53 new confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported in British Columbia, bringing the total number of cases to 1,174 as of Friday, with 126 cases in the Interior Health region.
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said that over half of the province’s COVID-19 patients are no longer showing symptoms, with 641 people reported to have fully recovered.
As of Friday, four more deaths were reported, bringing the total in B.C. to 35.
Dr. Henry said the pandemic represents a difficult time for people around the world, particularly young people. Henry offered advice to youth living through this unprecedented event.
“This is a transitional period in your life, and what is happening now is extraordinary. You need to be comfortable in reaching out to find those trusted adults in your life, don’t be afraid to talk to them about what’s going on, your anxiety and concerns,” said Henry. “This is an opportunity to work together with the young people in our life, to look up things and find a trusted source of information, to try and address some of the concerns that young people have.”
Henry also spoke once again about travellers returning home from abroad, saying self-isolation for 14 days is mandatory to ensure the safety of the community.
“If you have a loved one, a family member or someone in our community that is coming home, we need to do what we can to support them so that we’re all in this together. We can drop off groceries, we can have virtual visits, we can walk their dogs or share books and video games with them,” said Henry. “We need to keep our firewalls strong in our communities across the province, so we can all be proud of knowing that we have done the right thing and we’re holding the line for our families and our communities.”
*** Story by Ryley McCormack ***