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New COVID cases decline in Smithers

For a third week the number of cases in Smithers has gone down with 56 between Sept. 26 and Oct. 2
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Northwest B.C. had a comparatively lower per capita daily rate of new COVID-19 cases compared to most of the north and central parts of the province between Sept. 26 and Oct. 2, 2021. (British Columbia Centre for Disease Control)

New COVID-19 cases in the Smithers Local Health Area (LHA) continued to decline in the lastest reporting period.

From Sept. 26 to Oct. 2, the LHA (Houston to Witset) recorded 56 new cases, down from 68 the previous week and from a high of 117 three weeks ago.

The average daily rate remains comparatively high among the rest of the Northwest Health Service Delivery Area (NHSA) at 38 cases per 100,000 population.

The number of weekly cases does not necessarily correlate perfectly with the daily average due to slightly different reporting periods for the data.

All the other LHAs in the Northwest recorded new cases between Sept. 26 to Oct. 2, northwest, but their rate per 100,000 population were lower than most of the northern portion of the province.

Terrace recorded 24 new cases, one case more than the previous week (Sept. 19 to Sept. 25). Kitimat saw a drop from 17 to 12 new cases and Price Rupert remained level at five new cases, according to the latest British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) data.

During the week of Sept. 26 to Oct. 2, Kitimat’s daily rate was 23, Terrace’s was 16, Prince Rupert’s 7, Haida Gwaii’s 0 and Nisga’a was 8.

The BCCDC figures for the Nass Valley may differ from the Nisga’a Valley Health Authority’s statistics because of differences in the way those organizations report cases.

There were eight new cases in the combined LHA’s of Snow Country - Stikine - Telegraph Creek due to an outbreak in Tahltan communities.

See the two-dose list below, per cent change from the previous week is indicated by brackets:

Kitimat — 84 per cent (+2)

Haida Gwaii — 81 per cent (+0)

Prince Rupert — 77 per cent (+1)

Nisga’a — 77 per cent (+1)

Upper Skeena — 71 per cent (+1)

Snow Country - Stikine - Telegraph Creek — 75 per cent (+1)

Terrace — 74 per cent (+1)

Smithers — 66 per cent (+1)

Province-wide, the vaccination rate for people aged 12 and older with second doses reached 81.9 per cent on Oct. 6.

Health Minister Adrian Dix said on Oct. 4 that 32 seriously ill people have been moved out of Northern Health hospitals to Vancouver Island, Fraser and Vancouver Coastal. Of those patients, 26 are COVID-19 cases and none were fully vaccinated, he said.

From Sept. 24-30, people not fully vaccinated accounted for 71.5% of cases and from Sept. 17-30, they accounted for 81.4% of hospitalizations. There were 383 people hospitalized with COVID-29 from Sept. 17-30, with vaccine status as follows:

• Not vaccinated: 272 (71.0%)

• Partially vaccinated: 40 (10.4%)

• Fully vaccinated: 71 (18.5%)

Northern Health is booking vaccine appointments and offering drop-in clinics for first and second doses. People in Smithers can walk-in or book an appointment for first or second shots Oct. 12, 14, 19 and 21 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Healthy Living Centre on Main Street. The clinic will also give booster (third shots) to eligible patients.

People in Houston can get their first or second shots at Coast Mountain College Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and Wednesdays from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. throughout October.

For more information or to book an appointment, visit the Northern Health website or call 1-833-838-2323.

—With files from Tom Fletcher, Ben Bogstie and Binny Paul