New COVID-19 daily records set in B.C.

More grim new records for COVID-19 have been set in B.C. with 717 new cases and 11 more deaths.

Eighteen of the new cases are in Interior Health (IH), but none of the deaths were.

IH has 193 active cases, with two people in hospital with one in intensive care.

The outbreak at the RIH Patient Care Tower construction site in Kamloops now has ten cases directly linked to it.

There are 6,589 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, with 198 people in hospital, 63 in intensive care.

Currently, 10,960 people are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases and 16,469 people who tested positive have recovered.

Of the new cases announced Tuesday, 177 are in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 484 in Fraser Health, 16 in Island Health, 18 in Interior Health, 21 in the Northern Health region and one new case of a person who resides outside of Canada.

The 11 COVID-related deaths brings the B.C total to 310.

There is one new health-care facility outbreak at Tsawaayuss-Rainbow Gardens in the Island Health region. There have been no new community outbreaks.

In a statement, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said everyone needs to work together to “stay small, stay local and help slow the spread of COVID-19.”

“The biggest impact you can make is through the small actions you take every day,” said Henry.

Henry added there has been an increase in new cases on Vancouver Island, in the Interior and in the North, many of which are connected to travel to and from the Lower Mainland.

“That is why is it important that we stay local and travel less right now,” she said.