Provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, says there is no need for the ``heavy hand'' of a mask mandate as respiratory illnesses climb in many areas of BC. Dr. Henry made the comment during a news conference this morning where she noted that 90 per cent of BC residents have some COVID-19 immunity through vaccination, infection or both. She and Health Minister Adrian Dix confirm the province is seeing an expected increase in flu cases while COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus or RSV are also becoming more common, but not at rates seen in other parts of Canada. Henry and Dix recommend

The Merritt RCMP is currently investigating multiple shootings in the Merritt, Coldwater, and Mamette Lake Road areas. On November 15, 2022, between 5:00am and 6:30am the Merritt RCMP was alerted to multiple shootings that occurred in the Merritt, Coldwater and Mamette Lake Road areas. Police believe all the incidents are related and targeted."We are actively investigating what happened", says Sgt. Josh Roda. "We do not believe there is any further risk to the public and will have a significant police presence in these areas as we move forward with the investigations."The investigation is curr

Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth says the province will not be providing any money to support a decision by Surrey city council to end the transition to a municipal police force. Council voted 5-4 yesterday in favour of keeping the RCMP as promised by new Mayor Brenda Locke during the municipal election campaign. City staff will now put together a report to re-establish the RCMP as the sole police force in Surrey that will address issues such as severance pay for current members of the municipal force. It will be sent to Farnworth for final approval and he says he expects to receive it b

The province will conducting a test of BC's emergency alerting system tomorrow afternoon. Emergency Management BC says the test will be sent to wireless devices and broadcast on radio and TV stations at 1:55 p-m (Pacific time) as part of the national Alert Ready system to improve public safety in the event of emergency. The system was launched in BC in April 2018 and is tested twice each year. It was expanded by the NDP government last spring to include alerts for wildfires, floods and extreme-heat emergencies, in addition to tsunamis, civil emergencies and Amber Alerts.

Voting is underway by members of the BC Liberal Party on a party name change. Party members are voting to support a proposed name change to BC United, with results expected Wednesday. Party members voted strongly in favour of considering a name change last June at their convention. Liberal Leader Kevin Falcon pledged to make a name change one of his promises during his leadership campaign earlier this year.

The Province is inviting companies to submit their qualifications for the third and final contract of the Surrey Langley SkyTrain project.The Surrey Langley SkyTrain project is a 16-kilometre extension of the Expo Line from King George Station to Langley City Centre and is the first rapid transit expansion south of the Fraser River in 30 years. Once complete, the project will provide high-quality and low-cost transportation for people in Surrey, Langley and across Metro Vancouver.As part of the competitive selection process, a request for qualifications (RFQ) has been issued for the systems an

Vancouver police say they've identified the suspects who threw maple syrup on an Emily Carr painting and glued themselves to a wall at the Vancouver Art Gallery over the weekend. Sgt. Steve Addison says an investigation is underway and officers will be speaking to witnesses, reviewing security video and assessing the cost of the damage.The Vancouver Art Gallery says in a statement that Carr's "Stumps and Sky" painting suffered no permanent harm.It quotes director and CEO Anthony Kiendl as saying the gallery "condemns acts of vandalism" towards works of cultural significance in its care, or in

Sentencing has been set for May 29th for a Kelowna RCMP officer who pleaded guilty to assaulting a nursing student during a wellness check in early 2020. Constable Lacy Browning pleaded guilty to one count of assault on what was supposed to be the first day of her trial a week ago. Surveillance video released as part of a civil suit that has been settled showed Browning dragging UBC student Mona Wang by the arms face down along a carpeted hallway and then stepping on her head in the lobby of her apartment building. A Gladue report, which a Canadian court can request when considering the sente

On November 4th at approximately midnight, the New Westminster Police Department Street Crime Unit and the Lower Mainland Integrated Emergency Response Team executed a search warrant on a property near the 300 block of Agnes Street. Police located from the suite both drugs and weapons. Six people were arrested and the investigation is ongoing. This search warrant was connected to a lengthy investigation led by the New Westminster Police Department Street Crime Unit, with the assistance of the Gang Suppression Unit, Patrol, and Crime Reduction Unit."Drug trafficking and weapons possession pose