As Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announces 55 new cases of COVID-19, she also announced two new deaths, including the second one in the Interior Health Region. 

The victim was a man in his 70’s who died on April 27, after he was admitted to hospital earlier in the month.

“Today is the National Day of Mourning. This is a time to honour those who were killed, injured or made ill as a result of workplace injuries,” said Dr. Henry. “We remember friends and loved ones and we include a number of the people who are in our COVID-19 as well.”

“We are reminded that everybody we’ve lost and how important it is to have good health and good health and safety conditions in our work places, and that everyone deserves a safe workplace as well as a safe home and a safe community, and the work that we’re doing over the last few months reminds us of that.”

Most of today’s cases come from outbreaks at two poultry plants in the Lower Mainland – with 46 cases associated with Superior Poultry and another 34 cases related to United Poultry.

That said, Henry says it hasn’t changed the plan for easing restrictions.

“I still think we’re looking at mid to end May,” she added. “I still want to see things going down, but these outbreaks are known outbreaks.”

Henry says it’s working on picking up un-linked cases.

“Most people are linked. So we’re seeing people who are linked, they may be a household contact of somebody who worked in the poultry plant for example,” she added.

“We know we’ve had household contacts of people who have come back from Kearl Lake who retrospectively we say ‘aha that’s where they got it from’. So we can link people and trace people.”

All told, there are now 2,053 cases in B.C., with 168 in the Interior Health region. As well, there are 1,231 people who have fully recovered across the province. There are a total of 94 people in hospital with COVID-19 in B.C. with 37 in critical care or ICU.

There are five hospitalized cases in the Interior.