COVID-19: Three more deaths, 497 new cases reported in B.C.

British Columbia reported 497 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, along with three additional deaths.

The update brought B.C.’s seven-day rolling average for new cases to 414, and left the province with 3,420 active cases.

Of the new cases, 138 were in the Fraser Health region, 64 were in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 146 were in the Interior Health region, 78 were in the Northern Health region and 71 were in the Island Health region.

Health officials said there were 358 active cases in hospital, including 109 in critical or intensive care.

About 90.8 per cent of eligible British Columbians have had at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine, and 87 per cent have had two doses.

The province said people who weren’t fully vaccinated accounted for 59.5 per cent of new cases over the past week and 70.4 per cent of hospitalizations over the past two weeks.

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Earlier Friday, the federal government approved Pfizer’s pediatric COVID-19 vaccine for children aged five to 11 years old.

Officials in British Columbia said the province was preparing to begin delivering shots on the week of Nov. 29.

There are an estimated 360,000 B.C. children in the new age bracket, about 21 per cent of whom have been registered for vaccination.

Since the start of the pandemic, B.C. has reported 214,641 total cases, while 2,293 people have died.