There have been four COVID-19 cases positively tested in Cranbrook this year, and one in Kimberley, according to newly-released data released by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control. There have been seven in the Fernie area, and six in the Windermere area.
However, there are some caveats to that information, which was released on a map of the province breaking down the cumulative case numbers from Jan - July 2020 in specific regions.
The data includes the number of COVID-19 cases broken down by Local Health Areas as well as the case rate per 100,000. However, the BC CDC says the specific case counts are mapped by community of residence and may not represent the location of exposure.
Additionally, not all COVID-19 infected individuals are tested and reported, meaning the virus may be circulating undetected in the community.
Health Minister Adrian Dix and Dr. Bonnie Henry, the Provincial Health Officer, released the map during a COVID-19 briefing on Thursday, as a way to illustrate its spread across the province.
“Today, we have provided the latest local health area map of COVID-19 cases,” reads part of a joint statement released by Dix and Henry. “The map will be updated each month and available on the BCCDC website. What the map tells us is that virtually every part of our province has been touched by the virus – communities large and small.
“Despite the spread of COVID-19, we must continue to find the balance of restarting our activities once again, while protecting our most vulnerable by doing our best to keep ourselves and those we care about safe.”
On Thursday, the province announced that seven Teck contractors working on a water treatment plant at the Fording River operations tested positive for COVID-19, according to a news release from Teck.
Six of those contractors are from Alberta, and one is from Vancouver Island. Four were staying at the employee lodge in Elkford, while three were residing in private accommodations.
The Lower mainland has the highest concentration of COVID-19 cases, with Surrey at 521 and Abbotsford at 454.
Since the beginning of the year, Interior Health has recorded a total of 429 cases and has 16 active cases as of Aug. 27. Of the total case count, 34 have been hospitalized, and two deaths have been reported.