COVID-19

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Kent Institution outbreak grows to more than 60 COVID-19 cases

41 inmates have tested positive for COVID-19 in recent outbreak

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A woman tries to speak to her mother, through a window at Orchard Villa Care home, in Pickering, Ont. on Saturday, April 25, 2020. The expert spearheading new draft national standards for long-term care says they must strike a balance between residents’ safety and their quality of life. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

New Canadian care home standards to emphasize fact that they are homes, not wards

Consultations showed pandemic policies hurt mental and social well-being, balance called for

A woman tries to speak to her mother, through a window at Orchard Villa Care home, in Pickering, Ont. on Saturday, April 25, 2020. The expert spearheading new draft national standards for long-term care says they must strike a balance between residents’ safety and their quality of life. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
FILE - A chef cooks Chinese food on a rainy fall day as the restaurant is open for curb-side pickup during the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto on Monday, November 30, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Slim majority support government lockdowns, restrictions in response to Omicron

Growing number of Canadians are unhappy with how their governments are handling pandemic

FILE - A chef cooks Chinese food on a rainy fall day as the restaurant is open for curb-side pickup during the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto on Monday, November 30, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
People walk by a sign at a restaurant advising customers of Quebec’s COVID-19 vaccine passport in Montreal, Monday, Sept. 6, 2021. Quebec is considering expanding its vaccine passport system further, a move that some health and ethics experts say is justified because of the high number of COVID-19 patients in the province’s hospitals. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

Tightening rules for unvaccinated is justified as health system struggles: experts

Others: people rejecting COVID-19 vaccines out of ideology won’t be swayed by restrictions

People walk by a sign at a restaurant advising customers of Quebec’s COVID-19 vaccine passport in Montreal, Monday, Sept. 6, 2021. Quebec is considering expanding its vaccine passport system further, a move that some health and ethics experts say is justified because of the high number of COVID-19 patients in the province’s hospitals. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
A row of ambulances is seen outside a hospital in Montreal, on Monday, January 10, 2022. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Ottawa will do all it can to help provinces and territories cope with the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, as infections fuelled by the Omicron variant threaten to overwhelm health systems. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson

Trudeau says Canada will have enough COVID-19 vaccines as US issues travel advisory

Provinces and territories will receive a combined 140 million rapid tests this month

A row of ambulances is seen outside a hospital in Montreal, on Monday, January 10, 2022. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Ottawa will do all it can to help provinces and territories cope with the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, as infections fuelled by the Omicron variant threaten to overwhelm health systems. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson
Paramedics transfer a person from an ambulance into a hospital in Montreal, Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. The Health Department says data from the last 24 hours indicates a 140-jump in hospitalization from the previous day, for a total of 2,436. The province is also reporting 11,007 new cases of COVID-19. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

COVID hospitalizations nearing or reaching record highs in several provinces

Many provinces imposed a weeklong delay in the return to in-person schooling

Paramedics transfer a person from an ambulance into a hospital in Montreal, Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022. The Health Department says data from the last 24 hours indicates a 140-jump in hospitalization from the previous day, for a total of 2,436. The province is also reporting 11,007 new cases of COVID-19. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
Skiers on the Boomerang Chair at Fernie Alpine Resort. (Scott Tibballs / The Free Press)

High elevation, high numbers: B.C. resort towns report COVID spikes

Resort communities are at more risk, according to Dr. Karin Goodison of Interior Health

Skiers on the Boomerang Chair at Fernie Alpine Resort. (Scott Tibballs / The Free Press)
Signs say ‘Mental Health Matters,’ ‘Gyms are Essential,’ and ‘#FreeBC’ (Iron Energy Gym Instagram)

West Kelowna gym ordered to close and fined $2,300 for disobeying COVID restrictions

Interior Health was escorted by RCMP at Iron Energy Gym

Signs say ‘Mental Health Matters,’ ‘Gyms are Essential,’ and ‘#FreeBC’ (Iron Energy Gym Instagram)
Campbell River resident Maryanne Andrew is raising awareness of long COVID and the impact it has on people’s lives. Photo contributed

In for the long haul: B.C. woman says help available for post-COVID-19 sufferers

Medical advice, self-care and time to heal all key to the recovery process

Campbell River resident Maryanne Andrew is raising awareness of long COVID and the impact it has on people’s lives. Photo contributed
A bag of blood is shown at a clinic in Montreal on November 29, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz

Blood tests show waning immunity that scientists hope Omicron could counter

Canadian task force analyzing extent of immunity offered by Omicron

A bag of blood is shown at a clinic in Montreal on November 29, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz
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33 inmates, 18 employees infected in COVID-19 outbreak at Kent Institution

All employees, inmates equipped with masks, CSC says

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Penticton-based poet Shane Koyczan released his poem Tomorrow on YouTube speaking a message of hope for what 2022 could bring. (Shane Koyczan photo)

Famed Penticton poet Shane Koyczan offers a dose of hope for 2022

Shane Koyczan releases ‘Tomorrow’ on Youtube where we should ‘stockpile hope like toilet paper’

Penticton-based poet Shane Koyczan released his poem Tomorrow on YouTube speaking a message of hope for what 2022 could bring. (Shane Koyczan photo)
Cumulative cases of COVID-19 in B.C. from Jan. 1, 2020 to November 2021. (BCCDC/website)

Abbotsford has seen more than 13,000 COVID cases since beginning of pandemic

Worst period was in April 2021, when cases spiked to nearly 500 a week

Cumulative cases of COVID-19 in B.C. from Jan. 1, 2020 to November 2021. (BCCDC/website)
After a two-day hiatus, Pacific Coastal Airlines flights will resume on Jan. 4. (File photo)

Pacific Coastal Airlines temporarily suspends operations amid Omicron outbreak

Flights are set to resume Jan. 4

After a two-day hiatus, Pacific Coastal Airlines flights will resume on Jan. 4. (File photo)
18 employees of Kent Institution have recently tested positive for COVID-19. (File Photo)

18 employees, 2 inmates test positive for COVID-19 at Kent Institution

All employees, inmates equipped with masks, CSC says

18 employees of Kent Institution have recently tested positive for COVID-19. (File Photo)
(Manning Park Resort photo)

Manning Park Resort workers report at least 20 cases of COVID-19 among staff

But management says protocols are being followed and sick employees are taken out of workforce

(Manning Park Resort photo)

B.C. gym forced to close due to B.C. COVID mandate calls for essential service status

Gyms, fitness centres and bars were recently ordered to close under new Omicron-related measures

Undated Google Maps image of Fort Langley Seniors Community at 8838 Glover Road. The seniors home is one of three locations in the Fraser Valley seeing COVID outbreaks as of Wednesday, Dec. 29. (Google Maps)

COVID outbreaks hit seniors homes in Langley, Abbotsford, Chilliwack

Care home outbreaks had dwindled to almost nil before the Omicron wave

Undated Google Maps image of Fort Langley Seniors Community at 8838 Glover Road. The seniors home is one of three locations in the Fraser Valley seeing COVID outbreaks as of Wednesday, Dec. 29. (Google Maps)
Kelowna Courthouse. (Phil McLachlan-Capital News/FILE)

Prominent Kelowna anti-lockdown protester faces assault charges

David Lindsay faces two counts of assault related to an incident on August 19

Kelowna Courthouse. (Phil McLachlan-Capital News/FILE)
The BC School COVID Tracker website and Facebook page have nearly 60,000 followers, and has become a ‘go-to’ source for the latest information on COVID exposures within the BC School system. (Aman Parhar/Omineca Express)

B.C. COVID school tracker website continues to grow

Website authenticates all information before adding to database

The BC School COVID Tracker website and Facebook page have nearly 60,000 followers, and has become a ‘go-to’ source for the latest information on COVID exposures within the BC School system. (Aman Parhar/Omineca Express)