An Interior Health nurse administers Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines to seniors and care aids in Kelowna on Tuesday, March 16, 2021. (Phil McLachlan/Kelowna Capital News)

Interior Health sees 93 new COVID-19 cases Friday

The health authority declared a new outbreak at a Kelowna retirement home, where one person has died

  • Apr. 23, 2021 12:00 a.m.

Interior Health (IH) has reported 93 new cases of COVID-19 in the region Friday, April 23.

That brings the region’s rolling total up to 10,458 cases of the virus. There are 802 active cases in the region with 32 people currently hospitalized and 12 in critical care.

A total of 124 people have died from the virus in the region to date. There have been two additional deaths since April 21.

IH declared a new outbreak at Sandalwood Retirement Resort in Kelowna, where 10 residents and one staff have tested positive for the virus.

“Sadly, one person has passed away from their illness,” IH said in a press release Friday. “Contact tracing is occurring and anyone in close contact with these individuals are provided direction on self-isolation and monitoring for symptoms. Additional testing is being conducted.”

Another death was also reported in connection to the outbreak at Cottonwoods Care Centre long-term care in Kelowna, which has had 29 cases (26 residents and three staff) and now two deaths.

On the vaccination front, IH reported 41,636 new vaccine doses in the region Friday. So far in the vaccine roll-out, just over 1,453,000 first doses have been administered in the region, while 88,663 people have received their second dose.

Provincewide, B.C.’s COVID-19 infection rate has stayed high with 1,001 new cases Friday, but the number of people in hospital with the virus declined from a record 502 Thursday to 462 today.

READ MORE: B.C. sees decline in hospitalizations, 1,001 new COVID-19 cases Friday

READ MORE: COVID-19 outbreak declared at Kelowna retirement home

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Vernon Morning Star