As the province speeds up its vaccination rollout, we can’t seem to put the brakes on the third wave of the pandemic.
The province reported 3,289 new cases of COVID-19 from Friday to Monday.
That’s nearly 1,100 new ones a day over the three-day reporting period.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Adrian Dix says B.C. is inching towards a grim milestone when it comes to people hospitalized by the virus.
“Three-hundred-sixty-eight people in hospital today,” Dix said Monday. “That’s not a record but it is getting close to a record in B.C. One-hundred-twenty-one people in critical care.”
Of the new cases 167 were in the Island Health region, and 740 were in Vancouver Coastal Health, which includes Powell River.
There were also 18 new deaths over the weekend.
Provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, said the COVID tide is not subsiding.
“This is, I don’t need to say, our third wave and knowing this, we need to chart our best path forward to manage this wave in British Columbia.”
Dr. Henry says about 50 percent of cases province-wide now involve a variant of concern, primarily B.1.1.7.
