New case of COVID-19 in Fraser Health region

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Another case of the coronavirus has been diagnosed in British Columbia.

This brings the total number of cases in B.C. to six.

The announcement was made by Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry at a news conference Thursday evening.

The patient is a woman in her 30s who recently returned from Iran and who lives in the Fraser Health region.

“We have a very robust system for picking up people who may have this virus,” Henry says. “This one clearly is a bit unusual in that the travel to Iran is something new. Iran has recently started reporting cases and we will be working with our national and international colleagues to better understand where she may have been exposed to this virus.”

Henry says patient #6 in #BC went to #Iran in January and at least 20 other people in that country are now being tested for #COVID19. Health workers are trying to pinpoint where this young woman went in Iran. She returned this week to #Canada and is now in isolation at home.

— Marcella Bernardo (@Bernardo1130) February 21, 2020

Henry says they will be doing a through investigation of where the woman travelled and when her symptoms began in order to determine if fellow travellers need to be warned.

The woman tested positive for COVID-19 at the lab at the BC Centre for Disease Control.

“Samples have gone on to the [National Microbiology Lab] for confirmation but we are confident that this is a true positive,” Henry says.

“Fraser Health is actively investigating the close contacts, and a number have already been put in isolation.”

The case is relatively mild and the patient is in isolation at her home.

“We still believe the risk in Canada and here in B.C. for sure is low. We are encouraging people to continue to take those measures that prevent transmission of infection.”

Henry said over 500 people have been tested for the virus in B.C. and many of those tested positive for the flu

With files from The Canadian Press