21 deaths included in latest B.C. COVID-19 update, highest single-day total in over a year
Twenty-one more COVID-19 related deaths were reported in B.C. on Wednesday, the highest single-day total the province has added to its death toll since December 2020.
The 21 deaths reported Wednesday come after just one was reported on Tuesday, but still push the province's rolling seven-day average for daily deaths to 10. The last time the rolling average was that high was in January 2021.
The Ministry of Health provided the latest numbers in a written statement Wednesday afternoon.
There are 949 test-positive COVID-19 patients in B.C. hospitals, a total that includes both those whose illness is severe enough to require hospitalization and those who test positive incidentally while admitted to hospital for other reasons.
There are 136 COVID-19 patients in intensive care units across the province.
The deaths reported Wednesday were spread across three health authorities, with 10 reported in Fraser Health, six in Vancouver Coastal Health and five in Island Health.
Over the course of the pandemic, many of the deaths in B.C. have been among residents of long-term care homes. Deaths associated with care home outbreaks during the Omicron wave have so far been significantly lower than during previous waves, though the latest data available only covers deaths through Jan. 18.
Wednesday's update included five new COVID-19 outbreaks in health-care facilities, including four in long-term care homes. Seven other outbreaks have been declared over, leaving B.C. with 61 active outbreaks in its health-care system.
The Health Ministry does not release the vaccination status of people who die from COVID-19 complications on a daily basis.
Data from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control shows that, between Dec. 25 and Jan. 21, there were approximately 10.9 deaths per 100,000 unvaccinated B.C. residents, compared to 2.6 deaths per 100,000 residents with at least two doses of vaccine.
As of Wednesday, 89.7 per cent of eligible people ages five and older in B.C. had received at least a first dose of vaccine, and 83.6 per cent had received two shots.
Booster doses have been administered to 45.1 per cent of adults, or 42.2 per cent of people ages 12 and older.
Wednesday's update also included 2,086 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19, but that figure is no longer considered representative of the true spread of the coronavirus in B.C., because the province has stopped testing for it in most situations.
On Tuesday, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said B.C. is seeing "a gradual decline" in case rates and "a levelling off" of test positivity. But, she warned, hospitalizations remain near their highest point of the pandemic, and certain groups of people - particularly the elderly and immunocompromised - remain at greater risk of serious illness due to Omicron.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Attempt to have murder charge quashed against alleged serial killer dismissed by judge
A motion filed by the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg to have one of those murder charges quashed has been dismissed by the judge – weeks before the start of his trial.
Government proposes new policy for federally regulated employees to disconnect from work
In their 2024 budget, the federal government wants to amend the Canada Labour Code, so employers in federally regulated sectors will eliminate work-related communication with employees outside of scheduled hours. If implemented, this would affect roughly 500,000 employees across the country.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.