January was another grim month in BC for deaths caused by toxic illicit drugs. Chief coroner Lisa Lapointe says 207 people died, an average of 6.7 every day, the third-highest monthly toll since 2016 when a public health emergency was declared due to rising toxicity of street drugs. Lapointe says there were also concerning increases in drug-related fatalities in small and medium-sized communities in January, with 11 deaths in Kamloops and 19 recorded across the Northern Health region. She says a safer drug supply is one key to solving the crisis, a recommendation contained in a report issued

Masks are no longer required in indoor public settings or on most transit options in BC as provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry lifted the province's mask mandate effective today. But Dr. Henry has urged patience and understanding, saying not everyone is ready to abandon the most visible safeguard against COVID-19, and she also says individual businesses have the right to decide if face coverings are required on their premises. Some places where masks must still be worn include Vancouver International Airport and on all flights, courthouses across the province, the University of BC wher

B.C. is reporting 336 new cases of COVID-19, for a total of 351,751 cases in the province.There are 388 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19 and 52 are in intensive care.In the past 24 hours, four new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,932. There has been one new health-care facility outbreak at Yucalta Lodge (Island Health). The outbreaks at Overlander Residential Care and Gillis House (Interior Health) have been declared over, for a total of 14 facilities with ongoing outbreaks. From March 2-8, people not fully vaccinated accounted for 18.0% of cases. From Feb. 23 to Marc

BC is repealing its indoor mask order as well as capacity limits on faith gatherings tomorrow and will end its COVID-19 vaccine card system on April 8th. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says restrictions on visitors to long-term care facilities will also be lifted by March 18th as long as visitors are fully vaccinated and screened. Dr. Henry says high levels of vaccination and decreasing transmission of the coronavirus are allowing the province to switch to what she describes as an ``empowered self-management approach.'' She is calling on people to support those who wish to continu

An unlicensed massage practitioner has been arrested and charged following a VPD investigation, after two women came forward with allegations they were sexually assaulted while receiving treatments last month.VPD launched an investigation in February after the women, aged 34 and 44, reported being sexually assaulted while receiving treatments at two Happy Feet Massage locations in East Vancouver. Investigators worked with the owners, who were cooperative throughout the investigation, and arrested 46-year old Jun Dong Gao on February 10, 2022.BC Prosecution Service has approved two counts of se

Following a 2 year long investigation into the disappearance of 33-year-old Sidney Mantee, charges have been approved against 26-year-old Paris Laroche.On March 9, 2022, the BC Prosecution Service approved charges of First degree murder and Indignity to Human Remains, both in relation to the murder and disappearance of Mantee.Laroche was arrested on Wednesday March 9, 2022 and remains in police custody. She will appear later today in Nanaimo Provincial Court.The investigation required significant time and police resources. In the weeks and months following Mantee’s disappearance, investigato

A woman is in custody after an altercation resulting in a Surrey police officer being stabbed. Surrey police and Surrey RCMP were called to a home Wednesday evening for reports of a woman screaming and throwing things inside. Police say the suspect attempted to run from officers, prompting a brief foot chase. Authorities say an officer was stabbed during the arrest and was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The officer was released Thursday and is recovering at home. The Surrey RCMP Serious Crime Unit is investigating and police say the suspect is in hospital being assessed

RCMP say a couple in Nanaimo, B.C., who thought they had won more than $18 million and a luxury vehicle in a lottery were instead scammed out of almost $400,000. A statement from police says the couple, who are both in their late 80s, were contacted by phone early last year. They were told they had won $18.5 million and a Mercedes-Benz but would have to pay administrative fees in order to collect. Over the year, police say the couple received official-looking documents and weekly calls from the scammers directing them to pay taxes and other fees through bank drafts sent to various addresses.

The Surrey Board of Trade is the latest to call for an immediate halt to provincial fuel taxes as gas prices surge toward the two-dollar-and-17 cent per litre mark in some parts of BC. A statement from the board calls on John Horgan's NDP government to follow Alberta's lead and pause the carbon and other taxes that add as much as 73 cents to the cost of each litre of gas pumped in Metro Vancouver. Board president Anita Huberman says B-C's gas levies, in addition to complications from the pandemic and hikes in the cost of living and price of goods, are further burdens on the business community