New Westminster may be among the most vaccinated communities in B.C., but that isn't stopping its COVID-19 case counts from climbing.
New West saw 66 new cases of COVID-19 between Aug. 29 and Sept. 4, according to the latest B.C. Centre for Disease Control data. That's a jump from 35 the previous week and 38 the week before that – and a significant jump from the city's lowest week, July 18 to 24, when one single case was recorded. New West's weekly numbers haven't been this high since May.
The daily case rate now stands at 8 cases per 100,000 people (for the week of Aug. 31 to Sept. 6), up from 6/100,000 in the two previous weeks.
COVID-19 test positivity is now at 6% for publicly funded tests.
The numbers come on the heels of the news that New Westminster is among the leaders in B.C. for vaccination: as of Sept. 7, 82% of New West residents (aged 12 and up) have had both doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. That puts the city among the top 10 local health areas in B.C. (out of the 87 in the province).
New Westminster has nearly cracked the 90% mark for single doses, as 89% of residents in all eligible age groups (12+, 18+ and 50+) have now received at least one dose.
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