British Columbia’s health officials are set to provide a live update on the province’s COVID-19 landscape Wednesday afternoon.
Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix are planning on increasing their live updates to three times per week amid an ongoing surge of coronavirus cases.
Wednesday’s announcement is scheduled for 3 p.m. this afternoon. A live stream will be available on CHEK’s Facebook and YouTube channels.
The live update comes just one day after British Columbia shattered its daily record for COVID-19 cases with 941 in a 24-hour span.
The Island Health region was connected with 11 total cases on the record-setting day, bringing the active number of cases within the region to 152.
Across the province, there are presently 7,732 active cases in the province, 284 people in hospital with 61 in intensive care.
The latest peak in numbers comes as health officials ordered indoor physical activity spaces to suspend operations as new guidance is developed.
As of Tuesday, Nov. 24, the temporary suspension is being extended to include gymnastics, dance studios, martial arts, yoga, pilates, strength and conditioning, and cheerleading.
Also on Tuesday, Solicitor General Mike Farnworth extended the province’s state of emergency until Dec. 8 and laid out enforcement measures for wearing masks in B.C.
Individuals can now be fined $230 if they do not wear a mask while in indoor public spaces.
Masks are required to be worn in indoor public spaces by those ages 12 and over.
“We’ve entered a second wave of COVID-19 in British Columbia and additional steps need to be taken to protect our health,” Mike Farnworth, minister of public safety and solicitor general, said in a Tuesday release.
The current mask mandate, along with restrictions on non-essential travel, is slated to be in place until at least Dec. 7.
Graham Cox
