Afternoon News Update for April 29, 2020

📷 Premier John Horgan / Photo via Province of British Columbia (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

NANAIMO—The Premier has announced BC has extended its state of emergency for two more weeks. And, John Horgan says he is expecting to announce the loosening of some COVID-19 restrictions at the end of next week. Horgan says he has resisted making announcements about re-opening sectors of the economy as other provinces have done. He believes that gives the false impression of "game on" when that is not the case. Horgan says today's cabinet meeting included a presentation by the provincial health officer, about the "state of play" in BC's acute care hospitals and where to go from here. The premier put to rest speculation about opening BC classrooms anytime soon. Horgan confirmed BC schools will not fully open until the fall.

Two more poultry processing plants on the lower mainland are reporting cases of COVID-19. Specialty Poultry in Yarrow, in the Fraser Valley, announced on its Facebook page, that one of its employees has tested positive for the virus. It says it's on-site Farm Store remains open, but it has closed its processing plant, in order to plan "next steps" with its local health authority. Sofina Foods of Port Coquitlam has confirmed it too has one worker who has COVID-19. However, its plant remains open. In a news release, the plant manager says the infected Sofina employee is a relative of a person who works at a different poultry plant, who also tested positive for the virus. Eighty workers at two other poultry plants, Superior in Coquitlam and United in Vancouver have tested positive. Those plants have been closed for a week.

The mystery surrounding whether catching COVID-19 will lead to immunity is playing out in a case involving a Vancouver woman. CBC Radio is reporting 36-year-old Shilan Garousi contracted the virus in early March. She recovered, then became sick again in early April. Garousi says she is being monitored by her local health authority however it is unclear whether she was tested a second time. The mystery revolves around whether the woman had a relapse of her first infection, or if she caught the virus a second time. BC's Provincial Health Officer has said that is one reason she is looking forward to a reliable serology test that identifies antibodies. Researchers hope to discover how much and what type of antibodies deliver immunity when it comes to COVID-19.

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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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