Skip to content

3 new deaths due to COVID-19 in B.C., 139 new cases

B.C. confirms 40 ‘historic cases,’ as well
22749091_web1_CP17132485--1-
A health-care worker is seen outside the emergency department of the Vancouver General Hospital in Vancouver on March 30, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

Three more people have died due to COVID-19 in B.C., health officials confirmed Friday afternoon (Sept. 18).

The lives lost come as 139 more British Columbians test positive for the novel coronavirus.

That brings the total number of active cases to 1,803. Fifty-nine of those infected are in hospital, 20 of whom are in intensive care. The rest are self-isolating at home.

A further 3,075 people are under active public health monitoring because they have been in contact with a known case or identified exposure in the community.

Friday’s update, a written joint statement from provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix, included a new set of COVID-19 statistics: 40 “historic cases” connected to people who tested positive for the disease between August and September in Vancouver, but who did not have personal health numbers.

With the new test-positive cases and historic ones, that brings the total number of confirmed cases in the province since January to 7,842.

In their statement, Henry and Dix noted that the infections being diagnosed this week are connected to the incubation period for contracting the disease during Labour Day long weekend.

“No one intends to pass the virus onto friends or family, but it is very easy to do. It can take up to two weeks for symptoms of COVID-19 to develop and in that time, we can inadvertently spread it to others,” the statement reads.

“That is why the actions we take as individuals today are so important to the well-being of our communities tomorrow. Let’s choose safe, let’s choose small and let’s choose to protect the people we care about most.”

Health officials continued to urge British Columbians to “stick to six,” and make good choices through the long weekend to minimize further transmissions.


@ashwadhwani
ashley.wadhwani@bpdigital.ca

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Want to support local journalism? Make a donation here.



About the Author: Ashley Wadhwani-Smith

I began my journalistic journey at Black Press Media as a community reporter in my hometown of Maple Ridge, B.C.
Read more