New COVID-19 cases are in decline across the West Kootenay.

After recording new weekly case counts above 25 almost every week for the last two months, Castlegar’s cases finally dropped back into the single digits with just six new cases during the week of Sept. 12 to 18, according to data provided by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.

Grand Forks’ local health area led the region with 24 new cases during the same week.

Creston recorded 19, followed by Trail (17), Nelson (11) and four in the Arrow Lakes area that includes Nakusp. There were no new cases in the Kootenay Lake area that includes Crawford Bay.

In the Castlegar health area 80 per cent of residents ages 12 and older have now had their first vaccine dose and 72 per cent are fully vaccinated as of Sept. 21.

Provincially, 87.3 per cent of eligible people 12 and older have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine and 79.9 per cent have received their second dose as of Sept. 23.

Regular vaccination clinics are being held at the Castlegar Health Centre on Mondays and Fridays.

According to the B.C. Ministry of Health, people not fully vaccinated accounted for 74.8 per cent of new COVID-19 cases and 82.6 per cent of hospitalizations from Sept. 15-21.

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Castlegar News