B.C.'s pandemic death toll reaches 2,200 with another 8 deaths in 24 hours

Vancouver -

Eight more people have died of COVID-19 in B.C. in the 24-hour period since the health ministry's last update.

A news release from the ministry Thursday said the death toll now stands at 2,200 since the start of the pandemic.

The ministry also added another 596 cases to its tally, bringing the total confirmed in B.C. to 207,716.

The latest data came after an update from the province on the projected spread of COVID-19. Earlier in the day, the provincial health officer presented modelling data showing transmission of the novel coronavirus is flat or declining across B.C., and suggesting a previous spike in cases among children is over. 

It's positive news, but B.C. is still dealing with 4,451 active cases as of Thursday's update, 438 of whom are being treated in hospital.

The province does not provide daily updates on how many hospitalized patients are vaccinated, but officials say the majority of those with infections and in hospital beds are not fully vaccinated, or have received no shots at all.

As of the latest update, there are 130 people being treated in intensive care units across the province.

Half of the just-confirmed cases were recorded in Fraser Health – unsurprisingly, as the health authority is the province's most populous. Three of the deaths were also in Fraser Health, while two were in Vancouver Coastal and the remaining three were in the Northern Health region.

Northern Health is still seeing the most cases per capita.

Adding two new health-care facility outbreaks to the list, B.C. is now dealing with a total of 37. 

As of Thursday, 90.1 per cent of eligible people in B.C. had received at least one of their two doses of COVID-19 vaccine, and 85.6 per cent have had both shots.