Five new cases of COVID-19 were reported in the Northern Health region on Monday, as the province hit a new single-day high over the weekend.
The total number of cases in the north since the start of the pandemic rose to 127, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said on Monday. The cases were some of the 269 new cases in B.C. since the last update on Friday afternoon. Between Friday and Saturday, B.C. had 109 people test positive for the disease – the highest number of cases reported in a single day. The previous high was 100 cases reported on Aug. 14.
"Despite the recent outbreaks... we still have low undetected transmission in our province. We want to keep it that way," Henry said. "It's about finding that balance, living with this virus. It also means we all need to do our part."
As of Monday, there were 913 active cases of COVID-19 in B.C., she said. Eighteen of those people were hospitalized, including five in intensive care. The total number of cases in B.C. since the start of the outbreak rose to 5,184.
According to data reported by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control on Monday, there were 17 active cases in the north. There were no people hospitalized with the disease in the Northern Health region as of Monday.
There was one additional death linked to COVID-19 in the Fraser Health region over the weekend, bringing the province's death toll from the pandemic to 203.
Despite the rise in cases, Henry said the province is in a better place than it was in March when many businesses and public services were shut down.
"Right now we are sitting in the range we need to be," she said. "There are many more months of this to come. Shutting down is not an answer to things. We need to look at how to do all the things we want to do in our society and do it safely over the next couple years."
Public health officials have a much better understanding of COVID-19 now than at the beginning of the outbreak, she said. They now have a good understanding of how COVID-19 is spread and where transmission happens most often, and who is most vulnerable to the disease.
"We didn't know how much of it was circulating in the community in March," Henry said.
With the new safety measures in place, and public health resources to trace the contacts of people who are diagnosed, B.C. is prepared to handle the current number of new cases, she said.
"Even New Zealand has not been able to stay isolated from it," Henry said. "We need to be able to manage outbreaks."
Health Minister Adrian Dix said B.C.'s economic and social recovery depends on everyone complying with public health orders, instead of trying to find loopholes or ways to get around them.
"Starting right now we have one job that leads all of our recovery efforts: stop the spread," he said.
