B.C. reports record 1,308 cases of COVID-19 as Omicron count more than doubles

The B.C. government announced 1,308 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, topping the previous single-day record set during the height of the province’s third wave.

The latest infections pushed the province’s seven-day average up to 855 cases per day, the highest it’s been since April.

Officials also revealed the number of confirmed Omicron cases has more than doubled since Friday, going to 756 from 302.

The update from the Ministry of Health followed hours after provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix announced another set of COVID-19 restrictions aimed at limiting transmission during the busy holiday season.

Henry warned that the Omicron variant is already causing an alarming spike in infections, particularly in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island, with evidence indicating it is more contagious and has a shorter incubation period than previous strains.

“It is inevitable now that most of us in the province will be exposed at some point,” Henry said. “How it affects us depends on our own actions and what we are doing.”

B.C.’s active case count also increased to 6,348 – a jump of about 900 from Monday – while the number of infectious COVID-19 patients in hospital ticked up 192, with 76 in intensive care.

Health officials have noted that hospitalizations are a lagging indicator, meaning trends tend to follow cases a number of days later. Increasing hospitalizations in other jurisdictions were a major factor in deciding to impose more restrictions this week, Henry said.

“I don’t need to say how fragile and how stretched our health-care system is,” she said. “And over this past weekend, it’s become clear that our best-case scenario about how Omicron might be different in terms of severity might be less and less likely.”

Quebec has seen COVID-19 hospitalizations surge from 268 to 415 over just nine days, amid skyrocketing case numbers that have repeatedly broken all-time records. Henry said B.C. is a week to 10 days behind that province in terms of Omicron’s spread.

So far, the only significant increase in hospitalizations has been among the unvaccinated, health officials said. B.C.’s seven-day average for deaths has also declined in recent weeks to about 2.5 per day. Only one coronavirus-related death was announced Tuesday.

The variant also appears to have significant immune evasion, Henry said, meaning it has an easier time re-infecting people who caught COVID-19 previously, as well as those who are fully immunized.

Henry noted there is still a “magnitude difference” between people who are unvaccinated and those who have some protection from immunization.

The unvaccinated no longer make up the majority of B.C.’s case numbers, though they are still over-represented. People without any vaccine protection accounted for 29 per cent of cases recorded from Dec. 13 to 19, despite making up less than 16 per cent of the population, including all the babies, toddlers and children who are too young to be vaccinated.

So far, 87.5 per cent of eligible B.C. residents age five and up have received at least one dose of vaccine, 82.7 per cent have received two and 16 per cent have received three.

The province’s latest restrictions force bars, nightclubs, gyms, fitness centres and dance studios to close, while banning organized indoor gatherings such as weddings and holiday parties, no matter the size.

Venues such as cinemas, theatres and sports arenas must operate at 50 per cent capacity, and restaurants are only allowed to seat a maximum of six people per table, while using the same physical distancing or barriers that were required earlier in the pandemic.

The new measures take effect Thursday, and are imposed on top of the restrictions implemented on Monday, including the new limit on personal gatherings.

That means B.C. residents can still invite over one other household or 10 guests this holiday season, provided everyone is vaccinated. Henry stressed that people should try to see the same friends and family members consistently until more is known about the Omicron variant.

“The principle needs to be to keep those numbers as small as possible,” she said.