A jump in case counts for Thursday from yesterday's numbers, with 887 new cases of COVID reported

COVID reports appear to be in a yo-yo format for the moment, with today's case count making for an increase of the numbers from yesterday, with the Thursday jump in cases totalling an additional 152 from this time yesterday.

The number of British Columbians to die in this 24 hour period, mirrored yesterdays record setting total of 13. 

The full review was delivered by statement today.

“Today, we are reporting 887 new cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, including three epi-linked cases, for a total of 29,973 cases in British Columbia. 

There are 7,899 active cases of COVID-19 in the province. There are 294 individuals currently hospitalized with COVID-19, 64 of whom are in intensive care. 

The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation. 

Currently, 10,307 people are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases and 19,998 people who tested positive have recovered. 

“There have been 13 new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 384 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 latest one day results from each Health Authority are as follows: 168 new cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 612 in the Fraser Health region, 18 in the Island Health region, 65 in the Interior Health region, 24 in the Northern Health region bringing the Northern Health region total to 737 since January.

There were no new cases of people who reside outside of Canada. 

The focus on continuing with the measures that have been put in place made for the majority of the message of the day portion from today's update.

“Slow and steady is what we need with COVID-19 and it is how we will get through this second wave. The efforts we make each day make a difference.

Let’s support our public health teams, which are tirelessly working to track the virus, break the chain of transmission and keep all of us safe. The best way to do that is for each of us to keep to as few faces as possible right now. 

Exposures and transmission can happen anywhere. By paying attention to the places we go and the people we see, we can help contact tracers contain the further spread if that does occur.  

Even though we may be staying small right now, that doesn’t stop us from staying connected and staying active. You can go outside, try a local restaurant you haven’t been to before with your family or connect with friends virtually. 

Let’s focus on our health and well-being by taking care of each other and ourselves, and doing all we can to protect our communities and each other.”

You can review today's full COVID-19 statement 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 

Police search continues, reward offered for information on Haida Gwaii's Shaylanna Meaghan Lewis

The Masset RCMP has updated its file notes on the Missing Persons Case of Shaylanna Meaghan Lewis, a 23 Indigenous female who was reported missing in March of this year.

Since that time, there have been no reported sightings of the young woman and the investigation remains an active and ongoing one, with police stating that at this point they are no closer to finding out what happened to her.

Today her family announced a $25,000 reward to anyone who can provide information to help solve the investigation and ultimately find out what happened to Shaylanna.

Shaylanna is dearly missed, if you have any information please phone local RCMP or Crimestroppers. No matter how small it may be, it could be the missing piece of the puzzle that is needed to find Shaylanna --  Monica Brown, Shaylanna’s mother

Her Missing persons file describes her as an Indigenous female 170 cms (5’7) tall and weighin 79 kgs (174 lbs) Ms. Lewis has Brown eyes Brown hair 

At the time of the first report she had recently shaved her hair and eyebrows

More on the latest update can be reviewed here.

Should you have any information related to her missing persons case file you can contact the Masset RCMP at (250) 626-3991 or Crime Stoppers at 1(800) 222-8477.  

For more notes on the work of Northwest Emergency responders see our archive page here.

No change in jobs for North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice; as Premier Horgan announces new cabinet, parliamentary secretaries

With 56 candidates, Premier John Horgan whittled down the
contenders and successful members to 37 today
rolling out his Cabinet, Ministers of State and 
Parliamentary Secretaries for the NDP government

It was class assignment day for the successful candidates of the 2020 Provincial election, with Premier John Horgan announcing 20 members of his cabinet circle, along with four ministers of State and 13 Parliamentary Secretaries.

The Premier was working with a bounty of 56 other elected Members on the New Democratic side of the Legislature, making for a fair bit of reading and thought when it came to filling out his roster for the start of the four year term of office secured on October 27th.

In his roll out of the team for 2021 and beyond, the Premier made note of the impact of  COVID and how the group he has assembled is ready to tackle the challenges ahead.

“The pandemic has turned the lives of British Columbians upside down. We have come a long way together, but we have much further to go. This skilled, diverse team is ready to continue our fight against COVID-19 and build an economic recovery that includes everyone.” -- Premier John Horgan

For long serving North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice who was first elected to the Legislature in 2013, the new job will be the old job, with Ms. Rice holding steady in the role of Parliamentary Secretary for Emergency Preparedness.

The lack of a promotion for Ms. Rice to the Ministry level may be a bit of a disappointment for the 4,544 voters of the North Coast constituency, who made up near 73 percent of those who cast a ballot on election day for Ms. Rice.

Around the Cabinet table will be two former MP's who returned to British Columbia and now have found their way into the Premiers inner circle, among them is Nathan Cullen who won election in Stikine and now will serve as the Minister of State for Lands, Natural Resource Operations.

Murray Rankin will take on duties in the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation while the third member of the Ottawa trio Fin Donnelly gets Parliamentary Secretary duties  in Fisheries and Aquaculture perhaps a position that was pre-destined owing to his first name.

The key Finance portfolio has been assigned to Selina Robinson who will have huge shoes to fill from former Finance Minister Carole James. 

Taking over the Ministry of Education and the work ahead with the BCTF membership will be Jennifer Whiteside

A few other intriguing notes from the cabinet making is the departure of Rob Fleming from Education, who now takes over Transportation and Infrastructure.

Adrian Dix remains as Health Minister and will get to practice his Français a bit more as Minister for Francophone Affairs.

George Heyman remains as Minister for Environment and Climate Change Strategy as well as Minister responsible for TransLink

David Eby has kept his position as Attorney General and takes on duties as Minister responsible for Housing.

Public Safety and the Solicitor General duties will remain in the hands of Mike Farnworth.

A name familiar to the Northwest in Melanie Mark will see a move on to new duties taking over the Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport portfolios.

Municipal and Regional Government leaders across the province will want to pick up a Good Luck at your new job card for Josie Osborne, who has been awarded the Municipal Affairs position.

You can review the full list of cabinet members and those in other positions here.

The video presentation of today's ceremony from the Legislature is available below:

 

(Click on the Facebook link in the screen to go to the video)

The Premier also spoke to the media following today's event, his comments on the creation of the cabinet and other themes can be reviewed below

 

For a wider overview of today's cabinet announcements, see our political blog D'Arcy Mcgee and our Victoria Viewpoints archive, which culls items of note from across the province.

We should have our entries updated for tonight by 11 PM.

Further background on the Legislature and our notes on the Northwest can be explored here.

Shop local the theme, Plaid the colour as Plaid Friday beckons Prince Rupert shoppers tomorrow

The local alternative to the online madness of Black Friday is almost here, with the fourth edition of  Prince Rupert's Plaid Friday initiative set for tomorrow.

And this year, the opportunity to do some of your Christmas shopping locally may never be more important as your friends and neighbours in the commercial sector continue to adjust to the challenges of COVID.

Love Prince Rupert is organizing this years celebration of all things local and as part of their outreach on behalf of the local business community they have created a registry of some of the local shopping options, which you can review here.

Love Northern BC is also hosting a contest to reward those who help spread some cash around the community this season, asking those taking part in Plaid Friday to post or send them a picture showing how you are supporting local, independent businesses in the community.

Learn more about that initiative here. 

For those posting their submissions to Facebook or Instagram, tag @LoveNorthernBC and use the hashtag #LNBCPlaidFriday

To find out more about Love Prince Rupert see their facebook page here.

You can also follow some of the local businesses that are participating in the Plaid Friday event through the Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce Facebook page.

Further notes on the Northwest Business sector can be explored here.

Nisga'a Lisims Government outlines nature of potential COVID-19 exposure at Nisga'a Elementary/Secondary School

An advisory for parents in the Nass Valley from Wednesday has outlined the background to a potential COVID-19 exposure at the Nisga'a Elementary/Secondary School.

In the notice, it was stated that Several students in the Nisga'a Elementary/Secondary School community have tested positive for COVID-19, they are currently self-isolating at home with support from local health teams.

The date of possible exposure for other children and staff at the school is from November 16-20.

The Nisga'a Valley Health Authority is presently engaged in contact tracing to determine which children may have been a primary contact with any person who tested positive for COVID-19.

You can learn more about that process from the information statement available here.

While not yet posted to the BC Centre for Disease Control Exposures noticeboard, the Nisga'a situation would make for the second school exposure to be noted in the Northwest.

Last month a confirmed case of COVID-19 at École Roosevelt Park Elementary school in Prince Rupert made for the first school incident to be recorded by the BC CDC.

The school exposure in the Nass Valley comes following a wider community alert from the Nisga'a Valley Health office earlier this week, at that time, the Nisga'a Village Governments announced that they were moving back to their Phase one Nisga'a Pandemic plans.

For more notes of interest from the Nass Valley see our archive page here.

Further background on the British Columbia government's response to COVID can be explored from our archive page.

North Coast Ecology Society seeks opinions towards new centre plans

The North Coast Ecology Society has some big plans for 2021, with the local organization looking towards opening up an Ecology Centre in Prince Rupert that will highlight the natural wonders and culture that are found on the North Coast.

Towards their planning, they are currently hosting a survey to hear from the public on themes of what they would like to see included as part of their plans in the creation of the centre, which will be a permanent education facility for the community.

The goal that they have for the centre is to create a place to learn to connect with the environment, provide for a new tourism destination and develop the means to activate and revitalize Prince Rupert's waterfront.

The NCEC Mission statement outlines the focus they have for their work in the Prince Rupert area.

Operating seasonally (May-Oct), the North Coast Ecology Centre aims to engage a broad audience with a sensory experience that will make a lasting connection between the local environment and conservation. 

We hope to generate respect and amazement through interaction, as well as bring the city of Prince Rupert together through shared appreciation. Wherever possible, we will prioritize community engagement and recruitment to enhance local knowledge growth and integration. ​ 

Given that the wilderness around us is often difficult to access, we will create an active and inclusive space for local education, as well as the relevant hands-on-activity and experiences that are necessary for stewardship to occur. 

The centre will provide the platform for understanding how to care for our many wonderful species and to ensure that we will have access to the ocean’s bounties for many more centuries.

The plan ahead is to fund the centre through daily admissions, annual memberships, sustainably sourced gift shop sales, program sales, grants and donations.

You can participate in the short survey here. 

The organization has created a website that explains their work and already features a wealth of resource material to review.

You can also learn more about their plans and keep up to date on their local events through their Facebook page and Instagram 

To contact them they can be reached at: info@northcoastecologycentresociety.com 

For more notes on Community Events around the Northwest see our archive page here.

Council approves Capital spending plans for 2021, Finance Office continues on path towards Spring Budget

As the clock on 2020 prepares to wind down a most challenging year, Prince Rupert City Council has started turning its attention towards 2021 and on Monday, they charted the course ahead when it comes to some of the Capital Spending requests from the City's Finance Office.

In a presentation to City Council, Corinne Bomben, the Chief Financial Officer outlined where the city plans to spend on capital projects and purchases for the year ahead. 

As part of her review, Ms. Bomben observed on the many financial instruments that the city has to use towards many of the projects planned for the year ahead. 

She noted how many will be funded out of the Utility revenues, Grants, Reserves, Surplus, Dividends and Debt all part of the city's approach to limit the impact on taxes and utility fees.

Among the notables for the year ahead:

The City will be continuing with the Second phase of the Water Project, the replacement of the Woodworth Lake Dam, with the remaining costs are expected to be financed through a dividend from the Legacy Fund and and approved debt.

The City was awarded a grant towards water treatment, for the year ahed the City will be conducting value engineering and detailed design of the new facility and the replacement of the submarine line.

The final phase of the liquid waste management plan will continue in 2021, the results of the mapping exercise have determined which areas will require repair and attention from the city.

The Landfill expansion cell will be completed in 2021 and go into operation, the project will be financed through debt and repayed through existing solid waste fees.

The road and sidewalk repair and replacement program for 2021 will be set at the same level as that of 2020, which was a doubling of investment from previous years.  Ms. Bomben noted that the roads suffered during the recession and that city staff will continue to recommend increases to the program as new sources of funds are obtained.

Following her report, Councillor Blair Mirau offered up a few thoughts on the process and how the City will move forward on capital projects in the year ahead.

With the councillor commending staff for providing such a significant list of tasks to take place in the next year, following up with a question as to whether the city will be continue with budgeting as normal for 2021, with some capital budgets to be added through the year.

"I would like to say that as far as capital works go, anyone of these projects by itself would be a significant task and so I  just really want to commend staff for being able to do these simultaneously in this next fiscal it's incredibly impressive. My only question is about sequencing of these further 2021 projects is the plan, or the sequencing I suppose still on pace to happen with our regular budget in Spring, in March? ...  I'm wondering if we're still going to able to follow our regular budget process in 2021 and if this further 2021 capital projects are going to be included in that same process"    -- Councillor Blair Mirau

Towards that inquiry, Ms Bomben noted that the budgeting process would be moving ahead as normal but observing how COVID has been problematic as to determine where the city is at with its revenue.

Ms. Bomben also noted that the items discussed on the night had been approved previously and that the other ones are just small items that need to be done in the near term and weren't able to be completed this year and are being rolled over"

The full report for Council can be reviewed below, click on each page to enlarge the image.

The report and follow up discussion can be explored further from the City's Video Archive starting at the three minute mark.

For more notes on the City's Financial themes see our archive page here.

A wider overview of the Monday Council session can be found from our Council Timeline feature, while a wider overview of past Council Discussion themes see our Archive here.