Only 14 flights with COVID-19 on board passed through B.C. airports last week
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control has added four more flights to its list of COVID-19 exposures, bringing the total number of notifications for the week to just 14.
That's the lowest weekly total B.C. has seen since CTV News Vancouver began tracking earlier this year.
After adding 10 flights to the list between Sunday and Wednesday, the centre added two flights on Thursday and two more on Friday.
The latest additions to the list either took off from or landed at a B.C. airport between June 6 and June 8. Details of the flights added follow.
- June 6: American Airlines flight 1415 from Dallas to Vancouver (rows not reported)
- June 6: Swoop flight 164 from Abbotsford to Winnipeg (rows 18 to 24)
- June 7: American Airlines flight 1415 from Dallas to Vancouver (rows 28 to 34)
- June 8: WestJet flight 119 from Calgary to Vancouver (rows one to four)
Anyone who was on any of the listed flights should self-monitor for symptoms of COVID-19, seeking testing and self-isolating if any develop, according to the BCCDC.
Passengers who were seated in the rows listed are considered to be at greater risk because of their proximity to a confirmed case of the coronavirus.
Studies have shown that the risk of contracting COVID-19 on an airplane is low, though there have been some examples of it happening.
The number of flights with COVID-19 cases on board passing through B.C. airports has declined significantly alongside caseloads since the peak of the pandemic's third wave in April.
B.C. is scheduled to end restrictions on non-essential travel within the province when it moves to Step 2 of its reopening plan, a move widely anticipated to happen on Tuesday.
Health officials have been recommending against non-essential travel within Canada throughout the pandemic, but that recommendation, too, is scheduled to end. B.C. residents will no longer be discouraged from domestic travel for recreational purposes when the province enters Step 3 of its plan, a change that will happen on July 1 at the earliest.
Last week, the federal government announced that it would be changing its rules for international travel as early as July, removing the 14-day quarantine requirement for fully vaccinated Canadians returning from abroad.
International tourists - even fully vaccinated ones - would not be allowed to skip the quarantine, at least during the first phase over the federal government's gradual easing of border restrictions.
Tourism-reliant businesses in B.C. have criticized the move, saying business could be even worse this summer than it was in 2020 if Canadians are able to travel abroad but international visitors aren't allowed to come.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. tenants evicted for landlord's use after refusing large rent increase to take over neighbouring suite
Ashley Dickey and her mother rented part of the same Coquitlam duplex in three different decades under three different landlords.
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
Body of Quebec man who died in Cuba found in Russia, family confirms
A Montreal-area family confirmed to CTV News that the body of their loved one who died while on vacation in Cuba is being repatriated to Canada after it was mistakenly sent to Russia.
Expert warns of food consumption habits amid rising prices
A new survey by Dalhousie University's Agri-Food Analytics Lab asked Canadians about their food consumption habits amid rising prices.
Saskatchewan isn't remitting the carbon tax on home heating. Why isn't my province following suit?
After Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government would still send Canada Carbon Rebate cheques to Saskatchewan residents, despite Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe's decision to stop collecting the carbon tax on natural gas or home heating, questions were raised about whether other provinces would follow suit. CTV News reached out across the country and here's what we found out.
Montreal actress calls Weinstein ruling 'discouraging' but not surprising
A Montreal actress, who has previously detailed incidents she had with disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, says a New York Court of Appeals decision overturning his 2020 rape conviction is 'discouraging' but not surprising.
RCMP officers had no legal authority to enter man's home, make arrest: B.C. court
A B.C. man has been found not guilty of assaulting two RCMP officers – with the court finding he was resisting an "unlawful entry and arrest" in his home before he was tasered, taken down and hauled away in handcuffs.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.