B.C. marks one-year anniversary of first confirmed case of COVID-19

Thursday marks one year since B.C.’s first confirmed case of COVID-19.

A man in his 40s tested positive on Jan. 28, 2020, after returning from Wuhan, China — the original epicentre of the virus that led to more than 100 million cases around the world and more than 2.1 million deaths.

More than 65,000 people in B.C. have been infected in that year, with 1,172 people dying from complications related to the disease.

This week, Premier John Horgan called on British Columbians to give a little bit more to stop the spread.

While he acknowledged most residents have done everything they can to fight COVID-19, he said Wednesday that people who are still breaking the rules need to stop.

“We have a long, long way to go, and I want British Columbians to reflect on how much they’ve sacrificed over the past over the past 12 months and ask you to dig down a little bit deeper — find that extra gear to get through the next number of weeks and months as we get our vaccine program up and running,” Horgan said.

1:53 Coronavirus: Pressure for B.C. to crackdown on non-essential travel in the province

British Columbia reported 485 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, along with four new deaths — the fewest in a 24-hour period in more than two months.

The province has administered 124,365 doses of the vaccine, of which 4,160 were second doses.