COVID-19 update: B.C. adds 89 cases as seven-day average continues to climb
British Columbia reported 89 cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, causing the province's rolling weekly average to climb for the sixth day in a row.
B.C. has recorded an average of 63 cases per day over the past week, up from 42 cases per day as of last Friday.
While infection numbers have inched upward since the government relaxed COVID-19 restrictions, they're still a fraction of the alarming highs recorded at the peak of the province's third wave in April, when the rolling average reached 1,130 per day.
Deaths related to the disease also remain very low. There were no coronavirus-related fatalities reported on Thursday, leaving the province's death toll at 1,763 and the seven-day average at 0.29 per day.
Back in December, B.C. was suffering an average of 19 coronavirus-related deaths per day.
COVID-19 hospitalizations have been decreasing as well, though not consistently. The number of patients battling the disease in hospital increased to 53 on Thursday, an increase of five from the day before. That includes 15 people in intensive care.
B.C. has administered a total of 6,361,627 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines, including enough first doses for 80 per cent of eligible residents age 12 and up.
Just under 57 per cent of those eligible have received both shots.
There are still two active coronavirus outbreaks in the province's health care system, including at the Holy Manor long-term care home in Maple Ridge.
Before that outbreak was announced on Monday, there had not been an outbreak a long-term care home or assisted living facility in more than a week.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
BREAKING Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Metro Vancouver mayors call for serial killer Robert Pickton to be denied parole
A dozen mayors from around Metro Vancouver say federal Attorney General and Justice Minister Arif Virani should deny parole for notorious B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, and reassess the parole and sentencing system for 'prolific offenders and mass murderers.'
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.