Vancouver Island adds 96 new COVID-19 cases, 2 deaths in 24 hours
British Columbia health officials identified 96 new cases of COVID-19 in the Vancouver Island region Friday.
The new cases were among 405 cases found across the province over the past 24 hours.
There are currently 3,071 active cases of COVID-19 in B.C., including 646 active cases in the Vancouver Island region, according to a statement from the Ministry of Health.
Island Health continues to have the second highest number of active cases in B.C., behind the Fraser Health region, where 990 cases are active Friday, according to the province.
Vancouver Island's top doctor told CTV News on Thursday that the island's recent surge in new and active cases was partly caused by a religious gathering in the Courtenay area last week.
Island Health data identified the locations of 577 active cases Friday, including 128 in the South Island, 248 in the Central Island and 201 in the North Island.
Six deaths related to COVID-19 were confirmed in B.C. over the past 24 hours, including two that occurred in the island region.
Three other deaths were reported in Fraser Health and one was in Vancouver Coastal Health.
Since the pandemic began, 2,351 COVID-19-related deaths have been reported in B.C., including 124 deaths confirmed in the Island Health region.
According to the BC Centre for Disease Control, 44 people are in hospital for treatment of COVID-19 on Vancouver Island, including 14 patients who require critical care.
As of Friday, 85.1 per cent of eligible British Columbians have received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 81.8 per cent have receive two doses.
Between Nov. 25 and Dec. 1, people who are not vaccinated accounted for 54 per cent of the province's COVID-19 cases, despite only making up approximately 15 per cent of British Columbians.
From Nov. 18 to Dec. 1, people who are not vaccinated also accounted for 61.4 per cent of hospitalizations related to COVID-19 in B.C.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.