One new case of COVID-19 was reported in the Northern Health region on Tuesday.
A joint statement issued by provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix said the total number of cases in the north since the start of the outbreak rose to 128 on Tuesday.
"Today, we are announcing 58 new cases, including one epi-linked case since we reported on Monday, for a total of 5,242 cases in British Columbia," the statement said. "There are 925 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, 2,675 people who are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases, and 4,114 people who tested positive have recovered."
There were 22 people in B.C. hospitalized with COVID-19, including seven in intensive care. According to data released by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control on Monday, there were not patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in northern B.C.
"There have been no new COVID-19 related deaths since yesterday, for a total of 203 deaths in British Columbia," the statement said. "We offer our condolences to everyone who has lost their loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic."
There are 10 current outbreaks of COVID-19 in long-term care facilities and two acute-care facilities in B.C. New outbreaks at Langley Memorial Hospital and Bear Creek Villa in Surrey. All of the health care outbreaks are located in the Fraser Health and Vancouver Coastal Health regions.
Northern Health is continuing to monitor an outbreak on Haida Gwaii, and is warning residents who attended the It Is Time Canada prayer gathering in Deadwood, Alta. to monitor themselves for symptoms.
The latest information about exposure events and outbreaks in the north can be found online at www.northernhealth.ca/health-topics/public-exposures-and-outbreaks.
"Our recent daily cases are higher than many of us are comfortable with, so let's continue to do our part every moment of every day and keep COVID-19 where it needs to be," Henry and Dix said in a statement. "While we would all like to get to zero, we need to rather focus on prevention, detection and rapid response. We know that COVID-19 is going to be with us for many months to come. As a result, unlike other viruses that have a vaccine, our focus is to keep new cases low and slow, and quickly contain new outbreaks as they occur."
Henry and Dix urged residents to continue being vigilant, and follow public health guidelines.
"Living with COVID-19 in our communities also means being unrelenting in our commitment to support and care for each other; to reach out to our vulnerable neighbours, friends and family members," the statement said. "Let's stay committed to doing our part, to care and protect our most vulnerable and show kindness and compassion to everyone."
