Travellers aboard a B.C. ferry heading to Nanaimo endured an epic late-night sailing when the vessel had engine trouble mid-voyage. BC Ferries says the Queen of Oak Bay departed Horseshoe Bay at about 8 p.m. Wednesday and was expected to reach Departure Bay on Vancouver Island before 10 p.m.But the 90-minute trip became a five-hour marathon when the company says the ship had mechanical difficulty with its steering gear.It says a tug was needed to bring the vessel into the dock in Nanaimo at about 1 a.m.Repairs forced cancellation of numerous sailings between Nanaimo and the mainland on Thursda

Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart says the building destroyed by fire that included low-income housing will likely be demolished. The number of people displaced by yesterday's fire in the city's Gastown neighbourhood has risen to 144. That includes 71 residents of the Winters Hotel and 73 others in the neighbouring Gastown Hotel that was damaged in the blaze. Vancouver officials say efforts are underway to find housing for the displaced residents, which will add pressure to the city's scare supply of housing stock for low-income residents.

British Columbia's coroner says over 9,400 people in the province have died of an overdose from toxic illicit drugs since the government declared a public health emergency six years ago. Lisa Lapointe says urgent action is needed to decriminalize small amounts of drugs for personal use and to provide more people with a safer supply of substances that would replace the profit-driven illicit market.Lapointe says she understands that the concept of a safer drug supply is difficult for some people to understand, given decades of a punitive, enforcement-based approach to substance use, but more peo

The business of promoting the latest federal budget is underway in BC and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is spending the day on Vancouver Island to outline the benefits of the Liberal's plan for a green economy, which was a large part of last week's financial plan. Trudeau announced plans for further electric vehicle infrastructure, saying that will help overcome consumer worries about the ease and cost of buying and using the new technology. International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan also made a green economy announcement this morning in Kelowna while Natural Resources Minister Jonathan

The fire chief says several people were rescued from a building where smoke billowed out the windows in Vancouver's Gastown neighbourhood today. Fire Chief Karen Fry posted a short video on Twitter of fire crews dousing the top floor of a four-storey building with water. Numerous fire trucks also surrounded the building. Heavy, acrid smoke drifted across downtown Vancouver during the fire.

On April 10th, at 10:47 am, AbbyPD Patrol Officers responded to the 1700 block of Clearbrook Road for a report of a female lying on the roadway. Upon arrival, a 50 year old female was located suffering from serious life-threatening injuries after exiting a vehicle while it was in motion. The female was transported to the hospital by air ambulance. Investigators have determined the female was a passenger in a 2017 Grey Dodge pickup truck bearing an Alberta licence plate before sustaining her injuries. The truck driver, a 39-year-old man, remained on the scene and has been identified by police.

Homicide investigators have identified the victim of a daylight shooting in Maple Ridge Saturday that left one man dead. Police say Darr Khunkhun was the victim of a targeted attack. They say the 41-year-old does not have a criminal record but whether his death is linked to gang conflict is not yet known. Police say they are now looking for a newer-model red Honda four-door sedan with a sunroof that was seen leaving the parking lot after the shooting.

A BC scientist is calling for better public access to COVID-19 data as the province enters what could be a sixth wave of the pandemic. In its latest report, the independent BC COVID-19 Modelling Group says it believes BC is at the beginning of a second Omicron wave. Sarah Otto, a mathematical biologist, UBC professor and modelling group member, says the severity of that wave remains unclear due to uncertainty on multiple fronts, including reliable data. She says data that's been made publicly available in B-C lags behind other Canadian jurisdictions, and is not sufficient to do proper statist

The RCMP say British Columbia's police watchdog has been called to investigate the circumstances leading up to a man's death at a Surrey home. The Mounties say front-line officers and members of their mental health outreach team were called Friday to check on the well-being of a man who had threatened to harm himself with a weapon.They say the man was found at the home, reportedly in possession of a weapon, and police fired shots.RCMP say the man was given first aid and emergency health services personnel took him to hospital, where he later died.A statement from Assistant Commissioner Brian E