Gatherings in Lower Mainland main driver for spike in COVID-19 cases

SURREY—Health officials in B.C.’s Fraser Valley are urging people not to hold private parties this Halloween weekend in order to help curb the spread of COVID-19.

Dr. Elizabeth Brodkin, chief medical health officer for Fraser Health, says it’s fine to take children trick-or-treating in a safe way or get together in a restaurant, but people should refrain from gathering in homes.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry has also said private gatherings in the Lower Mainland are the main driver of the rising COVID-19 case count in B.C.

Brodkin says many of the infections can be linked to clusters in households or at social gatherings, such as weddings, which can in turn fuel the spread of the illness in workplaces, schools and health care facilities.