VANCOUVER —
Health officials in British Columbia announced 77 new cases of the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19 Friday, bringing the provincial total to 348 and raising Canada’s nationwide total across the 1,000 mark.
Of B.C.’s cases, 22 are currently in hospital, said provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry. Some 10 of those cases are in intensive care units, she said.
Additionally, some two dozen health care workers in B.C. have tested positive for COVID-19, Henry said.
One of those health care workers is at the Dufferin Care Centre in Coquitlam. Health officials announced the outbreak at that care home, the fourth one in Metro Vancouver to be hit by COVID-19, earlier in the day on Friday.
Henry dedicated a significant portion of her remarks Friday to the province’s health-care workers, sometimes speaking to them directly.
“I know how challenging it is,” she said. “It’s been a tremendous challenge for our health care sector.”
Henry said most of the health-care workers who have tested positive for the virus have had mild infections that have been managed at home. At the same time, lots of workers continue to provide care safely, without contracting the virus, she said.
“We know that hundreds of people have been safely cared for by our health-care worker teams here in Vancouver, here in B.C., here in Canada over the last few months,” Henry said. “We know that they’re safely cared for because of the dedication and the intense practice that we have in our health-care worker system.”
Over the past week, B.C.’s health officials have imposed dramatic new measures in an attempt to curb the spread of the virus, including banning gatherings of more than 50 people and closing all public schools, bars and clubs.
On Friday, Henry added to that list a requirement that all restaurants in the province cease operating with table service, transitioning to a takeout and delivery model only.
On top of that, Henry renewed her urgent calls for social distancing.
“This is not optional,” she said Thursday. “I want to be very clear that everybody needs to take these actions now. This is what’s going to protect us for the next few weeks – it’s going to protect ourselves, it’s going to protect our families.”
Asked whether the messaging around people going outside has been contradictory, with officials both encouraging people to stay home and suggesting that outdoor recreation is still acceptable, Henry reiterated the need for physical distance.
Congregating in groups on beaches in the City of Vancouver is not a good idea, she said. Likewise, playing basketball or other team sports that lead to close physical contact is not a good idea.
But leaving the house to ride a bicycle or go for a walk alone is acceptable, Henry said, noting that the key is to stay a safe distance away from others.
Of B.C.’s 348 cases of COVID-19, 200 are located in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, which extends from Richmond to Whistler. Ninety-five others are located in the Fraser Health region, which stretches from Burnaby to Hope. There are 30 cases in the Island Health region, which includes Vancouver Island, 19 in the Interior Health region, which includes Kelowna and Kamloops, and 4 in Northern Health, which covers the province’s north.
There have been nine deaths from the virus in B.C., all of them associated in some way with the Lynn Valley Care Centre in North Vancouver, which was the first seniors’ care home to have an identified outbreak.
In total, 36 residents and 18 health-care workers at Lynn Valley Care Centre have tested positive for the coronavirus.
A total of six people in B.C. have recovered from COVID-19, Henry said Friday.
With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Andrew Weichel and Alyse Kotyk
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
