A member of the BC Liberal caucus is resigning her Surrey-area seat after 13 years in order to become Canada's first Chief Accessibility Officer. Stephanie Cadieux is the first woman with a disability to serve in the legislature and in cabinet, where she held a number of portfolios including children and family development, social development and labour. The 49 year old has used a wheelchair since she suffered spinal injuries in a car accident when she was 18 years old. A document from Employment and Social Development Canada announcing Cadieux as the first Chief Accessibility Officer says sh

The BC government says it's taking steps to help alleviate a shortage of veterinarians by doubling the number of seats it subsidizes at veterinary college. Advanced Education Minister Anne Kang says the province will provide nearly 10.7-million dollars to support 40 students entering the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatchewan this fall, up from 20. Kang says BC is also considering how to improve the recognition of foreign credentials and looking at opportunities for veterinarians who would like to move to BC to help shorten wait times for the care of pets and livestock. Victor

Environment Canada says a powerful windstorm was expected to lash much of the west coast of Vancouver Island with strong gusts and towering waves capable of inundating low-lying shorelines. The weather office warned of dangerous storm surges on Monday as west winds gust to 100 kilometres per hour. The agency said the winds could send waves of up to 12 metres ``crashing onshore'' during the height of the storm. A wind warning was also issued for Greater Victoria with west winds of 70 to 90 kilometres forecast over the region until Tuesday. The incoming system was also slated to blanket souther

On April 3rd, 2022, at 3:54 am, AbbyPD patrol officers responded to a report of a sexual assault within the 32900 block of South Fraser Way. A female victim reported walking through a local business parking lot when she was approached by an unknown man driving a grey or silver van. During this encounter, the victim was sexually assaulted.The suspect male is described as South Asian, 30 years of age, with short brown hair and a beard.The AbbyPD Major Crime Unit is in the preliminary stages of this investigation; however, the initial investigation suggests this to be a random incident. No suspec

British Columbia Premier John Horgan says he has tested positive for COVID-19 and is isolating at home. Horgan announced on his verified Twitter account that he tested positive for COVID-19 today.He says his symptoms are mild and he is thankful to be fully vaccinated.Horgan, who recently underwent radiation treatments for throat cancer, says he is following public health guidelines, so he is isolating and working from home until his symptoms resolve.The premier was at the legislature last Wednesday when he participated in the government's introduction of a plan to implement goals for its law o

B.C. is reporting 357 new cases of COVID-19, for a total of 356,858 cases in the province.There are 274 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19 and 35 are in intensive care.In the past 24 hours, four new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 3,002. From March 24-30, people not fully vaccinated accounted for 18% of cases.From March 17-30, they accounted for 20.9% of hospitalizations.Past week cases (March 24-30) - Total 1,608Not vaccinated: 261 (16.3%)Partially vaccinated: 28 (1.7%)Fully vaccinated: 1,319 (82%)Past two weeks cases hospitalized (March 17-30) - Total 382Not vaccinated

British Columbia's police watchdog has been called in after the shooting death of a man in Surrey, B.C. The RCMP say they notified the Independent Investigations Office after a police officer fired at a robbery suspect on Friday morning. Police say the incident began at about 5:40 a.m. after they received a report of an attempted armed robbery followed by an attempted carjacking. The Mounties say they located a person matching the description of a suspect at about 7 a.m. and chased him. The RCMP say an officer and the suspect got into a confrontation during the chase and the suspect was shot.

More public sector organizations in BC are now protected under the Public Interest Disclosure Act, better known as the Whistleblower act. A statement from the Ministry of the Attorney General says employees at B-C's tribunals and certain agencies, boards and commissions are now covered. It means workers can confidentially speak to designated officers or BC's ombudsperson and share details about a serious wrongdoing that affects the public interest, while being protected from reprisals, such as demotion or firing. Whistleblower laws currently only cover government ministry staff and independen

A Metro Vancouver-based Olympic swimmer is retiring again. Swimming Canada says Brent Hayden, the former 100-metre freestyle world champion and bronze medallist at the 2012 London Olympics, made the announcement this morning. Hayden came out of retirement in 2019 and rejoined the national team in time for the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo. At the age of 37 he was also the oldest swimmer in Canadian history, but he helped the team to 4th in the 4x100 metre freestyle and his leadoff leg of 47.99 seconds made him the oldest person to ever swim 100 metres under 48 seconds.