B.C. reports six deaths, 317 new cases of COVID-19

British Columbia has had 317 additional cases of COVID-19 and six more people have died since Friday.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says 1,595 cases are active in the province, including 58 people who are hospitalized.

Nearly half of the active cases are people connected to long-term care and assisted-living facilities, including 471 residents and 320 staff.

Dr. Henry says 5,446 people have recovered after testing positive for the illness and more than 3,000 people are being actively monitored for symptoms.

The latest case numbers come as students head back to classrooms and smoke from wildfires in the United States blankets much of southern B.C., prompting air quality advisories.

Dr. Henry says it can be challenging to determine whether symptoms of respiratory illness are related to air quality or the novel coronavirus and she is urging people to visit the website for the B.C. Centre for Disease Control for more information.