VICTORIA -- B.C. health officials announced 32 new cases of COVID-19 Monday, and one more death related to the virus.

The update comes three days after the most recent briefing, which was provided on Friday.

Ten of the new cases occurred on Saturday, six were discovered on Sunday and 16 were confirmed on Monday.

The most recent death marks the first death related to the virus since June 12 in the province. B.C.’s death toll has now reached 169 since the pandemic began.

One of the new cases also marked the first new laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19 in the Island Health region since early May.

Meanwhile, the province has seen a total of 2,822 COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began.

Of those cases, 182 remain active in B.C., including 14 people who were in hospital for treatment, six of which required critical care.

The majority of COVID-19 cases continue to be found in the province’s Lower Mainland. The Vancouver Coastal Health region has reported 954 cases since the pandemic began while the Fraser Health Region has confirmed 1,474.

Elsewhere in the province, the Island Health region has reported 131 cases, the Interior Health region has recorded 198 cases and the Northern Health region has seen 65.

Health officials say that no new outbreaks have arisen in the health-care system, though seven remain active across B.C.

Six of the outbreaks are located in long-term care facilities, while one is active an acute care hospital unit.

As B.C. continues to reopen its economy, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry stressed the importance of fundamental health measures to help curb the spread of COVID-19.

“Everyone in B.C. has put an immersive effort into being safe,” said Henry.

“As we look ahead our objective is to keep doing that,” she said. “To keep our COVID-19 rates low and slow.”

Henry said that physical distancing, avoiding large groups, meeting outdoors if possible and staying home if feeling at all unwell are some of the best ways to protect against the virus.

B.C.’s top doctor said that following health measures are especially important for people who are planning to travel to different communities across the province this summer.

“Proceeding with caution is important for all of us now,” she said.

“We need to be respectful of the communities that we want to visit.”

While health officials are still recommending that British Columbians stay close to home, Henry says that phase three of the province’s restart plan – which would include the endorsement of travel within B.C. – will be coming sooner rather than later.

“We anticipate that phase three of our restart plan will begin soon,” she said.

Health officials add that a modeling update on COVID-19 in B.C. will be presented at a live briefing Tuesday. 

With B.C. recently lifting some fire bans, Henry urged British Columbians to be safe this summer.

“The burden of COVID is enough for all of us, so be extra vigilant when exploring the outdoors,” she said.

As the weather improves and B.C. sees continued success in flattening its COVID-19 curve, Henry also added that large crowds are still prohibited in the province.

Large groups can increase the chance of spreading COVID-19 and makes it more difficult for contact tracers to close a possible chain of transmission.

B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix echoed the reminder, citing that more than 120,000 COVID-19 cases were confirmed across the globe yesterday, the highest single-day count to date.

“Physical distancing saves lives,” said Dix.