The City of Surrey and a group in Burnaby are both reporting successful initiatives to increase the amount of personal protective equipment available to frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. A statement from Surrey says 16 of its local manufacturers have re-tooled since the virus hit in March and have now reached four million dollars in sales of protective equipment, also known as PPE. Surrey says over the last several months, local companies have supplied a range of equipment, including 100,000 face shields and 300,000 litres of disinfectant and hand sanitizers to Canadian firms. B

A man has died after rescuing his daughter during a visit to a waterfall near Kelowna, B.C., on Father's Day. The RCMP say emergency crews rushed to the Mill Creek waterfall area after receiving a 911 call reporting a drowning. Cpl. Jocelyn Noseworthy says police learned the victim had been at the waterfall with his family and he went into the water to help his daughter after she slipped in. She says the daughter was able to get to shore. Noseworthy says bystanders tried to save the man with CPR. Paramedics took over when they arrived but despite their efforts, she says the 46-year-old man fr

Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, and Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.'s provincial health officer, have issued the following joint statement regarding updates on the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) response in British Columbia: "Today, we are announcing seven new COVID-19 confirmed positive cases, for a total of 2,790 cases in British Columbia."There are 178 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 2,444 people who tested positive have recovered."Of the total COVID-19 cases, 11 individuals are hospitalized, six of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in

Two schools have been evacuated in Kamloops, B.C, after the RCMP say ``suspicious messaging'' was found written on the exterior of David Thompson Elementary. The school along with Westsyde Elementary have been evacuated by police. The RCMP says several homes in the area of Pine Springs Road have also been evacuated. It's unclear what messaging has been written on the school, but Kamloops RCMP say more information is forthcoming.

Longshore workers along the entire Canadian and US west coast have halted work for eight hours to raise awareness of Juneteenth and show solidarity for racial equality and social justice. Juneteenth honours June 19th, 1865, when Texas slaves were told slavery in the US had been abolished, and the longshore union says marking the day continues its consistent support for anti-racist action. The shutdown began at 8 a.m. and continues until 4 p.m. affecting all BC ports including Vancouver, the busiest port in Canada, Chemainus, the Ridley terminal in Prince Rupert, and Stewart. The president of

As the economic impacts of COVID-19 increase every day, BC Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson is calling for the NDP to immediatelyprovide a budget update that gives British Columbians an accurate picture of the state of the province’s finances. “The NDP’s budget from earlier this year isn’t accurate anymore, people deserve the truth about this budget,” said Wilkinson. “The NDP added $5-billionin extra spending in April to deal with the pandemic. Where did that money go? As we continue to reopen, people need to know where and how their money is being spent by the NDP. We don’t need

Health Minister Adrian Dix says he was told last night about what he says is an "unacceptable and racist" game played by health care workers in at least one emergency room in B.C. Dix isn't identifying the ER because he says it's still unknown if the alleged game occurred in more than one hospital but he says it involved guessing the blood alcohol level of patients, especially Indigenous patients. Dix says lawyer and B.C.'s former Children and Youth representative Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond has agreed to investigate and make recommendations. He says the allegations are "beyond disappointing" an

The Government of British Columbia is extending the temporary rental supplement (TRS) until the end of August 2020 to continue to support renters and landlords. It will also maintain the moratorium on rent increases and evictions for non-payment of rent, while enabling other notices to end tenancy to resume. People who have already been approved for the TRS do not need to reapply. They will receive an email asking them to confirm they plan to live at the same address through July and August. New applications will also be accepted until Aug. 31 and will be eligible for a supplement for the mont

An independent school in B.C.'s Fraser Health region has suspended classes after a staff member tested positive for COVID-19. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says the person held a variety of roles at the school, including teaching. Henry says a positive COVID-19 case at a school isn't unexpected, adding that she spoke about such a possibility when schools first reopened. British Columbia announced eight new cases of COVID-19 and no new deaths on Thursday, bringing the total number of cases to 2,783. Health Minister Adrian Dix announced that staff at all 501 long term care homes in