Provincial health officials says uncertainty about new variants BA.2
Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 02 Mar, 2022 11:05 AM
British Columbia's provincial health officer says there are still some uncertainties about new variants, including B-A-point-2, with some cases present in B-C.
Doctor Bonnie Henry says the province is prepared for a potential uptick in COVID-19 cases during the next respiratory season.
She says the province will integrate wastewater surveillance testing into its regular surveillance of respiratory illness including influenza, and also include other pathogens to get a periodic snapshot of what else may be circulating in communities.
Henry says a decline in hospitalizations, immunity from vaccination and the availability of at-home rapid tests point the way forward to normal activities like high school graduations, which young people need to feel connected to others.
Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole will once again allow his caucus to have a free vote on a government bill seeking to ban conversion therapy. The so-called therapy is widely discredited as a harmful practice, aimed at trying to change an individual's sexual orientation or gender identity.
More than two dozen weather warnings remain in effect across southern and coastal British Columbia, complicating clean-up efforts from previous flooding and mudslides.
One person has died and another is in hospital in serious condition after fatal collision on 16th Ave between 176 Street and 184th Street in Surrey. Traffic in the area was affected.
Immigration Minister Sean Fraser delivered that message to the regional meeting in Guatemala that brought him face-to-face with the migration problems plaguing Canada's Western Hemisphere neigbourhood.
In Abbotsford, where a burst dike caused extensive flooding, he said officials have indicated they're confident in the repairs, temporary dams and sandbagging efforts. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said the storm, which was expected to hit Tuesday and last into Wednesday, could be the most intense yet for the central coast.
The RCMP says in a statement that experienced officers with the new Surrey Police Service began orientation Monday, and each municipal officer would be paired with a Mountie for a few shifts before heading out to respond to calls in RCMP-branded vehicles.
