BCMay 01, 2021
740 new COVID-19 cases and 4 deaths reported in B.C.
Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, have issued a joint statement regarding updates on the COVID-19 response in British Columbia. "Today, we are reporting 740 new cases, for a total of 129,482 cases in British Columbia."There are 7,886 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, with 11,727 people under public health monitoring as a result of identified exposure to known cases. "Of the active cases, 511 individuals are currently hospitalized with COVID-19, 174 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-
BCApr 30, 2021
Site-specific road checks to be used for enforcement of new COVID-19 rules: Mike Farnworth
To help keep communities safe and protect British Columbia's health-care system from COVID-19, the Province has authorized site-specific road checks on travel corridors between regions to help enforce the non-essential travel restrictions that were announced on April 23, 2021.On the advice of B.C.'s provincial health officer (PHO), Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, issued an Emergency Program Act order to prohibit non-essential travel between three regional zones in the province. The regional zones are:1. Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley (Fraser Health and Coasta
BCApr 30, 2021
Former B.C. cabinet minister denies saying government knew about casino crime
A former cabinet minister denies telling a gaming investigator that members of the B.C. Liberal government knew about illegal activities at casinos and were doing little to prevent the crimes. Kash Heed told a public inquiry into money laundering that he recalls a lunch in Victoria in 2009 with former gaming investigator Fred Pinnock, but his recollection of the meeting differs from Pinnock's. Pinnock testified last fall that he met with Heed in November 2009 shortly after he was appointed solicitor general to raise concerns about large amounts of suspicious cash that were likely linked to org
BCApr 30, 2021
ICU admissions in B.C. reach record high; 853 new COVID-19 cases reported
Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says hospitals in hard-hit regions are feeling the strain from COVID-19 infections with a record number of people in intensive care. There are 853 more cases of COVID-19 today and one new death, bringing the total in the province to 1,577. Dr. Henry also announced that 508 people are in hospital, including 178 people in an ICU. She says the province is expecting increased vaccine shipments in the coming weeks, but BC is in a tug-of-war with COVID-19, and people need to hold the line by following public health orders. Fraser Health says it is no long
BCApr 29, 2021
B.C. records nearly 500 toxic drug deaths since Jan. 1: Coroner
Toxic drug deaths killed 158 people in British Columbia last month, pushing the total number of deaths linked in the province's overdose crisis to 498 since the start of the year. A statement releasing the figures from the BC Coroners Service and the Public Safety Ministry says the deaths in March are a 41 per cent increase over the 112 fatalities recorded in the same period last year. The deaths also mark the third consecutive month that more than five people died every day from illicit drug use in the province. The coroners service says carfentanil, which is 100 times stronger than the opio
CanadaApr 29, 2021
Louise Arbour tapped to review military sexual misconduct
The Liberal government is tapping former Supreme Court justice Louise Arbour to lead what it says is an independent review of the military's handling of sexual assault, harassment and other misconduct. Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan announced Arbour's appointment today, nearly three months after the government and Canadian Armed Forces were rocked by allegations of inappropriate sexual behaviour by the military's top commanders.Arbour, the former UN high commissioner for human rights, is being asked to help set up an independent system for victims and others to report incidents and also to re
BCApr 29, 2021
B.C. hits new record for COVID-19 hospitalizations at 515, five more deaths
The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 in British Columbia has ticked up to 515, breaking a previous record set last week. Among those hospitalized, 171 people are in intensive care. Five more people have died after contracting the illness, pushing the death toll in the province to 1,576. The number of active infections was down to just over 8,000 as health officials reported 841 new cases on Wednesday. A joint statement from provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix says B.C. has now administered more than 1.7 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine, of whi
BCApr 28, 2021
B.C. judge says man's COVID rule breaking was like dealing fentanyl on the street
A British Columbia provincial court judge compared a man's actions breaking COVID-19 rules to selling the powerful opioid fentanyl on the street as she sentenced him. Mohammad Movassaghi was handed one day in jail, a $5,000 fine and 18 months' probation after previously pleading guilty to disobeying a court order, failing to comply with a health officer's order and unlawfully purchasing grain alcohol. Vancouver police used a search warrant in January to enter what they described as a makeshift nightclub and more than $17,000 in fines were issued against Movassaghi and his guests in the home.
CanadaApr 28, 2021
Canada's first 300,000 doses of J&J COVID-19 vaccine arrive; 650,000 doses of Moderna vaccine also arrive in Toronto
Canada's first 300,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine are arriving today, a federal official tells The Canadian Press. The official, granted anonymity to discuss matters not made public yet, said that where the doses are coming from is not being disclosed because the government needs to ``protect this new vaccine supply chain.'' J&J has struggled with production problems and has been able to deliver very few doses, even in the United States. Canada purchased 10 million doses, and has the option to buy 28 million more. The doses are expected to be distributed to provin