Coronavirus deaths in province reach 200
Dix says slight uptick of COVID-19 cases now being seen in 40- to 60-year-old set
Provincial health officials announced another 80 cases of COVID -19 in British Columbia on Thursday, as well as two additional deaths.
The update from Health Minister Adrian Dix and Dr. Reka Gustafson, the deputy provincial health officer, for the 24-hour period ending at noon on Thursday brought the coronavirus death toll in B.C. to 200.
“While round numbers don’t have significance in themselves, they remind us of the extent of the loss,” said Dix, who noted that next week will mark seven months since the Health Ministry began COVID -19 briefings.
Following a surge in cases in 20- to 30-year-olds connected to activity around the B.C. Day long weekend, health officials have noted a slight uptick in cases among 40- to 60-year-olds, the health officials said Thursday.
“The majority of new infections do continue to occur in the young adult populations, but we’re seeing a small increase in a slightly older population,” Gustafson said. “The risk of serious illness goes up with age.”
Gustafson said both deaths announced Thursday were individuals living in long-term care facilities and “reflect the vulnerability of this population to severe disease from COVID -19.”
Health officials again reminded residents to keep groups small and manage their bubbles carefully.
“Science has shown us that regardless of where we may be in our province and what we may be doing, crowded indoor gatherings that encourage close proximity, especially those surrounded by people we do not know and involve alcohol, are a clear source of transmission,” Gustafson said.
Community exposure events continue to occur throughout the province.
On Thursday, Fraser Health Authority’s public health unit declared a new community outbreak at a Loblaws Inc. distribution centre in Surrey. Nine staff members at the facility have tested positive for the coronavirus.
The facility remains open and is working with Fraser Health to manage the outbreak. Those identified have been instructed to self-isolate, as have their close contacts.
Dix and Gustafson said Thursday that there are now an additional 2,574 people being monitored by public health teams, following exposure to people known to be infected.
These individuals are “effectively under public surveillance,” Dix said, praising public health staff for the amount of work they do, highlighting the 811 service in particular.
“We’ve seen, as happens in periods when there are rising cases or when there’s a rise in public anxiety, an increase in calls to our 811 service,” he said. “In the month of July, 70,668 phone calls answered — that’s twice as many as in an average July — and yesterday, 2,728 phone calls answered.”