As health officials mark seven months of COVID-19 briefings in the province today, the health minister wants people to keep living their lives while being mindful of the safety guidelines in place.
“Head to a park or a beach and be with those in our bubbles. Walk our neighbourhoods and see our neighbours at a safe distance. Call or do a video connection with friends or family we have not seen or who can’t get out to enjoy the things that many of us take for granted,” Adrian Dix said.
He admits seven months is a long time for people to stay committed in the fight against the coronavirus.
“The activities we do, the outings we can take and the connections we can safely make that remind us of what we have to do in our lives, of who we have in our lives, and how we are renewed and restored when we strengthen these connections,” he added.
On January 28, Dix and Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry announced the first case of COVID-19 in the province – a man in his forties in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, who was in Wuhan and developed symptoms after returning to Canada.
Health officials reported a new one day record for COVID-19 cases today with 124, for a total of 5,496 cases of the virus, including 433 in the Interior Health Authority. Active cases have more than tripled in August from 278 on July 31 to 974 today.
New regional data released this week shows that as of the end of July, there have been just 53 cases of COVID-19 in the Kamloops area – which includes a slightly larger geographical area like Sun Peaks, Barriere, Chase, and Logan Lake.
While Dix previously told NL News there is a possibility the province may slow down reopening the economy if the case count keeps increasing, he is confident that British Columbians will recommit to the fight and help flatten the COVID-19 curve once again.
“Do we continue to fight in our B.C. pandemic response, it is my job to say yes. It’s my experience that we can and we do, and its my belief that we will,” he added.
“And to do that we need to make a commitment to ourselves to make sure we are renewing our spirit to make sure we are restoring our energy, to make sure we are up to the fight.”
