Quebec health officials have confirmed a case of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. Health Minister Christian Dubé made the announcement today at a news conference. Dubé says 115 people who recently travelled to the province, principally from countries in southern Africa, have been asked to take a PCR test and to isolate. Ontario reported Canada's first two cases of the Omicron variant of concern on the weekend. The province said today the two infected people were recently in Nigeria and were tested for the virus in Montreal before travelling on to Ottawa.

The threat of flooding has closed another major section of Highway 1, this time between Abbotsford and Chilliwack. The closure came as floodwaters poured across the Canada-U-S border and after the region received more than 100 millimetres of rain over the weekend. The Transportation Ministry says Highway 1 also remains closed between just east of Highway 9 and Hope, through the Popkum-Bridal Falls area. Highway 7 remains open between Mission and Hope, however the ministry reminds travelers that restrictions remain in place on that stretch of highway.

B-C's public safety minister is advising against non-essential travel in the coming days as the province braces for the third in a trio of storms. Mike Farnworth says the government doesn't want any unnecessary road closures that would further strain resources. He advises those who must be on the road to drive carefully and never attempt to drive through flood waters because the depth isn't always obvious. He also suggests people prepare for emergencies by carrying food, water, warm clothes, blankets and well stocked emergency kits in their vehicles.

Residents of another handful of properties in Abbotsford were ordered to evacuate late last night due to the ongoing flood threat. Crews in the city, including members of the Canadian military, worked through the night to pump water into tiger dams to try to hold back floodwaters from the Sumas River. And the District of Hope declared a local state of emergency yesterday while new evacuation orders were issued in an area west of Merritt. Meanwhile, the third atmospheric river is forecast to slam into the province on Tuesday and and officials have warned it could be the worst one yet.

B.C. is reporting 341 new cases of COVID-19, including four epi-linked cases, for a total of 217,099 cases in the province.There are 3,035 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 211,577 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 291 individuals are in hospital and 115 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, six new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,322.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: threeVancouver Coastal Health: twoNorthern Health: oneThere have been no new health-care faci

Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, have issued the following statement regarding a new variant of concern (VOC), Omicron:"We support the measures taken today by the federal government in response to the newly identified variant of concern, Omicron. We do not yet know the impact this new VOC will have on transmission or of severity of illness, but taking this immediate precautionary action is prudent. We will continue to closely monitor developments around the world."At this time, there is no evidence that this variant has been introduced i

Surrey RCMP is updating the public that Clayton Brooks Hayden has been convicted of 15 charges related to frauds.In April 2021, Surrey RCMP requested the public’s assistance with locating Clayton Brooks Hayden who was wanted in connection with multiple frauds. The frauds occurred at various financial institutions. In each occurrence, victims were approached by a man who claimed to be in dire need of money, who requested their help. Victims were asked to deposit a cheque into their account through an ATM, and to withdraw funds for the man. Days later, the victims learned that the cheques were

Canada has banned visitors from southern Africa after the discovery of a new variant of concern in the region. The new variant, deemed Omicron, first emerged in South Africa and coincided with a steep rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in that region in recent weeks, according to the World Health Organization. The ban will apply to foreign nationals who transited through a list of seven countries in the last 14 days, including South Africa, Mozambique, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Namibia and eSwatini. Those already in Canada who recently travelled through the region will need to quarantine

The federal government is proposing a new bill that would make it illegal to intimidate health workers to the point it impedes them from doing their job. The federal Liberals have introduced a bill that would provide 10 days of paid sick leave to federally regulated workers and create two new Criminal Code offences for anyone threatening health-care workers. Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan says the sick leave plugs a hole in the social safety net that was exposed by the pandemic. The Liberals want to see the bill pass in Parliament before M-Ps go on their holiday break in the middle of December