Seven people in Interior Health have died due to COVID-19 over the weekend, health officials reported on Monday (Dec. 21).
The seven deaths come alongside 188 new cases, for a total of 3,312 total COVID-19 diagnoses. Thirty-three people are hospitalized with the virus, seven of whom are in the ICU.
The new deaths bring the region’s total death toll to 17.
“Some passed peacefully in long-term care while others were in hospital, and in each case, I share sincere condolences to their loved ones and caregivers,” said IH president and CEO Susan Duncan. “It’s never easy to lose a member of our community, especially now after we have come so far in the fight against COVID-19. I urge everyone to redouble your efforts and focus on the important public health guidance that can prevent the spread of COVID-19 so that we may protect ourselves and loved ones this holiday season.”
Four of the seven deaths over the weekend came from Oliver’s McKinney Place long-term care home. The home has had seven deaths since an outbreak was declared a couple of weeks ago. A total of 73 cases have been diagnosed at the home: 53 residents and 20 staff.
Village by the Station long-term care in Penticton remains at four cases: two residents and two staff.
Mountainview Village long-term care in Kelowna has 14 cases: seven residents and seven staff. There remains one previously reported death related to this outbreak.
The Big White cluster remains at 76 cases. An update on that cluster is expected from the health authority tomorrow.
READ MORE: B.C. records 41 COVID deaths and 1,667 new cases over the weekend
Provincewide, there were 1,667 new cases and 41 COVID-19 deaths over the weekend.
By day, there were 652 cases reported Saturday, 486 cases Sunday and 529 cases Monday, with 14 epi-linked cases. The weekend’s deaths bring the total COVID-19 death toll in B.C. to 765.
There are 9,718 active cases of COVID-19 following the weekend. Currently, there are 341 people in hospital, of whom 80 are in critical care or ICU. There have been a total of 47,057 confirmed cases in B.C. since the pandemic began. There are more than 9,600 people under active public health monitoring. There have been five new outbreaks in health-care facilities, while five others have ended, and two community outbreaks at Coastal GasLink sites. There are a total of 55 health care outbreaks in B.C.
Last week, at least 3,644 people – largely long-term care workers in the Lower Mainland – have received their first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. Henry said that vaccine doses have now arrived in all other health regions in B.C.
.@Interior_Health reporting seven new deaths over the weekend, by far the authority's deadliest of the pandemic thus far.
4 of those deaths come from Oliver's McKinney Place outbreak. The facility has now had 7 deaths in the past 2 weeks. #COVID19BC
— Michael Rodriguez (@MichaelRdrguez) December 21, 2020
