B.C.'s recent success in limiting the spread and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be continuing, according to data released June 2.
The success in fighting the pandemic, however, does not mean that the province plans to accelerate its plan to reopen the B.C. economy, or allow travel across the province. Travel restrictions across the province are to be in place until June 15 at the earliest, Health Minister Adrian Dix told a press gallery scrum.
"With B.C.'s Restart plan progressing, this is a time of transition for all of us," he and provincial health officer Bonnie Henry said in a joint statement. "We are slowly and cautiously moving forward through Step 1, and in the weeks ahead, activities that have been on hold will resume once again."
While the number of new COVID-19 cases rose by 10, compared with yesterday, to 194, that number is far below the average number of daily infections as recently as a week ago. The province provided 6,862 COVID-19 tests in the past day, making the positive-test rate 2.8% – far lower than the 7% to 9% positive-test rate that has been the norm in recent weeks.
The number of active infections across the province fell for the 28th consecutive time, to 2,662 – the lowest total since October.
The vast majority of those infected have been told to self-isolate, although 246 of those people are hospitalized, with 70 of those being in intensive care units. That is the lowest number of people in hospital, and in ICUs, since mid-March.
Unfortunately, four more individuals passed away overnight while battling COVID-19 infections. That raises the province's death toll from the pandemic to 1,707.
Of the 144,667 people infected with the disease since the first case was detected in B.C. in January, more than 96.9% are deemed by the province to have recovered because they are not thought to be infectious.
Health officials provided 61,952 doses of vaccine to 45,029 new people, with a record 16,923 people getting needed second doses. The new doses raise the provincial total to 3,365,286 doses to 3,157,141 people, with 208,145 of those getting needed second doses.
The Fraser Health region remains the province's hot spot for new cases.
By health region, the 194 infections in the past day includes:
• 33 in Vancouver Coastal Health (17%);
• 122 in Fraser Health (62.9%);
• two in Island Health (1%);
• 33 in Interior Health (17%); and
• four in Northern Health (2%).
There remain five outbreaks at seniors' homes, including:
• Brookside Lodge in Surrey;
• Cherington Place in Surrey;
• Heritage Manor in Fort St. John;
• Richmond Lions Manor-Bridgeport in Richmond; and
• Spring Valley Care Centre in Kelowna
The only active outbreak at a B.C. hospital is at Richmond Hospital in Richmond.
