Life in Nanaimo and across much of the world changed in March as the coronavirus spread into a worldwide pandemic, shutting down many aspects of normal, everyday life. (The Canadian Press)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

2020 in review

Top Stories of 2020: What the COVID happened this year?

Dec 22, 2020 | 4:44 PM

NANAIMO — COVID-19 changed society in ways no one could have expected in 2020.

In the span of two weeks, the pandemic which had severely affected countries like China, Spain and Italy, arrived on Canadian shores.

Nanaimo and the central Island region went through a rollercoaster year, starting as a relative observer to high case counts in the Lower Mainland, to being the epicentre of Island Health’s case spike throughout November.

Here are some of the major milestones and news items from the Island’s COVID-19 response.

First Case

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The first hint of something big on the horizon came in early March when school district 68 cancelled planned trips for students overseas as a precaution.

COVID-19 officially hit Island shores on Mar. 11, two and a half months after the first B.C. case was detected in Vancouver.

Life-altering closures

On Mar. 16, the province issued sweeping orders mandating all but essential services shut down. Restaurants, retail and movie theatres closed, sports shuttered, city recreation facilities shut their doors and people were told to stay home unless absolutely necessary.

The City of Parksville were the first jurisdiction in the region to close public playgrounds on Mar. 20, seen as a high touch point for kids and families and a potential source of transmission.

Nanaimo announced a similar decision in a late-night press release on Mar. 21.

In the space of nine days, Vancouver Island went from a casual onlooker to COVID-19 to being in the trenches with the rest of British Columbia.

Societal shutdown & event cancellations

With immense amounts of uncertainty, event organizers were forced to pull the plug on their summer staples.

Nanaimo’s Dragon Boat Festival was the first on Mar. 21, followed by Silly Boats on Apr. 2, Parksville Sand Sculpture Festival on Apr. 16 and Nanaimo’s downtown night market on Apr. 22. In May, the VIEX adjusted their festival to a virtual event.

Countless other smaller events either postponed or outright cancelled their plans.

Be kind, be calm & be safe

Front line workers in healthcare and essential services became the focus of nightly tributes in March, with people banging pots and pans from their homes at 7 p.m. each night.

Nanaimo’s first responders arrived en mass to NRGH on Mar. 30 to salute staff at the hospital for their work battling the virus. Three weeks later, over 100 classic cars toured through Nanaimo and lapped the hospital to show their appreciation.

Countless home windows across the region were decorated with hearts as part of a global campaign to show appreciation to essential workers.

COVID-19 free in Island Health

Island Health reported no new COVID-19 cases from May 8 through Jun. 22, a stretch which also saw the Island go at least 16 days without a single, active COVID-19 case.

On Jun. 4, a patient who had spent at least a month in hospital was discharged, clearing the Island of any active cases.

A single case reported on June 22 broke the streak. However, Island Health added just six cases between June 22 and July 17 and just 47 cases through June, July and August.

The waiting game & gradual re-opening

As case numbers eased and B.C.’s curve bent downward, the province eased their restrictions as part of a restart plan. Retail stores re-opened under heavy precautions on May 19, eager to make up two months of lost revenue.

At the same time restaurants were allowed to resume service through take out or delivery options only, but it would be another five weeks before they could welcome customers back inside.

Sport court and recreation facilities began to open through the region in June, movie theatres welcomed guests back with old classics beginning on Canada Day and as time progressed, restrictions eased.

Masks and mis-information

Masks became a more essential part of daily life, with BC Ferries mandating them to be worn on board vessels in mid-June and more public spaces requiring them through the summer.

Conspiracies surround the origins of the pandemic, restrictions being a form of government oppression and people fighting back against social gathering restrictions became more common place.

A group of around 150 people gathered in Coombs reportedly holding an anti-mask rally inside a small hall, while smaller demonstrations against widely-accepted medical advice were spotted in the region.

Return to School

Cases in B.C. come September were creeping back up as restrictions continued to ease. It was an acceptable tradeoff from public health to take a further step towards normal life while limiting transmission of the virus.

After a trial run in June where around 35 per cent of students attended class, a variety of learning opportunities were in place for a full time return beginning Sep. 14.

Around 92 per cent of students in Nanaimo and Ladysmith returned to class in the first week, well above what was expected by the district. The increased enrollment forced shuffling of cohorts and caused frustration for some parents who saw their children moved from class to class.

School clusters and hospital outbreak in Nanaimo

Despite a smooth return to class, Nanaimo’s school system was thrown into chaos in early November.

Beginning Nov. 7, district officials reported 22 exposure events across three secondary and two elementary schools in Nanaimo and Ladysmith. Randerson Ridge Elementary, Dover Bay and John Barsby Secondary schools were considered ‘clusters,’ featuring multiple cases.

Frank J. Ney elementary and Ladysmith Secondary listed single exposure events. Wellington Nananimo Secondary school and Forest Park elementary reported single exposures in early December.

NRGH reported an outbreak on Nov. 11 when five members of a transitional care unit tested positive. No other areas of the hospital were affected and remained at full operation during the outbreak. Island Health declared the outbreak over on Nov. 21 after no further cases were found.

The Second Wave

Health officials in B.C. long predicted a second wave of COVID-19 would arrive in the fall and winter months. The virus had been proven to spread in close-proximity, indoor settings which became more common as the weather cooled.

A rolling, three-day average of cases in Island Health, which had sat in single digits for a majority of the time since late March, suddenly shot up in November to crest at 67 on Nov. 16 and 17.

Daily additions to Island Health’s case count were routinely in double digits. Weekend updates, accounting for three reporting periods, ranged from 41 on Nov. 16 to a record of 58 on Nov. 30.

Provincially, cases soared courtesy outbreaks and high transmission in the Vancouver Coastal and Fraser Health authorities. The rolling three-day average of new cases shot from 119 in late September to 830 by the end of November.

Additional Restrictions

Public health locked down the Lower Mainland on Nov. 7 by limiting travel and banning in-home gatherings. Gyms, dance studios and other high-intensity indoor spaces were also ordered to close.

The province expanded restrictions to all health authorities on Nov. 19 while also mandating masks in all indoor public spaces.

The restrictions were originally put in place through Dec. 7, however were further extended past the holiday season meaning travel and indoor gatherings synonomous with the holidays were banned.

The vaccine

B.C. began its COVID-19 vaccination program with the approved Pfizer vaccine on Dec. 15 with the goal of immediately providing 3,900 doses of the shot to front line healthcare workers in the Lower Mainland.

Further shots of the Pfizer product in combination with other soon-to-be approved vaccines will increase the province’s efforts in early 2021. The first shots within Island Health were given to Island Health staff on Dec. 22.

Follow-up rounds of immunization will be targeted at seniors, long term care residents, those who are homeless or underhoused and people in remote, Indigenous communities.

What’s to come in 2021?

The curve for Island Health and B.C. flattened somewhat in the first weeks of December.

Case counts in B.C. dropped from between 800 and 1000 to between 500 and 700, while Island Health recorded single-digit increases routinely through mid-December.

The current level of restrictions affecting home gatherings and travel are in place until at least Jan. 8.

Public health estimates 400,000 people will be immunized against COVID-19 by the end of March with Easter seen as a potential tipping point in garnering a measure of herd immunity.

Island Health has remained relatively insulated from COVID-19 compared to other parts of B.C. and Canada, accounting for around two per cent of total cases in the province despite Island Health representing around 17 per cent of the province’s population.

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