B.C. church pauses in-person worship after 40 fall ill with suspected COVID-19 cases
A church in B.C.'s Fraser Valley has voluntarily suspended in-person worship and other events after dozens in the congregation became ill with suspected COVID-19 cases — including 11 who had to be hospitalized.
An online post from Clearbrook Mennonite Brethren Church in Abbotsford says as many as 40 people may have contracted the disease.
"Our congregation is experiencing a surge of medical concern," the post says. "Some have more mild symptoms and are isolated at home. Others are facing serious medical challenges. Eleven of our people are currently hospitalized with the effects of COVID."
In spite of the church's report on cases, the Fraser Health Authority has not listed the location on its public exposures page.
“I’ve had contact with Fraser Health by phone,” Scott Tolhurst, a pastor at the church, told CTV News. “They initiated some phone calls as they did contact tracing.”
Right now, there are no capacity limits or restrictions in B.C. on indoor and outdoor worship services.
Earlier this week, B.C. updated its provincial health order requiring mask use in public spaces, but it did not include churches and other places of worship.
According to the health order, those facilities are only considered indoor public spaces under the order when they are "used for secular purposes."
Even so, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said mask use is still strongly encouraged during faith services, particularly as the province enters flu season.
"We have seen transmission of COVID-19 in faith gatherings, and in some cases that has meant that those gatherings have had to go remote," Henry said on Monday.
According to Tolhurst, the church has not held an in-person service since Oct. 17 and has no plans to begin gathering in person again prior to Nov. 14 at the earliest.
“We were not mandated by Fraser Health to do so, but I had informed them by phone and they affirmed our response,” he said. “Those who had been sick, have isolated and will maintain the isolation until they get better.”
Tolhurst was unable to provide information on whether the people who are sick have been vaccinated or not — but did say the church promotes immunization.
“We present vaccinations as the wisest course to take in this pandemic,” Tolhurst said. “I’m looking forward to my booster shot. But I have no information about numerically or percentage-wise how many have or how many have not.”
CTV News has reached out to Fraser Health for comment on the cluster of cases and this article will be updated if the health authority responds.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cargo ship had engine maintenance in port before Baltimore bridge collapse, officials say
The cargo ship that lost power and crashed into a bridge in Baltimore underwent 'routine engine maintenance' in port beforehand, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
Families shocked after Niagara Falls hotel cancels bookings made year in advance of solar eclipse
After having the foresight to book their Niagara Falls hotel rooms more than a year in advance, several families planning to take in the solar eclipse next month were shocked to find out their reservations had been cancelled.
B.C. rescuers face 'high likelihood' of failure to reunite orphaned orca with pod
The race to reunite an orphaned orca calf that’s stuck in a shallow lagoon with a neighbouring pod has entered its fifth day, and a marine scientist says the clock is ticking.
Video shows police interrupting auto theft in progress outside Toronto home
New video footage obtained by CP24 shows the attempted theft of a vehicle in a North York driveway earlier this month that was ultimately interrupted by police.
Majority of Canadians believe in life after death: Angus Reid survey
A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has held steady for decades.
MyPillow, owned by U.S. election denier Mike Lindell, formally evicted from Minnesota warehouse
A court ordered the eviction Wednesday of MyPillow from a suburban Minneapolis warehouse that it formerly used.