VANCOUVER -- Another 366 cases of COVID-19 and four more deaths were recorded in British Columbia over the weekend.
Monday's update from provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry brought the number of cases identified locally since the start of the pandemic to 8,208, and the death toll to 227.
Two of the latest victims were from the Vancouver Coastal Health region, while the other two were from the Fraser Health and Northern Health regions.
"My condolences and my thoughts go out to the communities, to the families and to the care teams who looked after these people," Henry said.
The update covers three reporting periods: 121 cases were identified from Friday to Saturday, followed by 117 from Saturday to Sunday and 128 from Sunday to Monday.
Another 175 people recovered from COVID-19 over the weekend as well, but the latest infections still pushed the province's active caseload to 1,987 – up almost 200 from Friday.
Henry said there were 60 people in hospital as of Monday afternoon, 21 of whom were in critical care or intensive care units.
Officials also announced a new care home outbreak, at Yaletown House in Vancouver, where one staff member has tested positive for COVID-19. The outbreak at Queens Park was declared over, leaving the number of active outbreaks in health care facilities at 15.
Given the early election announced hours earlier, Health Minister Adrian Dix wasn't present at the briefing. Henry stressed that the province will continue giving daily updates throughout the election, including twice-weekly live events.
"For those who may be wondering, I would like to assure you that the B.C. COVID-19 response will continue uninterrupted," she said. "It is of course my priority."
Henry said she will also continue to advise the Ministry of Health on pandemic matters daily throughout the election.
Asked whether NDP Leader John Horgan had asked her advice around the timing of the election, Henry said she was not consulted.
"That is part of the political process that I am not part of, and so I would not expect to have been asked," she added.
Health officials have been working on voting guidelines and protocols with Elections BC since March, however, and Henry said they will be sharing details about their plans on Tuesday.