The Summerland Local Health area is currently experiencing the third-highest per capita rate of daily infections, behind only Abbotsford and Surrey.
According to documents from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control, the Summerland LHA had an average daily new case rate from April 23 to 29 of just below 30 per 100,000, putting the area as the highest rate in the Interior and above other higher population areas such as Delta.
The BC CDC released an official copy of the documents that earlier been leaked to the Vancouver Sun confirming the daily case rate.
Surrey had an average of over 45 per 100,000 new cases, Abbotsford had more than 40 per 100,000 and Delta had more than 25 per 100,000.
Interior Health is issuing COVID-19 vaccines for all residents 30 and older in high-transmission neighbourhoods in the health authority’s territory such as Summerland.
READ MORE: COVID-19 cases more than double in Summerland
The health authority announced the new vaccine availability on May 7 on Twitter. High transmission neighbourhoods include Golden, Summerland and Rutland.
Summerland’s COVID-19 cases rose from 12 a week ago to 28, according to the latest information from the BC Centre for Disease Control. Three of four schools in the community were listed on the Interior Health list of school exposures at the time of publishing.
To register for your vaccination, visit www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/covid-19/vaccine/register.
The internal documents also show that the positivity rate for tests in the LHA are between 10 and 20 per cent, a higher rate than neighbouring Penticton’s 3.1 to five per cent positivity rate or Keremeos and the Central Okanagan’s 2.1 to three per cent positivity rates.
READ MORE: More than 22K Penticton residents vaccinated
According to the most recent vaccination data released, the Summerland LHA has distributed 4,711 first doses of vaccine to the area’s 13,394 residents.
On May 6 Dr. Bonnie Henry announced that the province plans to regularly release neighbourhood-specific case counts and immunization rates starting in the coming weeks.
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