Another person with COVID-19 has died in the Island Health region, according to data from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.
Five new cases were reported in the region, which now has 62 active cases. Five people are in hospital and one is in critical care.
At Saanich Peninsula Hospital, two more people — a patient and a staff member — have tested positive for COVID-19 in connection with an outbreak at the facility.
That brings the total number of cases to 11 patients and 11 staff members. There have been three deaths.
Testing has confirmed that the outbreak has been limited to acute-care areas of the hospital, and there have been no new sources of transmission since the declaration of the outbreak Dec. 1, the health authority said.
A total of 624 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported in B.C. on Friday and 11 additional deaths. There have been 724 fatalities linked to the virus to date.
A joint statement from provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix said 2,592 doses of vaccine have been given so far.
“The focus of our immunization program right now is to safely protect as many people as possible as efficiently as we can, but we have to remember that this is a global effort with many aspects often changing,” the statement said.
