COVID-19: Worst-case scenario: 2,000 cases a day as Omicron spreads, BC officials say | FULL

As B.C. health officials confirm the first cases of Omicron transmitted within the community instead of via travel, they are warning the public the variant could cause the virus to spread rapidly.

The province has 44 confirmed Omicron cases up to Dec. 12. This includes 24 in Fraser Health, 11 in Coastal Health, five on Vancouver Island, three in the Interior, and one in Northern Health.

A case has been detected in a five-year-old and, currently, no one is in hospital. A vast majority of the cases — 37 — are vaccinated people.

“Although vaccinations are not 100-per-cent effective in preventing transmission, we do see they are incredibly effective in preventive hospitalizations,” provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Tuesday. “This is to give us a sense of what may happen.”