1 new COVID-19 death reported in Island Health as hospitalizations decline
B.C. health officials say six more COVID-19-related deaths have been confirmed in the province Friday.
One was located in Island Health, three occurred in Fraser Health and two were reported in Interior Health.
Friday's update brings B.C.'s pandemic death toll to 2,468, including 152 in the island region.
The latest data released by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control shows a major decrease in COVID-19 hospitalizations on Vancouver Island Friday.
Thirty-seven people are in hospital with COVID-19 on the island, down from 65 reported Thursday, and 59 recorded a week ago on Jan. 7.
However, the province notes that it changed how hospitalizations are tallied moving forward on Friday. Hospital counts are now based on patients per hospital in each health authority, rather than where the patient's residence is.
The number of patients in intensive care remains unchanged Friday compared to the day before, with nine people receiving critical care, according to the BCCDC.
Around this time last month, on Dec. 14, 37 people were in hospital for COVID-19 in Island Health, including 13 patients in intensive care.
Hospitalizations:
- Jan. 14 (37)
- Jan. 13 (65)
- Jan. 7 (59)
- Dec. 14 (37)
ICU patients:
- Jan. 14 (9)
- Jan. 13 (9)
- Jan. 7 (13)
- Dec. 14 (13)
NEW CASES
Another 297 cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in the Vancouver Island region Friday.
The new cases were among 2,275 cases confirmed across the province over the past 24 hours.
Heath officials note that confirmed case counts are only a fraction of B.C.'s total number of cases, since testing capacity is at its limits.
However, the province adds that confirmed cases are still an indicator of transmission rates in B.C., since they are still measuring test positivity levels in B.C.
As of Friday, there are 35,943 confirmed active cases of COVID-19 in B.C., including 3,016 active cases in the island region.
Approximately 89 per cent of eligible B.C. residents aged five and older have received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 83.3 per cent have received two doses Friday.
Meanwhile, 30.5 per cent of eligible British Columbians have received three doses of vaccine.
MODELLING UPDATE
Earlier Friday, health officials outlined the province's latest COVID-19 modelling data.
The modelling indicates that B.C.'s surge of COVID-19 cases, brought on by the Omicron variant, may have reached its peak and is heading towards a decline.
During the briefing, health officials also encouraged British Columbians to get vaccinated against the illness, noting that unvaccinated people are 12 times more likely to require hospitalization from COVID-19, and are at an even greater risk of severe illness that requires critical care.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
After 3 months of war, life in Russia has profoundly changed
Three months after the Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, many ordinary Russians are reeling from those blows to their livelihoods and emotions. Moscow's vast shopping malls have turned into eerie expanses of shuttered storefronts once occupied by Western retailers.

EXCLUSIVE | Supreme Court Justice Mahmud Jamal on his journey to Canada’s highest court
Justice Mahmud Jamal sat down with CTV National News' Omar Sachedina for an exclusive interview ahead of the one-year anniversary of his appointment to the Supreme Court of Canada. Jamal is the first person of colour to sit on the highest court in the country, bringing it closer to reflecting the diversity of Canada.
Death toll from Saturday's storm hits 10 across Ontario and Quebec
As the death toll related to the powerful storm that swept Ontario and Quebec on Saturday reached 10 on Monday, some of the hardest-hit communities were still working to take stock of the damage.
'Too many children did not make it home': Anniversary of discovery at Canada's largest residential school
It's been a year since the announcement of the detection of unmarked graves at the site of what was once Canada's largest residential school – an announcement that for many Indigenous survivors was confirmation of what they already knew.
Walk out at trade meeting when Russia spoke 'not one-off,' says trade minister
The United States and four other nations that walked out of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation group meeting in Bangkok over the weekend underlined their support Monday for host nation Thailand, saying their protest was aimed solely at Russia because of its invasion of Ukraine.
19 charged, including 10 minors, after violent night at Toronto beach
Police say they’ve made 19 arrests and seven officers were injured after a violent night at Toronto’s Woodbine Beach that saw two people shot, one person stabbed, two others robbed at gunpoint and running street battles involving fireworks through Sunday evening.
Monkeypox fears could stigmatize LGBTQ2S+ community, expert says
A theory that the recent outbreak of monkeypox may be tied to sexual activity has put the gay community in an unfortunate position, having fought back against previous and continued stigma around HIV and AIDS, an LGBTQ2+ centre director says.
Hydro damage 'significantly worse' than the ice storm and tornadoes, Hydro Ottawa says
Hydro Ottawa says the damage from Saturday's storm is "simply beyond comprehension", and is "significantly worse" than the 1998 ice storm and the tornadoes that hit the capital three years ago.
Johnny Depp's severed finger story has flaws: surgeon
A hand surgeon testified Monday that Johnny Depp could not have lost the tip of his middle finger the way he told jurors it happened in his civil lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard.