VANCOUVER -- British Columbia health officials have announced another 98 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and one more death, capping off another case-heavy week in the province.
Friday's written update from provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and deputy health minister Stephen Brown indicated there are now 1,349 active cases in B.C., a slight decrease from Thursday.
Of that total, 62 people are in hospital and 19 are in intensive care.
Since the start of the pandemic, there have been 8,641 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in B.C. and 230 deaths from the coronavirus.
"We offer our condolences to everyone who has lost their loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic," the health officials said in their statement.
Henry and Brown also announced a new outbreak at Peace Portal Seniors Village, a long-term care home in Surrey. Fraser Health had previously announced the outbreak in a news release Thursday afternoon.
The pair's statement also indicated that the outbreak at Surrey Memorial Hospital has been declared over, meaning there are currently 10 outbreaks in long-term care facilities and four in acute-care facilities in B.C.
There have been no new community outbreaks of the coronavirus, but public exposures continue to be reported in schools and businesses around the province, Henry and Brown said.
They noted that there are currently 3,533 people who are being monitored by public health officials because of their exposure to known cases of COVID-19.
“Our community wellness during COVID-19 is about keeping new cases low and manageable, as well maintaining our important connections with friends, family and neighbours in a way that doesn’t put ourselves or those around us at risk," said Brown and Henry. “With the arrival of the cooler weather, now is the time for all of us to take a step back from connecting in person to staying connected in other, safer ways."
The update comes at the end of a week that saw B.C. add 799 cases to its overall total, while seeing its active caseload decline significantly because of a delay in reporting of recoveries in the Vancouver Coastal Health region.
On Friday, the province's active case count declined again, as the 119 recoveries added outpaced the 98 new cases. A total of 7,036 people are now considered recovered from COVID-19 in B.C.
Since the start of the pandemic, the vast majority of B.C.'s cases have been recorded in the Lower Mainland. There have been 4,412 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Fraser Health region and 3,127 in Vancouver Coastal Health.
Elsewhere in the province, there have been 522 cases recorded in Interior Health, 289 in Northern Health and 204 in Island Health. A further 87 cases have been recorded among people who reside outside Canada.
