B.C. records lowest daily COVID-19 case count in nearly a year

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to correct the total number of cases recorded over the weekend

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Some optimism in B.C. as the province recorded 38 cases Monday, the lowest since August 2020.

On Monday, B.C recorded a total of 145 new cases, with 57 Saturday and 50 Sunday.

There were five COVID-related deaths since Friday. Among them, was a person in their 20s in the Interior Health region.

Of the new cases, 48 are in the Vancouver Coastal Health region and 68 are in the Fraser Health region, 26 in Interior Health and 1 on Vancouver Island.

BC #covid19 Jun 28
Sat 57 ,Sun 50,Mon 38
total 147549
5 deaths-total 1754
1 a person in their 20s, 1 in 60s, 2 70+
VCH(35427)+48
FH(85713)+68
Int(13112)+26
Island(5161)+1
North(7800)+0
Hosp/ICU(111/41)107/37
Active(1096)930
LTC/acute(5/1)3/2#bcpoli @news1130

— LizaYuzda (@LizaYuzda) June 28, 2021

A new outbreak has been reported at Surrey Memorial Hospital.

B.C. is currently in Phase 2 of the province’s restart plan but we could move to Phase 3 as early as July 1 if cases remain low and hospitalization rates continue to decline.

Dr. Bonnie Henry expressed confidence in the rollout plan Monday, saying the province’s high vaccination rates continue to be linked to lower rates of disease. In B.C., 78.1 per cent of adults have received their first dose.

Last week was the highest week for immunizations with more than 470,000 doses administered.

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Henry did admit immunizations were impacted slightly by the current heat warnings. In recent days, the heatwave caused disruptions at several vaccine clinics which did not have air conditioning. As a result, some people were turned away.

Despite that, she said the majority of those appointments were met and health officials are working hard to reschedule anyone who missed their appointment.

“All age groups have stepped up to be immunized,” Dr. Henry said but admits there are challenges with some communities including rural areas where access to vaccines is difficult.

Once Phase 3 begins masks will be no longer mandatory and things will return to normal for indoor and outdoor personal gatherings.