Don’t travel this Easter weekend, and if you must, stick to your region with a day trip at most, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Thursday.
“If you are in doubt at all this weekend, just don’t go,” said Henry. “If it requires an overnight stay, a vacation rental, then it is not a good idea right now.”
Henry suggested that anyone who wants a break go to a local campground or local hotel, which will help businesses struggling under pandemic restrictions. “Get takeaway from your local restaurant,” she said. “Support your local community.”
Island Health issued a notice urging people to avoid high-risk activities that have pushed COVID-19 cases to an “all-time high” in the region.
The health authority pointed to a “significant” increase in close contacts, non-essential travel, large social gatherings and number of social groups reported by those who test positive, many of whom also attended work and social events while symptomatic.
The province reported 832 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, including 53 in Island Health.
Henry said the province is in for a “rough ride,” with more cases expected to be detected before the effects of new restrictions — including the suspension of indoor dining and fitness classes and closure of the Whistler-Blackcomb ski resort until April 19 — begin to kick in.
On the Island, there were 392 active cases on Thursday, including 189 in the south Island region, 171 in the central region and 32 in the north.
Throughout March, cases in individuals ages 19 to 39 represented 45 per cent of all COVID-19 cases in Island Health, the health authority said Thursday.
Thirteen people are in hospital with COVID-19 on the Island, including two in critical care. The average age of cases admitted to hospital in the Island Health region dropped to 55.7 in 2021, from 68.6 last year, according to the health authority.
There have been 90 new confirmed COVID-19 cases that are variants of concern in B.C., for a total of 2,643 cases. Of those, 192 are active, while the remainder have recovered.
On Tuesday, there were 13 variants of concern in the Island Health region, including 11 cases of the U.K. variant, one South African and one Brazil variant.
The health authority said the number of variant cases it’s sending to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control for confirmation has more than tripled in recent days, noting the variants are more easily transmissible and can lead to more severe illness.
There have been five new COVID-related deaths in B.C., for a total of 1,463. There were no new deaths in Island Health, which has seen 29 deaths so far.
To date 787,649 doses of vaccine have been administered, 87,394 of which were second doses.
The province had set a target to vaccinate about 10 per cent of 4.3 million British Columbians eligible, and that number is now over 16 per cent, said B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix.
Meanwhile, Island Health says it’s working on contact tracing after COVID-19 exposures were reported at Oak Bay High, Cedar Hill Middle School and Nanaimo’s Wellington Secondary.
Unless parents are notified by Island Health, children can continue to attend school as long as they follow daily health checks. A COVID-19 exposure in a school setting refers to a laboratory-confirmed case or cases in the school during the infectious period.
A staff member at the Real Canadian Superstore on Langford Parkway has tested positive for COVID-19. Parent company Loblaw said in a statement it has been working with public health and has taken a number of preventive steps, such as increasing sanitation protocols and arranging for additional cleaning.
Anyone who worked closely with the person is in self-isolation at home, Loblaw said.
In B.C. as of Thursday, there were 7,571 active COVID-19 cases and 11,608 people being monitored for the virus as a result of exposures.
There were 296 people in hospital with COVID-19 in B.C., of whom 79 are in intensive or critical care.
The incubation period for the virus is about 14 days, with some people beginning to show symptoms at about four days.
— With a file from Jeff Bell
