within each location, not the restaurant capacity.
“Food service owners need to remember that protecting your employees and patrons requires layers of protection in the kitchen and in the dining area. Plans need to include such things as frequent handwashing, increased cleaning, using barriers in kitchens and dining areas, and giving lots of space between tables.
Henry adds that patrons should ensure they are healthy and in a small group before heading to a local establishment. Further, she notes that you should check to see the WorkSafeBC safety plan clearly posted and that physical distancing measures and barriers in place.
Yesterday, Henry said that the coroner's office announced 170 overdose deaths in B.C. in the month of May: "I cannot express how difficult this news has been to hear."
Henry adds that the pandemic has stretched the province's resources and that there has been a dramatic increase in the toxicity of street drugs.
"We know that using alone right now has been exceedingly deadly," she said.
