Second case of coronavirus reported in Metro Vancouver area
Credit to Author: Nick Eagland| Date: Wed, 05 Feb 2020 01:57:33 +0000
A second case of the new coronavirus has been reported in B.C., where officials are preparing for the return of locals stranded in Wuhan, China, the centre of a global health emergency.
Health officials announced Tuesday that samples have been sent to the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg for additional confirmation of the second B.C. case.
The patient, a woman in her 50s living in the Vancouver Coastal Health Region, has family visiting her home from Wuhan.
“She became ill a few days ago and was assessed in hospital, and the testing came back positive,” said Dr. Bonnie Henry, provincial health officer, at a news conference.
Once confirmed, it would be the fifth case in Canada and first in the country confirmed to have been transmitted outside of China.
The infected patient is in quarantine at home and health authorities are testing the rest of her household for the virus. While the infection of her relatives hasn’t been confirmed, transmission is assumed in the household, Henry said.
“Vancouver Coastal is doing the detailed investigations today and will be testing, will also be making sure that they trace back any movement that these people had, and make sure that we’re in contact with everybody that may have had close contact,” she said.
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry confirms a second case of coronavirus in B.C., during a press conference in Vancouver, Tuesday, February 4, 2020.The Coastal Health region includes Vancouver, Richmond, the North Shore and Coast Garibaldi, Sea to Sky, Sunshine Coast, Powell River, Bella Bella and Bella Coola.
Henry encouraged anyone who has spent time in Hubei province in the past two weeks to self-quarantine until the incubation period has ended.
“It’s really important right now that you take these measure to keep away from others, consider staying home, and keeping your children home,” said Henry, adding that children need monitoring as they may not recognize the symptoms themselves.
Officials in China said Tuesday that at least 490 people have died from the virus in the country and more than 24,000 cases have been reported, most of them in Hubei province.
Another 65 people died from the virus in the province on Tuesday, raising the death toll there to 479, officials said. Another 3,156 cases were detected in the province, bringing its total to 16,678.
The World Health Organization has declared the flu-like virus a global emergency.
B.C.’s first confirmed case, in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, was a man in his 40s who travelled to Wuhan. He is said to be recovering at home.
Meanwhile, federal officials have chartered a plane to bring back 280 Canadians who have requested to be removed from Wuhan. It is unknown how many of them will be returning to B.C. All will be quarantined for two weeks at CFB Trenton in Ontario.
Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix said earlier this week that the province is communicating with the federal government as it identifies evacuees for the repatriation flight. Officials have said they are waiting on approval from Chinese authorities to enter their air space.
The plane will wait in Vietnam and be ready to leave hours after it receives the final go-ahead from China, likely sometime Wednesday, said Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne.
A letter sent by the government to Canadians and permanent residents of Canada currently in Wuhan said a flight is to depart from the city’s international airport early Thursday morning.
All passengers who eventually arrive from Wuhan will be quarantined at a Canadian Forces Base military camp in Trenton for a mandatory period of 14 days as a “precautionary measure,” officials confirmed.
The plane will stop in Vancouver to refuel on the way to Trenton. If a passenger falls sick mid-flight, they will be moved to an isolated area of the plane and, upon landing in B.C., will be transported to a facility and isolated here.
“We have plans to manage that,” Henry said.
“We would be putting them into our health system with B.C. Emergency Health Services and the Richmond Hospital, and we have all of the protocols in place to ensure that that’s done in a way that protects people from this coronavirus and other infections as well.”
The federal government’s letter said it cannot guarantee that everyone who is eligible for a seat will be able to board the plane.
Though the numbers change by the hour, Champagne said as of Tuesday 308 Canadians had asked for help to leave the country but the plane has room for only about 250 passengers.
They are being told to arrive at the airport Wednesday evening. The letter says they will be screened for any signs of the virus and those with symptoms will not be allowed to board the plane.
“Chinese authorities will perform health screening and immigration controls before boarding the flight,” the Canadian government said.
The government has already made arrangements to send a second chartered plane to Wuhan if there are enough Canadians left behind.
With files from the National Post, Canadian Press and Reuters