London Drugs is gradually reopening its stores across Western Canada more than a week after a cybersecurity breach forced the retailer to close. The company says it is working with independent cybersecurity experts to securely bring its systems back online after it was discovered April 28. The Richmond, B.C.-based pharmacy and retailer operates about 80 London Drugs locations across Western Canada. The retailer says on its website more than two dozen stores are back in operation in B.C., while six are open in Alberta, three in Saskatchewan and one in Manitoba. The company notes that some store

Canada's first Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessel will officially be brought into the Pacific fleet today and Princess Anne, the sister of King Charles, is scheduled to take part in its commissioning ceremony. A news release says Anne will be attending the ceremony in her role as commodore-in-chief for the Canadian Fleet Pacific. National Defence says HMCS Max Bernays arrived in its new home port in Esquimalt last month, calling it a "pivotal milestone" in the expansion of the fleet. It says the introduction of the ship, named after a Canadian naval hero during the Second World War’s Battle o

NEW WESTMINSTER, B.C. Police in New Westminster, B.C., say they were called to a post-secondary school in the city when staff reported that a woman armed with a knife was inside the building. The woman was not a student at the institution and police say students and staff feared for their safety. Before police arrived, security had isolated the armed woman and police cleared out the building. Police called in the emergency response team, which convinced the woman to give herself up and she was safely arrested. Charges related to mischief and threats are being considered, police say. Royal Aven

A B.C. Conservative private member's bill to classify publicly funded sports teams and events according to the "biological sex" of participants, banning transgender athletes, didn't make it out of the starting blocks. The Fairness in Women's and Girls' Sports Act was voted down at first reading, a fate that's a rarity in the legislature. The majority New Democrats, joined by two Green Party members and two Independents, voted down the proposed bill introduced by Conservative Leader John Rustad. New Democrat House Leader Ravi Kahlon said outside the legislature the proposed bill was "hateful an

London Drugs is investigating whether personal data was compromised in a cybersecurity incident that prompted the company to close all of its stores across Western Canada until further notice. A statement from the retailer and pharmacy chain says it will notify "affected individuals" if the probe finds their data was breached. The company says it's working with third-party cybersecurity experts to securely bring its operations back online after discovering the incident on Sunday. An earlier statement said there was no reason to believe customer or employee data had been affected by the inciden

British Columbia has secured eight new sites for its BC Builds program, in which land owned by the province, non-profits or community groups is pre-zoned to build middle-income rental housing. The new sites include three in the Township of Langley, one each in Kelowna and Kamloops, as well as properties in Sooke and Chemainus on Vancouver Island and Elkford in East Kootenay region. The province says it is now seeking proposals for all eight sites to "fast-track" rental homes, as BC Builds backs the projects with low-cost financing. B.C. Premier David Eby says the program's continued growth is

Punjabi superstar Diljit Dosanjh arrived in Vancouver yesterday to kick off his 'Dil Luminati Tour' at BC Place. This is the first time in history that a Punjabi singer superstar will perform in BC. Diljit's manager posted pictures and videos on Instagram yesterday confirming his arrival in Vancouver. BC Place will be the first stop on Diljit's schedule on Saturday. On Diljit's arrival in Vancouver, his fans say they are very excited about the show and are proud of their culture and being Punjabi. BC Place General Manager Chris May says that this is going to be the biggest show outside Punjab

An out-of-control wildfire in northeastern British Columbia has triggered the province's first evacuation of this year's fire season. The Peace River Regional District declared a state of local emergency and issued an evacuation order for an area near Chetwynd, B.C., last night. The 50-hectare Wildmare Creek fire has also prompted an evacuation alert covering homes directly west of the community, with the district saying there's "potential danger to life" and residents should be ready to leave on short notice. The Ministry of Transportation's DriveBC information service says a 10-kilometre str

The BC Wildfire Service has announced a five-month open fire ban covering much of the province's Interior, as fire season gets off to an early start. The ban on Category 3 fires in the Kamloops fire centre will run from May 3 to Oct. 11 and will prohibit people burning three or more fires on a property at the same time, or any single fire burning a pile larger than two metres in height or three metres in width. Grass burns bigger than 0.2 hectares will also be banned, the service says. Areas covered by the ban include the Lillooet, Kamloops, Merritt, Vernon and Penticton fire zones. Drought co