Weeks from the height of a community outbreak, Whistler's COVID-19 transmission rate continues to drop, with 17 new cases identified April 19 and 25, confirmed Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH).
That's down from the 72 cases recorded in the resort between April 12 to 18, and 179 cases the week before that.
"This can be attributed, in part, to the week-long vaccination program VCH held in Whistler for all residents who have a primary residence in Whistler or who work in this community," VCH said in an information bulletin Thursday.
VCH carried out the mass vaccination campaign of eligible Whistler adults between April 12 and 18, with an extra vaccine clinic day added on Wednesday, April 28 for those who were in self-isolation during the earlier immunization period. To date, VCH reports that 17,100 doses of vaccine have been administered in Whistler and neighbouring communities. Pique has asked VCH to clarify whether that total includes just Pemberton and Squamish, or other communities in the health region as well, and will update this story if and when we get a response.
Meanwhile, the Howe Sound health region including Whistler saw another sharp decrease in new COVID-19 cases recorded last week.
The region, which includes Whistler, Pemberton, Squamish, Lions Bay, and parts of the southern Stl’atl’mx Nation, logged 50 new cases of the coronavirus between April 18 and 24, according to the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control. It's the first time the local health area's average daily rate per 100,000 population fell beneath 20 since the first week of March.
The case count represents a massive decline from the previous week, April 11 to 17, when the entire Howe Sound health region recorded 131 new cases of the virus, and an even bigger drop from April 4 to 10, when the region logged 337 positive tests.
