B.C. Covid update Friday: 711 new cases, 11 deaths

The Friday COVID-19 update for B.C. included 711 new cases and 11 more deaths.

New cases in Interior Health totalled 81.

IH now has 633 active cases with 16 people in hospital and four in intensive care.

The number of COVID-related deaths in IH remains at four.

There are 9,050 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, with 338 people in hospital and 76 in intensive or critical care.

Currently, 10,957 people are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases and 25,658 people who tested positive have recovered.

The total number of deaths is now at 492.

The new case counts also included 143 in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 427 in Fraser Health, 10 in Island Health, 50 in Northern Health and no new cases of people who reside outside of Canada.

There are two new health-care facility outbreaks at Peace Arch Hospital Foundation Lodge and at Richmond Hospital, and the outbreak at Youville Residence is over.

“We continue to face a significant surge in community transmission and new cases of COVID-19, which means following the provincial health officer’s (PHO) orders and using all our layers of protection is necessary for every person in our province right now,” said a statement from Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix.

The two officials stated “The virus is not letting up and neither can we. This weekend, let’s stay small and stay local, so we can slow the spread of the virus in our province. We can still be festive, we can still have fun, but let’s ensure it is only with our immediate household.”

Today, the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) released the results of the Your Story, Our Future population health survey on a new SPEAK survey dashboard, funded by the BCCDC Foundation for Public Health. The survey was the largest-ever Canadian population health survey, with almost 400,000 British Columbians taking part.

“What the survey dashboard shows us is that the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted us all. It also reminds us that each of us can make a difference, and the efforts we make will help us get through this pandemic,” said Dix and Henry.