Fifty.
That's how many people in New Westminster contracted COVID-19 last week, according to the latest weekly data from the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.
The cases, recorded between Sept. 5 and 11, were a drop from 66 in the previous reporting period.
But the level of local cases is still higher than the city had seen leading up to last week. August saw New Westminster record weekly counts in the 30s, following a record low of one single case in July (in the week of July 18 to 24).
The city's weekly case counts peaked at 151 in April, as the third wave of the pandemic crested, and fell until the fourth-wave surge began – powered by the Delta variant.
Other numbers have also climbed, including test positivity (8% for public tests this week, up from 6% the week before) and the daily case rate per 100,000 (now at 10, up from eight the previous week).
At the same time, the city's vaccination rates have continued to inch upwards; as of Sept. 14, 83% of residents aged 12 and up have been vaccinated with two doses.
Follow Julie MacLellan on Twitter @juliemaclellan.
Email Julie, [email protected].
