There may have been a few extenuating circumstances to the relay of the weekend number of COVID-19 cases recorded over the last five days, but the number was stark regardless, with a total of 549 cases of coronavirus noted from Friday through to today.
As Dr. Bonnie Henry noted, some of that total came as the province caught up with some testing, and other linked cases.
Still, the numbers of this weekend most likely are a preview of what may come down the line in one to two weeks time following the Thanksgiving weekend get togethers, particularly if some British Columbians chose to disregard the advice to keep their circles small this year.
As for the weekend review, Dr. Henry outlined the following:
“Today, we are announcing four 24-hour reporting periods.
In the first reporting period from Oct. 9 to 10, we had 170 new cases. From Oct. 10 to 11, we had 159 new cases. From Oct. 11 to 12, we had 119 cases and in the last 24 hours, we have had a further 101 new cases.
This represents a total of 549 new cases, including five epi-linked cases, for a total of 10,734 cases in British Columbia.
The increase in cases is in part a result of a recent testing backlog, which was cleared with extra lab processing over the weekend. While this has meant an increase in the overall number of confirmed positive cases, the active cases and percentage positive remain stable.
There are 1,476 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, 3,618 people who are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases, and 8,974 people who tested positive have recovered.
Currently, 77 individuals are hospitalized with COVID-19, 24 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.
There have been five new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 250 deaths in British Columbia. We offer our condolences to everyone who has lost their loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic."Across the province, the current to date count of cases of COVID is as follows:
3,892 cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 5,595 in the Fraser Health region, 235 in the Island Health region, 582 in the Interior Health region, 341 in the Northern Health region, which is an increase of 10 from Friday.
89 cases of COVID have been reported in people who reside outside of Canada.
For North Coast residents some perspective to the current situation
can be viewed through our notes of earlier today, where we noted that the most recent breakdown by community as of the end of September, has recorded only two cases of COVID in the Prince Rupert area.
Dr. Henry also outlined some guidance for parents and guardians as the fall sports seasons and other youth activities get underway, providing a look at how the province is approaching the topic and how families can reduce the risk of transmission of COVID.
“There have been no new community outbreaks. However, there continue to be exposure events around the province. Public alerts and notifications are posted on the BC Centre for Disease Control’s (BCCDC) website and on all health authorities’ websites.
Physical activity is very important to our overall health and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic, but equally important is the need to ensure we are staying active, safely.
“As recreational sports like hockey and youth soccer return, we have seen an increase in COVID-19 exposures. In some cases, sport facilities have been closed.
Like many other activities that have restarted, provincial sports organizations and sports facilities require COVID-19 safety plans to ensure a safe return to sport. Similar to the approach in the recent NHL playoffs, the plans have prioritized the players over the spectators, with restrictions in place in arenas and on the sidelines.
We have to remember that spending time socializing or cheering with other parents and fans before, during and after games, increases the risk of transmission and exposure for you and your family.
As much as we want to see the winning goal or celebrate the perfect pass after the game, we need to ensure we are keeping ourselves and our loved ones safe by always following our COVID-19 safety basics.
It is important for all of us to think about our cumulative interactions. If you are in a busy workplace or have kids in school, then it is all the more important to limit your time with others elsewhere."
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