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Mar 27, 2021 1:48 AM -
British Columbia reported 908 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, the third-highest daily total in the province since the start of the pandemic.
Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix say in a joint statement there are 6,245 active cases and 294 individuals in hospital, of whom 81 are in intensive care.
The officials are also reporting three new deaths, for a total of 1,449 fatalities linked to the virus in B.C.
Some 140 of the new cases are variants of concern, for a total of 1,912, which are primarily the more transmissible strain first identified in the United Kingdom.
The number of cases reported on Friday was the highest daily total in 2021 and third only to the 948 cases announced on Nov. 14 and the 928 cases reported on Nov. 20.
Dr. Henry and Dix say while the province is in a different stage of the pandemic than it has been in before, with vaccines providing protection for some people, it is facing a sustained increase in clusters of new cases and outbreaks.
