With Long Weekend on the horizon, Dr. Henry/Minister Dix reinforce small gatherings as key to reducing the curve of COVID into the fall

The final in person provincial update on COVID-19 prior to the Labour Day Weekend found Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix making note of near 90 case counts of the coronavirus over the last 24 hours; while cautioning British Columbians on the need to return to watchfulness on social circles and be aware of the risks of expanding on contacts and how it could impact on our families.

“Today, we are announcing 89 new cases, including one epi-linked case, for a total of 6,041 cases in British Columbia. 

There are 1,175 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, 2,801 people who are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases, and 4,644 people who tested positive have recovered. 

Currently, 34 individuals are hospitalized with COVID-19, 11 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation. 

There has been one new COVID-19 related death, for a total of 210 deaths in British Columbia. We offer our condolences to everyone who has lost their loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic." 

From the totals across the province, the confirmed case count to date by Health Authority look as follows:

2,012 cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 3,155 in the Fraser Health region, 178 in the Island Health region, 450 in the Interior Health region, 167 in the Northern Health region, which is a jump of three from Wednesday. 

70 cases of COVID have been recorded in people who reside outside of Canada.

The three totals for Northern Health perhaps part of the information released today by the Nisga'a Valley Health Authority which has confirmed three cases of COVID from a recent memorial in the community.

Both public health officials outlined some of the background to the latest modelling that was released today.

“Today, we shared the latest modelling data. The data shows us that although we have been able to find our balance – keeping essential services and businesses going, while protecting our most vulnerable, we continue to have new cases and new clusters across the province."

A look at the modelling ca be reviewed here.

As well, a look at the long term and short term future made for the final notes for today's briefing, with particular attention towards the upcoming Labour Day Weekend.

“However, as we look to the fall, now is the time to pause the activities that we know are a high risk to all of us – spending time with groups of people we don’t know without taking personal precautions. “Now is also the time to think about the number of contacts you have. There is no ‘safe’ number, but fewer people is better. If you know you have more interactions ahead – for example, if you are returning to work – then it is a good idea to reduce your time with other contacts. 

This upcoming long weekend, choose to go small, to spend time with your household bubble instead of a group of strangers, and choose to use the layers of protection, wherever you may go. 

We have the tools and we can make the right choices. To be successful in this next phase, we need to step back to safely move forward, so let’s all make that choices that will keep our communities, our Elders, our loved ones and ourselves safe.”

You can review the full COVID report for Thursday here.  

The BC Centre for Disease control has some valuable Coronavirus notes related to COVID-19 you can explore that information here.

You can learn more about the outbreak from both the Province and the Federal government from the links below:

Federal Government site

British Columbia Government site

The World Health Organization website also offers up the latest advisories on the global situation.

More from  Northern Health can be reviewed here 

You can review our archive of past statements and local information here.

Local governments and organizations have also provided for increased awareness of COVID-19 issues, those past advisories  can be reviewed here.

For notes from across Canada and British Columbia we have been archiving the latest items through our political portal Darcy McGee

Ottawa Observations

Victoria Viewpoints 

Seamen ready for the pitch as Rugby training moves forward under new protocols

Rugby players plan to hit the field tonight as the
Prince Rupert Seamen host some Touch Rugby at CHSS

Prince Rupert's rugby enthusiasts will be out on the field tonight as they move forward with new protocols for the sport in these challenging times of COVID.

What the Prince Rupert Seamen describe as Touch Rugby goes this evening at 6 at the Charles Hays Secondary Field, the chance to resume the sport coming following the local club having received word that it has been cleared to play by the provincial governing body BC Rugby.

We outlined the background to the club's success last month, that after the Seamen's restart plan met with approval from provincial rugby officials.

In a post to the Club's Facebook page the Seamen make note of the importance that all players planning to participate tonight having ensured that they are registered online for this season.

You MUST register with the Seamen and pay the $30 dues for the three months. You cannot just show up to practice as your name MUST be attached by and Administrator to the online scheduled practice to be valid. You will get an email with a link to follow once you are signed up and part of the online platform.

The new approach is required as part of the club's response to COVID and falls under the restart guidelines from BC Rugby.

You can follow the latest updates from the Club from their Facebook page here.

Further notes on Rugby across the Northwest can be explored here.

Nisga'a Valley Health advise of 3 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in Nass Valley

The Nisga'a Valley health Authority has provided an update to their weekend notification of potential COVID-19 outbreak from a recent event in the Nass Valley, confirming today that there have been three confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 following testing from the weekend.

From that confirmation, officials note that all attendees of any of the indoor services that took place between August 21-25 continue with their period of isolation which began on August 29th.

Today's update notes that as the potential contacts are numerous and the resources of NVHA are limited, that testing has been prioritized towards those community members that are experiencing flu-like symptoms.

As part of today's notes, the Nisga'a Lisims Emergency Operations Committee outlined the details of their Pandemic Plan.

The complete update which features a wide range of background and guidance on the situation can be reviewed here.

As we outlined over the weekend, the Nisga'a Valley Health Authority issued the first alert related to the recent memorial for Nisga'a Leader Dr. Joseph Gosnell on Saturday.

On Tuesday, the Nisga'a Lisims Government hosted an online information session related the the COVID response, you can view that video presentation below:

You can access further updates from the Nass Valley through their website and Facebook page.

A wider overview of the provincial work on COVID can be found from our archive page here.

As students prepare to return to school next week, the Fraser Institute provides its annual reviews of the province's secondary schools. With Prince Rupert's CHSS topping the NW findings

The timing is a bit behind schedule for the Fraser Institute, with their list of findings on secondary school education in British Columbia coming at the start of the school year, as opposed to the usual placement as the school year winds down in the spring.

And with education already making for some controversy for the 2020-21 year, the Vancouver Based organization has added some other discussion themes for consideration to the school year start.

In the preamble to the 2020 report, Peter Cowley, a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute outlines how parents can make use of the data suggesting that it's a helpful guidebook towards improving school performance.

“Parents should use this Report Card every year to see how their child’s school is doing, and if necessary, ask the principal how he or she plans to turn things around, We often hear that some schools are doomed to perform poorly because of the communities and students they serve, but that’s just not true—every school can improve and rank higher than the year before,”

Those sentiments are not always accepted by teaching professionals and administrators, who often question the value of the Fraser Institute project. 

And considering how the school year ended in June, with everyone facing a remarkable amount of challenges related to COVID, those calls no doubt will be amplified as the new school year begins.

So far however, whether its administrators, teachers or union officials, all seem somewhat focused on just getting the 2020-21 school year underway at the moment, with few comments related to the annual Fraser Institute project delivered as of yet.

As for the data review and what it presents for the Northwest, the data compiled by Joel Emes and Peter Cowley shows improved results for Charles Hays Secondary in Prince Rupert, with an overall ranking of 6.7 out of 10 and a placement of 82nd spot out of the 252 schools included in the 2020 report.

The CHSS results for this years report places the Prince Rupert School atop the ranking of the seven secondary schools that make for the Northwest listings

Among the findings an average exam mark of 66.6 for 2019, which is much the same as years previous, the percentage of exams failed however rose by three percent from the 2018 report. They note that Charles Hays had a Graduation rate of 96.4 percent, with a delayed advancement rate of 27.2.

The Prince Rupert findings make for a significant jump from the 2019 report, when CHSS had been listed at 167/251 and 5.4/10.

Elsewhere around the Northwest the results were as follows:

Houston Secondary 122/252 -- 6.0/10

Caledonia Secondary 145/252 -- 5.7/10

Smithers Secondary 152/252 -- 5.5/10

Burns Lake Secondary 181/252 -- 5.1/10

Mount Elizabeth Secondary 248/252 -- 1.7/10

Hazelton Secondary 250/252 -- 0/10

You can review the full report for the entire province here.

More notes related to education in the Northwest can be explored here.

City's Warehouse plans add the Wheelhouse Brewing Corporation to ventures looking to potentially lease space in Rushbrook Floats area

The City of Prince Rupert is looking to lease out some more of the CANFISCO Warehouse property, with a notice on the city website noting that a 600 square foot corner section of the George Hills Way building could soon be leased to the Wheelhouse Brewing Corporation.

The notice dated August 20th notes that the City of Prince Rupert intends to enter into a sublease with the Wheelhouse for 600 square foot section of the warehouse located at 181 George Hills Way.

Initial terms for the sublease will be  for a term of 1 year, with an option to extend for 1 additional year.

As the corporate landlords for warehouse, which many residents didn't know they owned until earlier this year, the City has proposed rent of 6.50/square foot, or $3,900 per year for the initial term, as well as for the renewal term.

There is no indication as to what use that the Wheelhouse has in mind for it's corner of the Warehouse complex, though it's proximity to the Fairview Floats and the city's boat launch does seem to offer up some commercial opportunity, if allowed, for the popular Cow Bay area based brewers.

There was no mention made of the city's latest plans for development of the Warehouse complex as part of the only City council session for August.

Any concerns or enquiries of the public related to the proposed leasing opportunity can be directed in writing towards Corporate Administrator Rosa Miller, the deadline to comment is 4 PM tomorrow, Friday, September 4th, 2020.

The city's Notice of proposed sublease can be reviewed here.

If successful, the Wheelhouse group will be neighbours with the Prince Rupert Gymnastics Association, as we noted earlier this year, that organization has taken a sub lease on another, larger section of the Warehouse to be developed into the new home for Gymnasts in the city.

For more items of note From City Council see our Council Discussion page here.

  

Curling Club renovation progress moving well as 2020 season gets closer

New equipment at the
Prince Rupert Curling Club
will secure the opportunity
for curling in 2020-21
(From PRCC FB page)

The latest update from the Prince Rupert Curling Club offers up some very positive themes for local curlers, with the PRCC's Natasha Lebedick showcasing some photos of the much anticipated work in progress at the Seal Cove facility.  

As we outlined in early March, the Prince Rupert Club had received 250,000 dollars in grant money from Northern Development Initiative Trust towards much needed repairs to the local club. 

Included in the work was the most important element of the to do list, that of a replacement for the ice making plant to allow for compliance with WorkSafe regulations.

As well, local curlers can catch up with some notes on the path forward for Curling in Prince Rupert for 2020-21; with the Prince Rupert club set to see a modified version of the sport offered to members and those looking to explore the sport further.

The local club has been receiving guidance form Curl BC which has provided a range of resources for clubs across the province to use as they look for their way back to the ice.

The target for ice making and the start of play is mid October. 

Members will hear much more about the plans ahead as part of the Semi Annual General Meeting set for 7 PM on Thursday, September 24th at the Seal Cove Club.

The short update on the upcoming season was shared through the Prince Rupert Curling Club's Facebook page.

More notes on curling in the Northwest can be explored from our archive page.

City sets Road Closure consultation process in motion for Edward/Albert area residents

Prince Rupert City Council has moved the process forward towards a road closure plan on the city's east side, making for the first step in what could be the development of more housing stock in the community.

As we noted last week, the topic came up towards the end of the August 24th Council session, with Director of Operations Richard Pucci providing some of the background on the nature of the road closure request, as well as a heads up for the Council membership on what could be a new housing proposal for land along 11th Avenue East, at the foot of Edward.

Not much has been shared by Council on the nature of the housing that may be in the works for the region, with last months meeting focused more on the road closure requirements.

Towards that theme, Ms. Rosa Miller, the City's Corporate Administrator is now accepting comments from those  in the area who believe they may be affected by the Road Closure Bylaw; with residents having until October 5th to provide for written comments, they can also make a presentation on the topic at the October 5th Council session.

Should anyone have any questions of the Corporate Administrator related to the proposed disposition they are asked to contact her by 4:30 PM on Friday, October 2nd.

More notes on past City Council discussion themes can be explored here.