B.C. reports 267 new COVID-19 cases over three days, along with one additional death

B.C. health officials reported 267 new cases of COVID-19 over the past three days, along with one death.

There were 94 cases from Friday to Saturday while 79 cases were reported from Saturday to Sunday, and 94 from Sunday to Monday.

More than half of the new cases were in the Interior Health region, which reported 155 infections over 72 hours. Of the remaining cases, 41 were in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 48 were in the Fraser Health, 18 were in Island Health, and five were in Northern Health.

The seven-day rolling average of new cases is 89, up from 73 on Friday.

2:09 B.C. sees uptick in new COVID-19 cases

The number of people in hospital with COVID-19 dropped by three to 43, the lowest total since Sept. 10. The number of patients in intensive care remains unchanged at 17.

There has been a total of 149,109 COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic, 695 of which are active.

The one new death, which was in the Northern Health region, brings the province’s COVID-19 death toll to 1,768.

During its last update on Friday, the province reported 112 new cases, the first time new cases have topped 100 since June 18. The province also reported four deaths on Friday.

2:03 What to do with the vaccine holdouts?

A total of 80.6 per cent of people aged 12 and older have received a first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, the province reported, while 61.3 per cent have received two doses.

The province said Monday that a provincial health officer’s order has been issued to all B.C. mink-farm operators after two mink tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 in humans, on a farm under quarantine after it had mink test positive back in May.

The order, which goes into effect immediately, places a moratorium on any new mink farms in B.C. and caps existing mink farms at their current numbers.

The province said it is conducting a review of its policies and regulations around fur farms.

— With files from Simon Little and Richard Zussman