Northern Health is issuing a reminder to residents as COVID-19 surges are continuing throughout the region.
The authority released a statement today (Feb. 12) calling for continued caution ahead of the Family Day long weekend.
"The NH region continues to see a surge in COVID-19 activity, related hospitalizations, and an increase in deaths related to COVID-19," the statement reads.
"Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry has recently announced that all current province-wide public health orders are being kept in place, until further notice."
1/3 Northern Health is urging residents not to let their guard down on COVID-19 prevention, heading into the Family Day weekend, and beyond.
— Northern Health (@Northern_Health) February 12, 2021
“Gatherings and social interactions continue to result in COVID-19 transmissions in the north, but community-level...
According to the latest Geographic Distribution of COVID-19 by Local Health Area of Case Residence for Jan. 31, 2021, to Feb. 6, 2021, the region saw 86 cases.
Peace River South recorded 19, Peace River North added 27, he Nechako area saw eight and Quesnel recorded eight.
The 86 cases are an increase from Jan. 24, 2021, to Jan. 30, 2021, where there were 69 cases.
Northern Health's death toll also continues to rise with the authority is now at 93 since the virus hit the region last March.
“Gatherings and social interactions continue to result in COVID-19 transmissions in the north, but community-level spread of the virus is also a risk given our current rates of COVID-19 activity," Northern Health Chief Medical Health Officer Dr. Jong Kim added in the statement.
“We truly need Northern BC residents to stay focused on prevention and protecting themselves and their loved ones, through the Family Day holiday and into the spring."
Northern Health is asking the public to be mindful of the following:
- No social gatherings of any size; social interactions and gatherings are limited to those in your immediate household only
- Travel for essential purposes only; people should not travel to visit others, unless it is urgently required or essential
- Wearing a mask in indoor public spaces; masks are required for everyone in all indoor public settings, workplaces and retail stores
- Staying home if you are sick
3/3 ..., through the Family Day holiday and into the spring.”https://t.co/Ad2FhDbGgi pic.twitter.com/ZudB40v67n
— Northern Health (@Northern_Health) February 12, 2021
“Our long winter, and even longer battle against the COVID-19 pandemic, is wearing on us all,” Northern Health Board Chair Colleen Nyce adds.
“As Family Day and even Spring Break approach, we must resist the temptation to gather maintain our focus on COVID-19 prevention, for our own safety and to ease the strain on health care providers who are working incredibly hard through this challenging time.”
As of this publication, the region has 335 active cases with a total of 3,939 recorded cases to date.
The BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) says 10 people are hospitalized with COVID-19, seven of whom are currently in critical care.
A total of 3,488 have recovered.
