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COVID-19 cases in Delta climb for second straight week

Delta had 57 cases for the week of Dec. 5 to 11, 20 more than the week before
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This map illustrates the number of active COVID-19 cases in Greater Vancouver from Dec. 5 to 11, 2021. (BC Centre for Disease Control image)

COVID-19 cases are on the rise again in Delta.

The latest weekly map released by the BC Centre for Disease Control showing the geographic distribution of COVID-19 cases by local health area (LHA) of residence shows Delta had 57 cases for the week of Dec. 5 to 11, 20 more than the week before. This after the number of cases in the city more than doubled during the week ending Dec. 4.

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The overall number of active cases in the Fraser Health region decreased slightly last week — 700 compared to the week before.

Seven of the 13 local health areas (LHAs) in the region saw increases from the previous week, most notably Surrey (222, up 75 from the week before) and Burnaby (69, up 20).

LHAs that saw decreases last week were Abbotsford (44, down 36), Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows (46, down 35), Chilliwack (32, down 29) and Mission (28, down 28).

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Data shared on the BC CDC’s COVID-19 Surveillance Dashboard shows Delta had an overall daily average of seven new cases per 100,000 people for the week of Dec. 13, up from six the week before.

Broken down by community health service areas (CHSAs), that’s a rate of eight cases per 100,000 people in North Delta (unchanged from the week before), four in Ladner (unchanged) and 10 in Tsawwassen (up from two). The CHSA of Tsawwassen is comprised of both the Delta community and the Tsawwassen First Nation.

Delta’s total case count over that time frame represented two per cent of cases in B.C. that week, unchanged from the week before. Delta is home to two per cent of the province’s population.

The positivity rate in Delta based on public tests the week of Dec. 13 was four per cent, unchanged from the week before. Broken down by CHSA, rates were five per cent in North Delta (down from six), three per cent in Ladner (unchanged) and five per cent in Tsawwassen (up from two).

RELATED: B.C. waiting for take-home rapid COVID-19 tests to arrive in January (Dec. 15, 2021)

SEE ALSO: Early data indicating Omicron is milder, better at evading vaccines (Dec. 15, 2021)

The dashboard also shows breakdowns of vaccine coverage across the CHSAs by age (5-11, 12+, 12-17, 18+, 18-49 and 50+) and by whether people have received their first or second dose, or in the case of those 70+, their third dose.

As of Dec. 13, Delta continued to lead other LHAs in Fraser Health with 96 per cent of adults aged 12 and over having received at least their first does of vaccine, up one per cent from the week before. Delta also led in second doses among residents 12 and over — 93 per cent, unchanged from the week before.

Broken down by CHSA, that’s 96 per cent first dose coverage in North Delta (unchanged from the week before), 96 per cent in Ladner (unchanged), and 94 per cent in Tsawwassen (unchanged). In terms of second dose rates, that’s 93 per cent in North Delta (unchanged), 94 per cent in Ladner (unchanged) and 92 per cent in Tsawwassen (unchanged).

First dose rates were virtually identical when limited to adults 18 and over: 96 per cent for Delta as a whole (up one per cent from the week before), 96 for North Delta (unchanged), 96 for Ladner (unchanged) and 94 for Tsawwassen (unchanged). Second dose rates were also similar: 93 per cent for Delta as a whole (unchanged), 94 for North Delta (up one per cent), 94 for Ladner (unchanged) and 92 for Tsawwassen (unchanged).

For kids aged 12-17, first dose rates as of Dec. 13 were 95 per cent for Delta as a whole (unchanged), 94 for North Delta (unchanged), 99 for Ladner (unchanged) and 94 for Tsawwassen (unchanged). Second dose rates were 92 per cent for Delta as a whole (up one per cent), 90 for North Delta (unchanged), 96 for Ladner (unchanged) and 91 for Tsawwassen (up one per cent).

The dashboard now also shows first dose coverage among kids ages 5-11. Delta as a whole stood at 23 per cent (up 15 per cent), North Delta at 19 (up 12), Ladner at 28 (up 18) and Tsawwassen at 29 (up 19).

RELATED: Vaccination rates for Surrey’s 5-to-11 age group increase by 10% (Dec. 16, 2021)

SEE ALSO: Pfizer confirms COVID pill’s results, potency versus omicron (Dec. 14, 2021)

First dose rates for those 18-49 and those 50 and over were nearly the same and in-line with other age categories.

For adults 50 and over, first dose coverage in Delta was 95 per cent (unchanged from the week previous). Broken down by CHSA, that’s 94 per cent in North Delta (unchanged), 96 in Ladner (unchanged) and 95 in Tsawwassen (unchanged). Second dose rates were 93 per cent for Delta as a whole (unchanged), 93 for North Delta (unchanged), 94 for Ladner (unchanged) and 94 for Tsawwassen (unchanged).

For those aged 18-49, first dose coverage was 96 per cent for Delta overall (unchanged), 97 for North Delta (unchanged), 96 for Ladner (unchanged) and 93 for Tsawwassen (up one per cent). Second dose rates were lower — 93 per cent for Delta as a whole (unchanged), 94 for North Delta (unchanged), 94 for Ladner (up one per cent) and 90 for Tsawwassen (unchanged).

The dashboard now also includes third dose/booster coverage for those 70 and over, and the overall rate for Delta the week of Dec. 13 was 62 per cent, up from 55 the week before. Broken down by CHSA, that’s 55 per cent in North Delta (up from 48), 65 in Ladner (up from 58) and 70 in Tsawwassen (up from 63).

SEE ALSO: B.C.’s vaccine card expected to extend past January; officials look at medical exemptions (Dec. 14, 2021)

Other than Delta, the Fraser Health LHA with the highest first dose vaccine coverage for adults aged 12 and over was Surrey with 96 per cent (up one per cent from the week before). The next highest was Burnaby with 95 per cent (unchanged), followed by New Westminster with 94 (unchanged), Tri-Cities with 92 (unchanged) and South Surrey/White Rock with 91 (unchanged).

When it came to second dose rates, Burnaby tied with Delta at 93 per cent (up one per cent from the week before). The next highest were Surrey and New Westminster with 92 per cent (both unchanged), followed by Tri-Cities (90, unchanged) and South Surrey/White Rock (89, unchanged).

SEE ALSO: Canada surpasses grim milestone with more than 30,000 COVID-19 deaths (Dec. 16, 2021)

On Dec. 8, the BC CDC posted an updated map showing total cumulative cases by local health area through to the end of November. The map shows there were a total of 5,640 COVID-19 cases in Delta through to Nov. 30, meaning there were just 81 new cases last month, compared to 210 in October, 193 in September, 223 in August, 26 in July, 92 in June, 488 in May, 990 in April and 614 in March.

The map also shows there were 776 new cases in Surrey in November, compared to 1,462 in October, 1,357 in September, 980 in August, 189 in July, 529 in June, 4,012 in May, 7,043 in April and 4,406 in March.

For the Fraser Health region as a whole, there were 4,263 new cases of COVID-19 in November, compared to 7,478 in October, 6,792 in September, 4,478 in August, 771 in July, 1,636 in June, 8,913 in May, 17,086 in April and 10,554 in March.

Vancouver Coastal Health, meanwhile, had 1,501 new cases in November, compared to 1,977 in October, 2,696 in September, 2,787 in August, 424 in July, compared to 563 in June, 2,833 in May, 7,497 in April and 5,726 in March.

As of Thursday morning (Dec. 16), there were no outbreaks at any Delta long-term care, assisted living or independent living facilities, there were no public exposure notifications in the city, and no Delta businesses had been temporarily closed due to COVID-19 spread among workers.

Also as of Thursday, Fraser Health’s website listed exposures at six Delta schools: Burnsview Secondary (Dec. 7), Chalmers Elementary (Dec. 7), Cougar Canyon Elementary (Dec. 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13 and 14), English Bluff Elementary (Dec. 6, 7 and 8), Gibson Elementary (Dec. 1, 2 and 3) and Seaquam Secondary (Dec. 1, 2, 3, 7, 8 and 9).

Fraser Health defines exposure as “a single person with lab-confirmed COVID-19 infection who attended school during their infectious period.” Two or more individuals is defined as a cluster, while an outbreak describes a situation involving “multiple individuals with lab-confirmed COVID-19 infections when transmission is likely widespread within the school setting.”

SEE ALSO: Freeland budgets billions more for testing, treatments and vaccines in fall update (Dec. 14, 2021)

SEE ALSO: ‘Incredible urgency’: Health experts say COVID-19 Omicron variant requires response (Dec. 16, 2021)



editor@northdeltareporter.com

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James Smith

About the Author: James Smith

James Smith is the founding editor of the North Delta Reporter.
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