Experts from the navy were dispatched to a Vancouver Island thrift store to deal with what police are calling a "historical military explosive device." Mounties from the Sidney North Saanich detachment say employees from the store in Sidney, B.C., called them around 2:30 p.m. Saturday, reporting the device being dropped off there. RCMP say they evacuated the store and blocked the area as part of the safety measures while waiting for assistance from Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt. Explosive experts from the navy arrived at the scene around 5:30 p.m. Saturday and found the device to be a fake, p

An evacuation order issued Saturday due to out-of-control wildfires south of Valemount, B.C., has been cancelled. Residents in the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George and the Village of Valemount that were ordered to flee can return home. Residents from properties east of Highway 5, south of 17th Ave, and north of the Canoe River were ordered to leave Saturday, and an evacuation alert is now in place for the Cedarside area meaning residents can remain home but should prepare for a potential order to evacuate. Officials say they were able to cancel the order thanks to the fast action of BC

Police in southeastern British Columbia say one person is dead after a highway crash just outside the community of Field, B.C., near the Alberta boundary. RCMP say the two-vehicle crash on Thursday involved a pick-up truck carrying two people from the United States and a minivan with three people from Alberta. They say evidence at the scene suggests the truck crossed the centre line of Highway 1, hitting the oncoming van. Everyone involved was taken to hospital, including two who were airlifted to Calgary. Police say the passenger of the pick-up truck has since died from her injuries, while th

Evacuation orders and alerts have been issued in British Columbia's North Okanagan as a nearby wildfire burns out of control, nearly doubling in size since Tuesday. Tracy Hughes, communications co-ordinator for the Columbia Shuswap Regional District says 17 properties in the district are on evacuation order, while alerts were also expanded to 25 more properties, bringing the total in the region to 69. The neighbouring township of Spallumcheen and the Splatsin First Nation have also issued evacuation orders and alerts in response to the growing blaze. The BC Wildfire Service says the 6.7 square

National Defence Minister Bill Blair says British Columbia's CFB Esquimalt will be the site of a new 480-room military housing project. The minister was at the Victoria-area naval base to announce a $10.1-million contract for design work for the project, estimated to total about $165 million. Blair says the new, modern highrise building will provide single-occupancy rooms, coffee shops, postal services and a dining area capable of serving 700 people. He says the accommodation project is part of the government's plan to improve the quality of life for members of the Canadian Armed Forces. Blair

Boeing Canada plans to invest $61 million in British Columbia for an aerospace manufacturing training facility as well as research and development. The announcement is the latest from the American aviation giant as part of a multibillion-dollar deal with Ottawa on the purchase of new military surveillance planes. Minister of National Defence Bill Blair welcomed the spending at the Boeing Canada facility in Richmond, B.C., saying that as the government invests more in defence, it's ensuring it also delivers value for Canada's economy and its workers. The federal government announced last year t

Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services say a crane has collapsed on a construction site as crews battle multiple blazes that broke out Tuesday in the city's west side. Firefighters are working to extinguish the fires in locations including on Dunbar Street and W. 41st Avenue. They say in an email a crane fell down but they didn't say if the fire broke because of the collapse. Videos posted on social media show a crane toppling in huge flames. Residents are being evacuated from the area. No fatalities or injuries have been reported at this time. The services are urging people to stay inside if an a

British Columbia's Highway Patrol says people have died and "multiple others" have been injured in a multi-vehicle crash on Highway 1 in Chilliwack. It says the crash happened around 2:45 p.m. on Tuesday, near Yale Road West. Multiple first responders, including Chilliwack RCMP, attended the scene. Police closed the eastbound lanes of the highway at the crash site and also shut one lane westbound to traffic. The highway patrol has not confirmed how many people were involved in the crash or the number of deaths. It says the investigation is in its early stages but the Integrated Collision Analy

High waters that flowed over top of a massive landslide in British Columbia's Chilcotin River are churning in the Fraser River towards British Columbia's Lower Mainland today. Emergency Management Minister Bowinn Ma says the fast-flowing waters are forecast to raise river levels by about a metre at Hope, B.C., located about 150 kilometres east of Vancouver. She says the river levels will be similar to spring runoff conditions on the Fraser River, but there is potential danger from trees and other debris in the river. A landslide last week at Farwell Canyon located about 22 kilometres south of