Four new cases of COVID-19 reported in the Island Health Authority on Monday mark the biggest jump in the region’s cases since April 23.

Seven new cases have been reported in the Island Health region since July 15, according to data from the BC Centre for Disease Control. Six of those cases were included in the 102 new cases recorded in B.C. over a three-day period, prompting a warning from provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry that the province is at risk of “explosive growth.”

READ ALSO: ‘We’re on the edge’: B.C. records 102 new COVID-19 cases, no new deaths since Friday

Four of the new Island Health cases are epidemiologically-linked, meaning the people infected were never tested but have symptoms of the virus and have been in close contact with a confirmed case of COVID-19 or lived or worked in a facility where there was an outbreak.

In total, Island Health has had 142 cases of the novel coronavirus and 127 recoveries. Five people have died from the virus in the region.

The total number of cases in B.C. sits at 3,300, of which 253 are active. The province’s death toll remains at 189 people.

During a press briefing on July 20, Henry called the number of new cases amongst young people “concerning” and noted that about 60 cases emerged from COVID-19 exposures in Kelowna.

“We’re on the edge that might go up,” she said. “The number of new cases … is concerning.”

Several cases of COVID-19 were confirmed on Canadian flights last week, including one airplane that landed at the Victoria International Airport. Air Canada 8073 landed in Victoria July 13 from Vancouver.

READ ALSO: COVID-19 case landed in Victoria International Airport last week

-With files from Katya Slepian

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