Vancouver Island adds 3 new COVID-19 cases
British Columbia health officials identified three more cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Island region Wednesday.
The new cases were among 87 cases found across the province over the past 24 hours.
Health officials have now confirmed 147,271 cases of COVID-19 in B.C. since the pandemic began, including 5,156 cases in the island region
One more person in B.C. has died of the disease, health officials announced Wednesday, bringing the province’s pandemic death toll to 1,744.
There have been 41 deaths in the Vancouver Island region since the pandemic began.
There are currently 40 active cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Island region, including three people in hospital and two more in critical care, according to the BC Centre for Disease Control.
Island Health identified the locations of 25 active cases Wednesday, including 10 in the South Island, 14 in the Central Island and one in the North Island.
Approximately 77.2 per cent of adults in B.C. have now received a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, while 75.8 per cent of people aged 12 and older have been vaccinated.
Additionally, nearly a quarter – 24.3 per cent – of B.C. adults have received a second dose of a vaccine, while 22.7 per cent of those 12 and older have received their second dose.
Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix said Wednesday that although case numbers are dropping across the province, there continue to be new community transmissions every day.
“That is why, whether you live in the North, on the Coast or in the Interior, we strongly encourage everyone to get fully vaccinated as soon as you are eligible,” Henry and Dix said.
“For every person who gets vaccinated, it will allow us to gradually transition and safely reopen many things that have been on hold,” the health officials said. “Our approach in B.C. will continue to be a ‘dimmer switch’ instead of a ‘light switch’ approach.”
Background
CTV News Vancouver Island reports the daily COVID-19 case counts as reported by provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix, which are based on BCCDC data. There may be a discrepancy between the daily case counts reported by the BCCDC and Island Health.
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