Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C. s Provincial Health Officer. / Flickr/Province of B.C.
The curve is trending in the right direction, but B.C. s COVID-19 death toll remains concerning for health officials.
Today (Jan. 18), Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry reported 31 people that died from the virus since Friday (Jan. 15), four of which were in the north, rising the regional death toll to 52 since the pandemic began last year.
Across B.C., 1,078 people have succumbed to COVID-19 and there have been 61,447 infections since January 2020 after 1,330 more positive tests came forward over the weekend.
Northern Health recorded 166 new cases for a new regional total of 2,911 since March last year.
Both schools had previous exposure events on Dec. 1-2. The district is working with Northern Health and the Medical Health Officer and are following their guidance, a statement posted to School District 57 s website says. Any individual deemed to be at risk of exposure would be contacted directly by Northern Health. Please be reassured that our schools will continue to implement the strict protocols and procedures we have in place so that children can continue to attend school as safely as possible. The safety and well-being of our students, families, and staff remains our highest priority. In a letter to parents written on Dec. 10, following the report of the school s first exposure, St. Mary s Catholic School principal Jenny Schroeder said the independent Catholic school puts the safety of students and their families first.