New 'circuit-breaker' restrictions announced for Northern B.C. as COVID-19 surge continues
Health officials are implementing new COVID-19 restrictions for B.C.’s Northern Health authority, which include strict limits on gatherings and closure of bars and nightclubs.
The announcement came Thursday during a press conference with Health Minister Adrian Dix and provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.
The restrictions, which will be in place until Nov. 19, comes as the northern rural health region is seeing a spike in cases and high transmission, with hospitals being overwhelmed.
“Personal gatherings, both indoor and outdoor, will be restricted to fully vaccinated people only,” Henry said.
“If you are unvaccinated or have unvaccinated people in your households, then you need to stay with your household only.”
The restrictions apply to the entire Northern Health Region with the exception of the local health areas west of Kitwanga, including Terrace, Kitimat, Haida Gwaii, Prince Rupert, Stikine, Telegraph, Snow Country and the Nisga’a areas. That’s because transmission is lower in these areas due to high vaccination rates, Henry said.
Henry said she hopes the new, temporary measures will allow people to gather for the winter holidays.
“We are intending this circuit breaker to save lives, to lower the rates of transmission to allow our hospitalizations to stabilize and enable us all to come back together safely and to celebrate during the upcoming holiday season.”
Indoor gatherings will remain restricted to five people, and outdoor gatherings to 25, provided everyone is fully vaccinated. Organized events will be limited to 50 if indoors and 100 people if outdoors.
Bars and nightclubs will be closed completely, Henry said. Restaurants that offer full meal services may serve alcohol, but they will have to stop doing so at 10 p.m.
Henry said the timing of the restrictions is for “two incubation periods,” and she hopes the measure will relieve pressure on the health-care system.
Infection rates have been so high in Northern Health that local hospitals have been overwhelmed. So far 58 patients have been transferred to hospitals in other health authorities – an increase from 55 on Tuesday. The region only has 63 intensive care beds, 23 of which have been temporarily added during the pandemic.
In-person religious gatherings and worship services are also on hold, Henry said, however religious organizations may create spaces where people can go for solitary “quiet reflection.”
“It is no longer safe for us to have a mixing of people who are unvaccinated in these worship settings.”
Sports events with spectators, both indoor and outdoor, will be limited to 50 per cent capacity.
“Those are the things that we need to scale back now, so that we can stop this transmission, we can prevent those people who are not yet protected through vaccination from getting seriously ill,” she said.
Henry said the new Delta variant is spreading quickly.
“It’s way more transmissible, it spreads faster and with a small amount of exposure.”
“We are seeing it cause more severe illness in younger people,” Henry added.
Unvaccinated people in their teens, 20s, 30s and 40s who are not vaccinated, are ending up in hospital, she said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW Toxic forever chemicals in drinking water: Is Canada doing enough?
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
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.
How to avoid the trap of becoming 'house poor'
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Arrest made, manslaughter charge pending in 2022 death of Calgary toddler
Calgary police have arrested a man and a charge is pending in connection with the death of a toddler in 2022.
When new leaders took over in ancient Maya, they didn't just bury the former royals. They burned their bodies in public
New archeological investigations in Guatemala reveal that the ancient Maya people had a ritual of burning royal human remains as a public display of political regime change.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
Some customers steaming after McDonald's ends free hot drink sticker program
It took years for Vinnie Deluca to collect more than 400 cards worth of free McDonald's McCafe coffee, a collection that now has "zero value" after the company discontinued the program.
Prince William returns to public duties after wife Kate's cancer revelation
Prince William will return to public duties on Thursday for the first time since his wife Kate revealed she was undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer.