COVID-19 update: B.C. adds 814 new cases, no deaths

Vancouver -

B.C. health officials announced 814 new cases of COVID-19 and no new deaths from the disease on Wednesday.

The latest update leaves B.C. with 5,550 active cases of the coronavirus. Of those, 261 people are hospitalized, and 129 of them are in intensive care units.

Both active cases and the rolling seven-day average for new cases increased slightly from Tuesday to Wednesday. There were 5,465 active cases on Tuesday, when the province provided its first update on the pandemic in four days because of the Labour Day long weekend.

The rolling average grew from 669 on Tuesday to 673 on Wednesday, after dropping over the long weekend.

Since the pandemic began, there have been 171,564 confirmed COVID-19 infections in B.C., and 1,842 people have died.

Most of the infections detected Wednesday were in the Interior Health and Fraser Health regions, which saw 272 and 241 new cases, respectively.

Vancouver Coastal Health added 135 cases, Island Health added 90 and Northern Health added 72, while four of those who tested positive normally reside outside Canada.

Interior Health has been the focal point of B.C.'s fourth wave of COVID-19 infections, with health officials blaming larger unvaccinated populations there and in Northern Health, as well as the highly infectious Delta variant, for the surge in cases since July.

Of the 4,691 infections recorded across B.C. between Aug. 31 and Sept. 6, 69.2 per cent were among people who are unvaccinated, according to the Ministry of Health.

Cases among fully vaccinated people accounted for 22.2 per cent of all cases during the period, while the remaining 8.6 per cent of cases were among partially vaccinated people.

On a per-capita basis, there were 30 cases per 100,000 fully vaccinated residents between Aug. 31 and Sept. 6, compared to 244.4 infections per 100,000 unvaccinated people.

Localized restrictions have been put in place in both Interior Health and Northern Health in response to the rising transmission.

Health officials also announced details of the province's vaccine passport system on Tuesday. Beginning on Sept. 13, a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine will be required to participate in certain non-essential activities, including dining at restaurants and ticketed events and performances. 

More than 85 per cent of B.C. residents ages 12 and older have received at least a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and 77.7 per cent in that age group have received both shots.