The B.C. government has quietly extended the closure order on gyms, dance studios, bars, and nightclubs until further notice, ahead of its weekly COVID-19 update tomorrow.
The orders have been in place since Dec. 23, and the Health Ministry says there there will be an update from Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, and Minister Adrian Dix when they speak at 1:30 p.m. in the afternoon.
It also restricts concerts, sporting events, and theatres to 50 per cent capacity, while groups at restaurants and pubs are also limited to six people per table with physical distancing or barriers in place.
All organized indoor social events and gatherings like weddings and parties of any size remain off limits under the order, which was set to expire at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, before the province removed that end time from the order Monday afternoon, meaning the restrictions are in place indefinitely.
“This is a pretty disappointing way for the government to communicate with British Columbians,” Interim BC Liberal Leader, Shirley Bond said. “There is no news release, media availability, nothing to answer the many questions the new orders raise. No notice, [they just] post the orders and we read about it on twitter.”
Health Minister Adrian Dix though defended the move on Twitter, saying this updated order was made to ensure that restrictions remained in place until Dr. Henry spoke about it on Tuesday.
“Dr. Henry repeatedly stated at Friday’s briefing that she would be up-dating everyone on Provincial Health Orders at the briefing on Tuesday,” Dix said.
Already two Kamloops gyms have been fined for violating the closure order, with Jobs Minister Ravi Kahlon has said businesses that have defied the orders will not be eligible for support under the province’s Closure Relief Grant.
On Friday, the Kamloops Chamber of Commerce called for more transparency on the rationale for the orders which they say appear to target some businesses more than others.
Executive Director Acacia Pangilinan told NL News that some gym owners are also frustrated by the underwhelming nature of the grant programs available to them.
“You know we really asked for the provincial government to come up with a plan so that these organizations can operate safely because these grant programs that they are introducing aren’t going to be enough to cover costs of many of these businesses,” she said.
This afternoon, Dr. Henry also directed all B.C. school boards to collect information on the vaccination status of their staff, something the BC Teacher’s Federation says it was not told about ahead of time.
“It is confusing as we have already agreed with BCPSEA to a vaccine mandate process and would like districts to implement those,” the BCTF said.
It is unclear if Henry and Dix plan to modify or add any other new restrictions when they speak at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 18.
The extension of the orders come as COVID-19 hospitalizations in B.C. have increased by 173 people since Friday to 819, with 99 people in intensive care, up by four.
In the past 72 hours, the province also reported 22 new deaths – four in Interior Health – for a provincial total of 2,490 people. There were also 5,625 new cases reported Monday, 1,345 of those in Interior Health.
Known active cases across the province are up by 42 people to 35,985, with 5,192 active cases in Interior Health, up by 276.
As of Monday, the province says 89.2 per cent (4,447,145) of eligible people over the age of five have gotten one dose of a COVID vaccine, while 83.4 per cent (4,155,929) have received their second dose.
About one-third of eligible British Columbians over the age of 12 (1,544,191) have gotten their third booster dose.
