B.c. adds 536 cases of cOVID-19 in biggest daily increase since mid-May

VANCOUVER -- B.C. health officials announced another 3 cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, marking the province’s biggest single-day increase in infections since mid-May. The update, delivered in a written statement from the Ministry of Health, pushed B.C.’s seven-day average for new cases to 11 per day. The last time it was that high was May 1.

The last time the province reported more than 3 infections in a day was on May 13. Officials also announced one new death related to the disease, bringing B.C.’s death toll to 1, . About per cent of the latest COVID-19 infections came from the Interior Health region, where several tough restrictions have been re-introduced to combat a surge in transmission.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry has said she expects those measures to begin having a noticeable effect over the next week. Other health authorities have been experiencing an increase in cases as well, however, including Fraser Health and Vancouver Coastal Health. /ast week, an independent COVID-19 modelling group predicted B.C. could see cases top 1,000 per day again unless more regional restrictions are imposed. For now, health officials have stressed the importance of getting British Columbians fully vaccinated so they have the maximum protection against the highly contagious Delta variant. A total of ,11 , 0 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and Asta eneca vaccines have been administered across the province so far. Just over per cent of eligible residents age 1 and older have received at least one dose, while about

1 per cent have received both doses. There have also been concerns about COVID-19 once again infiltrating long-term care homes, where staff are not required to be immunized. B.C. health officials recently celebrated going more than a week without a single outbreak in the long-term care system, but there are now eight homes battling outbreaks. Half of those are in the Interior Health region. COVID-19 hospitalizations have also climbed to , after falling as low as at the end of July. The number of patients in intensive care also jumped to 9 on Wednesday, up six from the previous day.....