VANCOUVER

Interior Health declares COVID-19 outbreak at Kelowna church

Ian Holliday CTVNewsVancouver.ca Journalist

Published Saturday, September 26, 2020 1:07PM PDT Last Updated Saturday, September 26, 2020 2:09PM PDT

This undated electron microscope image made available by the U.S. National Institutes of Health in February 2020 shows the Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Also known as 2019-nCoV, the virus causes COVID-19. The sample was isolated from a patient in the U.S. (NIAID-RML via AP)

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VANCOUVER -- Health officials in British Columbia's Interior have declared an outbreak of COVID-19 at a church in Kelowna.

Interior Health says four cases of COVID-19 have been connected to the 10:30 a.m. service at Calvary Chapel Kelowna's Ann Rauser Hall on Sept. 13. The three latest cases were identified on Friday, Sept. 25 and Saturday, Sept. 26, the health authority says.

Anyone who was in the building at 2870 Benvoulin Rd. during the Sept. 13 service is asked to self-isolate until the end of the day this Sunday, Sept. 27, Interior Health says. The health authority also asks anyone who displays symptoms of the coronavirus to seek testing.

Likewise, anyone who attended the church's morning televised service, which was hosted in the library on Sept. 13, should self-monitor for symptoms and seek testing in any develop, according to Interior Health. Those who were in the library for the televised service, rather than at the live service, are not required to self-isolate.

"We want to thank the church community for the cooperation being shown as we work to limit this exposure," Interior Health said in a news release Saturday. "We are aware that physical distancing and other safety precautions were in place, which is important to stop the spread of COVID-19."

Those seeking testing for COVID-19 should call their primary care provider or the closest community testing and assessment centre, Interior Health says. More information on testing in the region can be found on the Interior Health website.