A Metro Vancouver hospital is now the first in BC to use COVID-19 rapid tests on patients needing urgent, unscheduled surgery. Royal Columbian Hospital in New Westminster is using the 15 minute tests after a trial on more than one-thousand asymptomatic patients earlier this year detected two positive cases of the virus. A statement from Fraser Health says those patients went on to develop COVID-19 while recovering from surgery but were already being treated on a COVID ward protecting staff and other patients. The health authority says a follow up study also found the rapid tests increase the

B.C.’s maximum allowable rent increase amount for 2022 is being set at 1.5%, based on inflation.This increase cannot take effect prior to Jan. 1, 2022. If landlords choose to increase rent, they must provide a full three months’ notice to tenants using the correct notice of rent increase form.To support British Columbians, the Province enacted a rent freeze at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The freeze has since been extended to Dec. 31, 2021.The 2022 maximum allowable rent increase is significantly less than what it would have been prior to changes made by the Province in 2018 tha

Vancouver police say 17 paddleboarders had to be rescued from heavy wind and waves near the Lions Gate Bridge Monday. They say the paddleboarders tried to cross English Bay just before 3 pm when more than half the group got caught in high winds and a strong current. Police say the incident is an important reminder that the shipping lane in Burrard Inlet can be extremely dangerous due to wind, tides, and heavy boat traffic. They say they also want to remind anyone heading out on the water that human-powered vessels like paddleboards and kayaks are not permitted between Siwash Rock and the Berr

Mounties say a recent homicide victim found in a field near Penticton Secondary School was not a student. RCMP say the young man was found unresponsive on Sunday and later pronounced dead. Police say he has still not been identified. Penticton RCMP says they are working to uncover the victim's identity and cause of death.

The wildfire situation is continually evolving, and the information below is current as of 7 p.m. (Pacific time) on Tuesday, Sept. 7, 2021.Fires:Wildfires burning in B.C.: 210Since April 1, 2021:1,583 wildfires868,619 hectares of area burnedActive fires by fire centre:Cariboo: 24Coastal: 14Kamloops: 60Northwest: 5Prince George: 52Southeast: 55Resources:*Updated weekly and are current as of Sept. 2.Firefighters and other personnel currently fighting the fires: 2,522Out-of-province firefighters: 434Helicopters and planes supporting ground crews: 63Evacuations:Evacuation Orders: 5 (-2)Evacuation

Over a four-day period, B.C. is reporting 2,425 new cases of COVID-19, including five epi-linked cases, for a total of 170,750 cases in the province:Sept. 3-4: 695 new casesSept. 4-5: 634 new casesSept. 5-6: 563 new casesSept. 6-7: 533 new casesThere are 5,465 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 163,062 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 255 individuals are in hospital and 126 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation. In the past 96 hours, 15 new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 1,842. There hav

The Province is launching the BC Vaccine Card, a digital or printed document that shows the stage cardholders are at in their COVID-19 vaccine progress. The BC Vaccine Card will allow vaccinated people to conveniently and securely show their proof of vaccination at higher-risk social and recreational events and settings when new COVID-19 vaccine requirement rules take effect on Sept. 13, 2021. This will help increase vaccinations, while protecting people in these settings, keeping businesses open and allowing events to take place."Getting vaccinated means we can bring people back together and

RCMP and the Insurance Corporation of BC warn officers provincewide will be out this month targeting distracted drivers and anyone not wearing a seatbelt or other appropriate restraint. Superintendent Holly Turton, the Officer in Charge of BC Highway Patrol, says intensified distracted driving enforcement is planned in all areas during September and will cover much more than cellphone use or texting behind the wheel. She says drivers could be ticketed for activities such as personal grooming, eating or drinking, reading, insecure pets or improperly restrained passengers and not knowing their

RCMP in Surrey are search for witnesses who might have seen an altercation between Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum and the driver of a grey Ford Mustang. McCallum has said he was outside a Surrey grocery store on Saturday when the driver shouted at him and then drove over his foot, and a statement from police says the allegations are under investigation and they want to speak to anyone who saw what happened or has dashcam video. An online post by the group 'Keep the RCMP In Surrey' shows it was holding an event outside the grocery store at the time, gathering names on a petition opposing McCallum'