File photo, courtesy of the Canadian Press

By Dylana Kneeshaw

COVID-19 IN B.C

Outbreak declared at long term care facility as health officials announce six new COVID-19 cases in BC

Mar 7, 2020 | 12:23 PM

VANCOUVER — The BC Government has announced six new cases of COVID-19 today (Mar. 7), and declared an outbreak at a long term care facility in North Vancouver.

In a statement, Health Minister Adrian Dix, and Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry say, the six new cases now bring the total to 27 cases in British Columbia.

“The individuals are in the Vancouver Coastal and Fraser Health regions, and were confirmed positive based on testing by the BC Centre for Disease Control.”, states the release, going on to say that two of the cases are residents of the Lynn Valley Care Centre in North Vancouver.

According to health officials, these cases were identified as part of an outbreak assessment at the facility after a staff member tested positive for COVID-19.

All residents of the long term care home have now been screened, and Vancouver Coastal Health teams are on site to support, and investigate. The teams have also notified facility staff and residents, and are meeting with their families.

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Dix and Henry add that the other people with COVID-19 are stable and in isolation at home, while being monitored by public health teams. They also say that so far, four of B.C.’s 21 individuals who tested positive for COVID-19 have fully recovered.

“There has been a notable transmission of COVID-19 at events, such as religious gatherings. As a result, we recommend social distancing and forgoing usual greetings. As an alternative, we recommend considering virtual online gatherings.

“Cruise ships continue to be a high-risk environment for transmission. As result, we recommend reconsidering any cruise-ship travel at this time.”

Testing and screening of residents, along with travellers experiencing symptoms, and close contacts will continue, and as of yesterday (Mar. 6), 2,803 samples have been tested.

For more information on which new cases have been identified, and where, click here to access the original release.