There was an explosion of new COVID-19 cases in Delta leading up to Christmas Day.
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 433 cases for the week of Dec. 19 to 25, a jump of 351 over the week before.
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The overall number of active cases in the Fraser Health region more than tripled last week — 5,285 compared to 1,411 the week before.
All but one of the 13 local health areas (LHAs) in the region saw increases from the previous week, most with hundreds of new cases. The biggest jumps were seen in Surrey (1,155, up 857), Burnaby (799, up 620) and Tri-Cities (796, up 603).
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Data shared on the BC CDC’s COVID-19 Surveillance Dashboard shows Delta had an overall daily average of 80 new cases per 100,000 people for the week ending Dec. 29, up from 13 the week ending Dec. 19, representing 641 new cases Dec. 23-29.
Broken down by community health service areas (CHSAs), that’s a rate of 64 cases per 100,000 people in North Delta (up from 11 the week ending Dec. 19, representing 277 new cases), 106 in Ladner (up from 12 the week ending Dec. 19, representing 203 new cases) and 91 in Tsawwassen (up from 16 the week before, representing 157 new cases). 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 four per cent of cases in B.C. the week ending Dec. 29, up from two the week ending Dec. 19. Delta is home to two per cent of the province’s population.
The positivity rate in Delta based on public tests performed the week of Dec. 29 was 23 per cent, up from six the week ending Dec. 19. Broken down by CHSA, rates were 23 per cent in North Delta (up from six), 23 per cent in Ladner (up from four) and 21 per cent in Tsawwassen (up from six).
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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. 29, 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, unchanged from the weeks before. Delta also led in second doses among residents 12 and over — 94 per cent, unchanged form 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 94 per cent in North Delta (unchanged), 95 per cent in Ladner (up one per cent from the week ending Dec. 19) and 93 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 (unchanged from the weeks before), 96 for North Delta (unchanged), 96 for Ladner (unchanged) and 94 for Tsawwassen (unchanged). Second dose rates were also similar: 94 per cent for Delta as a whole (unchanged), 94 for North Delta (unchanged), 94 for Ladner (unchanged) and 93 for Tsawwassen (unchanged).
For kids aged 12-17, first dose rates as of Dec. 29 were 95 per cent for Delta as a whole (unchanged), 95 for North Delta (up one per cent from the week ending Dec. 19), 99 for Ladner (unchanged) and 94 for Tsawwassen (unchanged). Second dose rates were 92 per cent for Delta as a whole (unchanged), 91 for North Delta (unchanged), 97 for Ladner (unchanged) and 92 for Tsawwassen (up one per cent from the week ending Dec. 19).
The dashboard now also shows first dose coverage among kids ages 5-11. Delta as a whole stood at 41 per cent (up nine per cent from the week ending Dec. 19), North Delta at 32 (up eight), Ladner at 52 (up 10) and Tsawwassen at 52 (up eight).
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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 weeks previous). Broken down by CHSA, that’s 95 per cent in North Delta (unchanged), 96 in Ladner (unchanged) and 95 in Tsawwassen (unchanged). Second dose rates were 94 per cent for Delta as a whole (unchanged), 93 for North Delta (unchanged), 95 for Ladner (unchanged) and 94 for Tsawwassen (unchanged).
For those aged 18-49, first dose coverage was 97 per cent for Delta overall (unchanged), 98 for North Delta (unchanged), 97 for Ladner (up one per cent from the week ending Dec. 19) and 93 for Tsawwassen (unchanged). Second dose rates were lower — 94 per cent for Delta as a whole (unchanged), 95 for North Delta (unchanged), 94 for Ladner (unchanged) and 91 for Tsawwassen (unchanged).
The dashboard also includes third dose/booster coverage for those 70 and over, and the overall rate for Delta the week of Dec. 29 was 73 per cent, up from 67 the week ending Dec. 19. Broken down by CHSA, that’s 65 per cent in North Delta (up from 60), 77 in Ladner (up from 71) and 79 in Tsawwassen (up from 74).
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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 (unchanged from the weeks before). The next highest were Burnaby and New Westminster with 95 per cent (unchanged for the former, up one per cent for the latter), followed by Tri-Cities with 93 (unchanged) and South Surrey/White Rock with 92 (up one per cent from the week ending Dec. 19).
When it came to second dose rates, Burnaby and Surrey each had 93 per cent (unchanged for both). The next highest was New Westminster with 92 per cent (unchanged), followed by Tri-Cities (91, unchanged) and South Surrey/White Rock (90, up one per cent from the week ending Dec. 19).
SEE ALSO: Surrey sees 400% increase in weekly COVID cases (Dec. 31, 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 Dec. 31, 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 Jan. 3, Fraser Health’s website listed exposures at only one Delta school: Sands Secondary (Dec. 20, 21, 22 and 23).
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.”
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editor@northdeltareporter.com
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