Morning News Update for April 27, 2020

📷 Alert Bay / Photo via Province of British Columbia (CC BY-NC 2.0).

NANAIMO—A woman from Alert Bay has become the first indigenous person in BC to die from COVID-19. The Provincial Health Officer's voice quavered with emotion as she made the announcement on Saturday. Dr. Bonnie Henry said "Our elders in our first nations communities are culture and history keepers and when they die, we all lose. I recognize the tragic impact this has had on her family and her entire community."

Meanwhile, in Alert Bay, the local emergency declaration has been extended for another week. The declaration was put in place to curtail all non-essential travel and impose an evening curfew.

Family caregivers in BC are becoming more and more stressed, due to the suspension of programs, designed to give them a break. That's why the province has added a half-million dollars to Family Caregivers of BC. The non-profit group will use the funds to boost its 2-1-1 hotline and to create virtual peer support programs. More than a million British Columbians provide unpaid care to seniors, usually family members. However, COVID-19 has forced the closure of adult day programs and respite care that they rely on. BC's Seniors Advocate says she's very sorry about that. However, Isobel Mackenzie says she hopes the increased virtual supports will give caregivers "some comfort in sharing the burden and the stress with others."

Meanwhile, both Isobel Mackenzie and the Provincial Health Officer are looking at how care homes can open up to visitors in the coming weeks. Dr. Bonnie Henry has said she is working on how to relax restrictions without putting seniors at risk for COVID-19. Mackenzie, BC's Seniors Advocate says a way must be found because would be "tragic" to keep seniors from loved ones for a year or more.

BC saw its largest spike in new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, with 95. It was the second large spike in less than a week. Last Wednesday, the case count increased by 75. Dr. Henry says the latest spike is due to outbreaks at 2 poultry processing plants and a federal prison. 40 new cases at the Mission Medium Security Institution brings the total there to 106 inmates and 12 staff...that's close to a third of the inmate population. The outbreak at Superior Poultry in Coquitlam grew by 16, with a total of 18 cases. It's sister plant in Vancouver, United Poultry, reported seven new cases, totalling 35. Both plants have been closed by Health Authorities. Island Health reported one new COVID-19 case, bringing our case count to 115.

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Lisa Cordasco

Senior Reporter and News Director — Lisa is responsible for creating the station's first morning news current affairs show on CHLY. She is also deeply involved in training and mentoring student and citizen journalists who volunteer their time at the station. Before joining CHLY, Lisa spent 35 years in various roles at CBC Radio, from host to reporter. Her passion for journalism and radio has led her to Nanaimo, where she intends to provide CHLY listeners with news they can use, in an alternative radio environment. Her other not-so-secret passion is costuming for any occasion.

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