B.C.’s COVID-19 cases remain high, 1 new care home outbreak in the Interior

Posted August 18, 2021 3:44 pm.

Last Updated August 18, 2021 3:46 pm.

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — B.C.’s Interior region remains a hot spot for COVID-19 cases in the province.

On Wednesday, 553 new cases were reported in B.C., including one epi-linked case.

The highest number of those cases remains the Interior Health region where 230 more people were diagnosed with the virus.

Fraser Health reported 152 cases, while there were 97 in Vancouver Coastal Health, 36 new cases in Northern Health, and 38 in Island Health.

B.C. had one new death, in the Fraser Health region.

Hospitalizations are down slightly over Tuesday, with 107 patients, 53 of them are in intensive care.

There is one new long-term care outbreak in the province. Interior Health has reported that Nicola Meadows in Merritt is experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak.

The city of Merritt remains under an evacuation alert due to a wildfire, and officials have been working in recent days to move vulnerable people out of the city as a precaution.

“Because we’re on alert, Interior Health stepped in and they took the residents that are needing that immediate move, needing a lot of help with that, they’ve already taken them to other facilities in Interior Health,” the mayor explained on Tuesday.

COVID-19 outbreaks have been reported at another 10 long-term care centres, where the province has mandated all staff must soon be double vaccinated.

Vaccination rates remain steady, as of Wednesday 82.8 per cent of eligible people 12 and older in B.C. have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine and 73.8 per cent have received their second dose.

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