There are now 5,790 cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in B.C. after health officials announced 294 new cases Monday.
From Friday to Saturday there were 86 new cases, from Saturday to Sunday there were 107, and from Sunday to Monday there were 101.
Three of these new cases are epi-linked.
Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry reports that there are 1,190 cases in Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), 3,042 in Fraser Health, 175 on Vancouver Island, 440 in Interior Health and 154 in Northern Health.
Additionally, there have been 79 cases of COVID-19 in B.C. of people who reside outside of Canada.
There has been one new health-care facility outbreak. In total, eight long-term care or assisted-living facilities and two acute-care facilities have active outbreaks.
There have been no new community outbreaks. However, there continue to be community exposure events at other locations and on flights into and out of the province.
There have been four new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 208 deaths in British Columbia.
Of the total COVID-19 cases, 28 individuals are hospitalized, 10 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation. As well, 2,723 people are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases.
There are 1,107 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 4,406 people who tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered.
“As we look to the fall, we are entering a new phase of B.C.’s COVID-19 response, and to be successful, we need to step back to allow us to safely move forward. The increase in the number of new cases is a concern for all of us. We must to do our part and support public health teams to quickly manage new cases so we can contain the spread of the virus and ensure community spread remains low," said Dr. Bonnie Henry.
“We need everyone to pay attention and step back from the social interactions we have had this summer, so when the cooler weather and respiratory season arrives, we are ready for the challenge.
“As we go back to our offices, workplaces and schools, we need to get back to the basics with our layers of protection and personal COVID-19 safety measures. This will allow us to protect our most vulnerable during the colder months.
“This means all of us washing our hands regularly, keeping our groups small, giving others the space to stay safe in uncontrolled environments, especially when we are around people we don’t know, wearing masks when needed and always staying home when ill.
“It can be difficult to tell the difference between a cold, allergies, influenza and COVID-19. As a result, the first step for everyone in B.C. needs to be to stay home if we are not 100% healthy.
“The bar to stay home needs to be lower than we have ever had it before. Our superheroes are not the people who put aside illness and go to work, but the people who protect colleagues by staying away until they are healthy once again.
“We ask employers, caregivers and parents to think ahead and prepare for the days when an employee or child is feeling unwell. Employers also need to ensure they are giving employees the flexibility to stay home without recrimination or financial harm.
“We can prepare now for the challenges that may lie ahead with new thinking, new routines and proven safety precautions.
“Our goals for B.C. are clear: prevent cases through our renewed personal safety measures, pay attention to how we are feeling so we can detect new cases and support our public health teams throughout the province to respond quickly to contain the spread of the virus.
“Let’s start today to close the summer gaps. Let’s use our layers of protection as we keep our activities going and let’s stay strong as we protect our most vulnerable, our Elders, our communities and ourselves.”
