At the same time each night, Rev. Gary Paterson and about half a dozen other neighbours have begun gathering at least two metres apart on the rooftop patio of their building in Vancouversa国际传媒檚 west end.

They donsa国际传媒檛 know who will signal the beginning, and everyonesa国际传媒檚 clocks are slightly different, but just before 7 p.m., they hear clapping in the distance.

sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 usually at about two minutes to seven, like people cansa国际传媒檛 restrain their enthusiasm, and then it starts to move like a wave,sa国际传媒� he said on Wednesday.

The applause is for health-care workers and other essential service providers on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Itsa国际传媒檚 a practice that became commonplace in Italy, which has recorded more deaths from the novel coronavirus than anywhere else and has now taken hold in British Columbia. The virus itself has killed 14 people in B.C., and 659 people have so far been confirmed to have it.

Paterson said the first few nights were quieter, but the wave has grown in strength.

sa国际传媒淟ast night was incredible. There just seems to be more and more people. People swinging open their windows and clapping and leaning out. People on balconies and somebody blowing a trumpet somewhere sa国际传媒� just a wonderful response from the whole community,sa国际传媒� he said.

For Paterson, a United Church minister, the message is personal.

Not only is his daughter an emergency room nurse, but he went through a tough time medically last year. He had a hip replacement, emergency bowel surgery that saved his life and a colostomy reversal.

sa国际传媒淚t made me incredibly appreciative and impressed by the health-care workers from doctors and nurses to all those who kept things clean. Now I realize theysa国际传媒檙e in the midst of this crisis and it doesnsa国际传媒檛 stop them,sa国际传媒� he said.

sa国际传媒淪o here we are to do what we can to help.sa国际传媒�

Thanks for having our backs, health care and front-line workers.

sa国际传媒� Paul Nixey (@paulnixey)

I learned that because theresa国际传媒檚 a shift change at the nearby St.Paulsa国际传媒檚 Hospital at 7pm we residents applaud and thank our Health Care workers

sa国际传媒� Ed Chee (@cheechoo98)

The phenomenon is spreading.

Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps has encouraged residents to open their windows and give a loud round of applause at 7 p.m. each night.

Fiona Burrows said she was inspired to bring the practice to her neighbourhood in New Westminster.

sa国际传媒淚 live less than a kilometre away from Royal Columbian Hospital and I have plenty of friends and neighbours in my community here who work at the hospital and I thought what a great way to show our appreciation for what theysa国际传媒檙e doing,sa国际传媒� she said.

It started small on Monday, with Burrows and one other neighbour tooting horns at the stroke of 7 p.m. But thanks to the power of social media, word spread quickly.

On Tuesday, it was a completely different story, she said.

sa国际传媒淧eople were out on their porches and in their yards and they were hooting and hollering and banging pots and pans and waving at each other and it was just a wonderful couple of minutes of feeling connected, even though wesa国际传媒檙e in this time of social isolation.sa国际传媒�

Burrows said she plans to continue the practice until the pandemic is over.

Amy Smart, The Canadian Press

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