24 British Columbians die from COVID-19, 640 cases recorded
Last Updated Dec 16, 2020 at 11:49 pm PDT
FILE: A person wears a protective face mask to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 as they walk past the emergency department of the Vancouver General Hospital in Vancouver Wednesday, November 18, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
Summary
It has been another deadly day in BC because of COVID-19 as another 24 people have died from the virus
640 more people have tested positive since Tuesday s report
Of the 362 people currently in hospital, 91 are in intensive care
VICTORIA (NEWS 1130) It’s been another deadly day in B.C. because of COVID-19 with 24 more people losing their lives to the virus in the past day; a sobering reminder that even with the Pfizer vaccine now here in the province, British Columbians cannot let their guards down against this virus.
Posted: Dec 16, 2020 4:01 PM PT | Last Updated: December 17, 2020
Public health is actively monitoring 10,538 people across the province, who are in self-isolation due to COVID-19 exposure. There were 9,950 active cases in the province as of Wednesday.(Ben Nelms/CBC)
Posted:
December 16, 2020
B.C.’s COVID-19 response and latest updates for Dec. 16
Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, today (Dec. 16) issued the following joint statement regarding updates on the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) response in British Columbia.
Today, we are reporting 640 new cases of COVID-19, including one epi-linked case, for a total of 44,103 cases in British Columbia.
There are 9,950 active cases of COVID-19 in the province. There are 362 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19, 91 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation.
Currently, 10,538 people are under active public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases and a further 32,376 people who tested positive have recovered.
by Craig Takeuchi on December 16th, 2020 at 8:30 PM 1 of 5 2 of 5
Although there are some signs of decreases in COVID-19 cases in some categories, the death roll remains high in the province.
In an effort to stop transmission and reduce both cases and deaths, B.C. announced that it is increasing enforcement of COVID-19 health measures.
That includes shifting virtual inspections to in-person visits, asking all officers and inspectors (including gaming investigators, conservation officers, community safety unit inspectors, and liquor and cannabis inspectors) to increase inspections and support police, and directing ICBC to eliminate its reminder period for unpaid accounts and send them directly to collections.
Forty-seven new cases were reported while hospitalizations declined by four to 44 and those in intensive care rose by one to 19. Deaths in the region held steady at 15 since the pandemic took hold after three more were confirmed on Tuesday. As of Tuesday, the region s positivity rate remained the highest among B.C. s health authorities for the 13th day in a row. It stood at 10.1 per 100 tests, based on a seven day rolling average, compared to 6.3 for B.C. as a whole. Province-wide, 24 more deaths were confirmed while active cases rose by 90 to 9,950. In a joint statement, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and health minister Adrian Dix urged people to stay home and keep their groups small during the holiday season.