The number of COVID-19 cases in British Columbia has crossed the 3,000 mark, with 18 new test positive cases announced by health officials today.

It brings B.C.’s total to 3,008 cases of which 203 are in the Interior Health Authority with no change in the IHA numbers from yesterday’s update.

However, health officials say another three people have died of the virus in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, for a total of 186 deaths.

“Public alerts and the temporary closure of businesses are some of the ways public heath teams are working to effectively manage COVID-19 in our communities,” said Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix in a statement.

“What each of us can do to support contact tracing activities is to complete our own personal risk assessment when deciding where to go and who to see.”

While there are no new outbreaks, people are being warned about an exposure event at the No. 5 Orange nightclub in Vancouver that happened on July 1.

“If you have been at a location with a community exposure event, monitor yourself for symptoms, limit your contact with others and contact 811 to arrange for testing if any symptoms develop,” Henry added.

“As we have seen in many other locations around the world, one slip can quickly cause a surge in new cases. We have also seen here in B.C. that our foundational rules for safe social interactions help to protect all of us.

There are 162 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, of which 17 people are in hospital, three in intensive care. Further, 2,660 people who tested positive have recovered.