VICTORIA -- Vancouver Island's southern region has now eclipsed the North Island as the hotbed of COVID-19 activity in the Island Health area since the pandemic began.
Four more cases of COVID-19 were identified on Vancouver Island on Tuesday and Wednesday – three in the South Island and one in the Mid Island.
The southern region, which includes Greater Victoria, the Saanich Peninsula, Port Renfrew and the Southern Gulf Islands, has now recorded 64 cases of the virus since the pandemic began, edging out the northern region which has reported 62 cases.
There are now 13 active cases of the virus in the Island Health authority, which includes Vancouver Island, the Southern Gulf Islands and parts of mainland B.C.'s central coast.
While nearly all of the new COVID-19 cases discovered in Island Health this month have been linked to community exposures or known case clusters, one case identified on or around Aug. 11 has now been linked to international travel, according to the data.
Island Health declined to comment further on the case, citing privacy concerns.
Central Vancouver Island, which includes the communities of Tofino, Port Alberni, Nanaimo, Parksville, Lake Cowichan and Duncan, has recorded 44 cases since the pandemic began.
As of Wednesday evening, the South Island's most recent reported symptoms were detected five days ago, while the Central Island's most recent symptoms were reported three days ago.
The North Island had not detected an onset of the virus for eight days, according to Island Health data.
Five people have died of COVID-19 in the Island Health region, while 152 people have recovered. There have been 170 cases reported in the region since the pandemic began.
As of Wednesday evening, there have been 48,742 COVID-19 tests administered by Island Health.
