VICTORIA -- B.C. health officials have announced 53 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the province to 3,934 since the pandemic began.

No new deaths related to the virus were reported Friday, leaving the province’s death toll at 195.

There are now 386 active cases of COVID-19 in B.C., including 11 people who are in hospital for treatment. Four people are in intensive care.

In a written statement, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix also announced one new outbreak in the province’s health-care system at the Derby Manor care home in the Fraser Health region.

The new outbreak brings the province’s total number of active health-care outbreaks to six, including five at long-term care homes and one at an acute-care facility.

No new community outbreaks have appeared over the past 24 hours. However, health officials warn that several community “exposure events” continue across the province.

“Alerts are posted on the BC Centre for Disease Control’s website, as well as on health authorities’ websites, providing details on where the potential exposure occurred and what actions you need to take – whether you need to immediately self-isolate, or monitor for symptoms,” said Henry and Dix.

Health officials say that more than 1,500 people across B.C. are now required to self-isolate because they have contracted COVID-19, or because they were at higher risk of exposure.

Dix and Henry say that while the increase in cases is concerning, following basic health measures like physical distancing, avoiding large gatherings and wearing masks when it is hard to physically distance can help reverse the trend.

“We can make a difference and we know what we need to do, because we have done so already,” said the pair.

“Let’s keep our bubbles small, use our layers of protection and give people the space to stay safe.” 

The vast majority of COVID-19 cases continue to be found in the province’s Lower Mainland. Since the pandemic began, 2,069 cases have been discovered in the Fraser Health region and 1,167 cases have been located in the Vancouver Coastal Health region.

Meanwhile, the Island Health region has seen 147 cases of COVID-19, an increase of one since Thursday.

Elsewhere in the province, the Interior Health region has seen 389 cases while the Northern Health region has reported 93.

Sixty-nine people in B.C. who reside outside of Canada have also tested positive for COVID-19.

A total of 3,353 people have recovered from the virus in B.C.

“As we see new COVID-19 hot spots emerge and the new cases creep up in every health authority, we have to keep our firewall strong,” said Henry and Dix.

“Like a wildfire, COVID-19 has the potential to rapidly burn out of control and we need to put out these flare-ups.”