Victoria, BC (WNEWS) – B.C.’s spring COVID-19 surge picked up more steam Friday, with the province reporting 908 new cases along with another three deaths being reported.
It was the second-highest daily total for new cases the province has ever recorded, after a peak of 911 cases on Nov. 27.
It also pushed the seven-day moving average for new cases up to 699, the highest it has been since Dec. 7 when B.C. was in the depths of the pandemic’s second wave.
“We are facing a sustained increase in clusters of new cases and outbreaks, including increasing cases caused by variants of concern. This is particularly concerning in the Lower Mainland areas.”
Henry and Dix – “We have been able to slowly turn the dial on some restrictions. However, we all need to remember while some activities are safe for us to do, others simply are not.”
Of the new cases,
- 294 were in the Vancouver Coastal Health region,
- 438 were in the Fraser Health region,
- 55 were in the Island Health region,
- 43 were in the Interior Health region and
- were 78 in the Northern Health region.
Active cases also grew again to 6,245, the highest recorded since Jan. 7. An additional 9,996 people were isolated due to exposure.
There were 140 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 variants of concern, for a total of 1,912 recorded so far. Of those cases, 258 remained active.
The province announced Friday it was moving up the vaccination timeline for seniors slightly, with phone lines now open for anyone over the age of 75. It said people who are considered clinically extremely vulnerable will begin getting letters telling them how to book their appointments.
Between Thursday and Friday, B.C. administered more than 27,000 doses of vaccine, leaving 550,062 people — about 10.7 percent of B.C.’s population — with the protection of at least one dose. Of those people, 87,223 have also had a second dose.
There were 294 people in the hospital, down 12 overnight. Eighty-one of them were in critical or intensive care.
Fraser Health also declared a new outbreak at the Abbotsford Hospital in a single medicine unit. On Thursday, the health authority declared an outbreak at the Chilliwack General Hospital.
B.C. has recorded a total of 95,677 cases, while 1,449 people have died.
Quick Numbers
22764 (+294) cases to date in the Vancouver Coastal Health region
55611 (+438) in the Fraser Health region
8258 (+43) in the Interior Health region
3096 (+55) in the Island Health region
5777 (+78) in the Northern Health region
171 (+0) of people who reside outside of Canada
9,996 (+32) people who are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases
6,245 (+389) active cases
87,866 (+515) recovered
637,856 (+27,185) vaccine doses administered
87,233 (+21) of which are second doses