40 COVID-19 cases confirmed in Fort St. James, B.C., as mayor urges calm

The small community of Fort St. James is still grappling with a COVID-19 outbreak.

Since last week, 40 cases have been confirmed in the northern B.C. town. The district said it is still working with the province and public health officials to monitor the situation.

A rapid response team from BC Emergency Health Services remains in the community of about 1,500 people.

The outbreak was the first time the team was mobilized since it was created under the pandemic to primarily transfer patients between hospitals.

So far, one patient has been transferred to Metro Vancouver and three patients to Vancouver Island.

6:59 Who will get the COVID-19 vaccine first in British Columbia?

Mayor Bob Motion urged everyone to follow all the provincial health guidelines and remain calm, initially saying last week that the cases came from “connected” groups of individuals including a family and members of a homeless shelter.

Get weekly health news

Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday.

Sign up for weekly health newsletter Get Started

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

However, in a video posted to Facebook on Monday, Motion said he may have “miscommunicated his intended message.”

“We clearly have a large number of cases in Fort St. James and all our outreach areas, including the District, Tlazt’en, Binche and Nak’azdli and this has led to great strain on the front-line medical system,” Motion said in the video.

“I know that Nak’azdli, Binche and Tlazt’en First Nations are all struggling with COVID-19 cases and it was never my intention to make the challenges they are facing any more difficult than they already are.”

Motion added that the council will provide a weekly update on the number of cases in the community, as they are likely to increase.

Watch the full video below: