Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry has ordered all restaurants in B.C. to do take-out only and close their seating to the public.

Henry made that order as she reported 77 new COVID-19 cases in the province this afternoon.

“And it’s become clear to me that there are certain settings where this is really a challenge, and we talked earlier about restaurants. And we put in some guidance around being able to maintain distance within the restaurant, and it is becoming obvious that this is a very challenging thing to do.”

Henry also says people have to be in small groups for the foreseeable future.

“We’re not to be outside in groups, we’re not to be out playing basketball, we’re not to be out sitting together in large groups on the beach watching the beautiful sunsets that we have. Because when we’re out in groups like that, the chances are that somebody will be exposed to this virus and then we’ll bring it home to our family.”

There have now been 348 COVID-19 cases in B.C., including 19 in Interior Health with seven new cases reported today in this region.