Dr. Bonnie Henry confirmed six new cases on Vancouver Island of COVID-19 and 40 new cases across B.C. (Province of British Columbia)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

COVID-19 SPREAD

Six new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Vancouver Island, entering ‘critical time’

Mar 19, 2020 | 3:15 PM

NANAIMO — The provincial health officer has confirmed six new cases of COVID-19 on Vancouver Island

The announcement from Dr. Bonnie Henry brings the total of confirmed cases of the virus to 22 in the Island Health region.

Overall in British Columbia, 40 new cases were confirmed on Thursday, March 19 for a total of 271 known cases with 17 patients currently in hospital.

Dr. Henry spoke on the continued importance of social distancing as a key way to fight the community transmission of COVID-19, especially in major centres.

“This is what’s going to protect us for the next few weeks, it’s going to protect ourselves, protect our families and protect our communities,” Dr. Henry said. “The importance cannot be minimized.”

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Since the outbreak in B.C., many retailers and restaurants have closed as a result of reduced business or government-mandated orders.

Major grocery store chains also announced reduced hours of operation to allow for re-stocking and cleaning, along with dedicated shopping times for seniors and those who are immunocompromised.

On Tuesday, March 17, the government announced the closure of all schools in the province following the two week spring break many schools are currently in.

“This is a really critical time for us, this is the time we need to build that firewall, we need to stop the transmission of this disease,” Dr. Henry said.

The province also announced an additional death in British Columbia, marking the 8th person in B.C. to die from the virus.

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