There was a decline in the number of cases of the flu reported in Northern Health's region in the first week of January.

According to the latest numbers from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC), the north was the only region of the province to see a decline during that period, however the number of cases still remains above the 75th percentile over a 10-year period.

The number of cases of the flu in Northern Health peaked in the final two weeks of December, dropped in early January but climbed again slightly this week.

Province-wide the number of cases continued to climb steadily in January and nearly half of the specimens tested by the BCCDC came back positive for the influenza virus.

"Influenza thus remains the most likely cause of acute respiratory illness for which testing was undertaken in Week 1 [of January]," the report concluded.

There were 11 confirmed cases of flu outbreaks in long-term care homes in B.C. in the first week of January, bringing the total this flu season to 34.

South of the border, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported the flu outbreak had reached epidemic levels in that country due to the number of deaths related to the flu or complications like pneumonia.