Health officials say British Columbia's COVID-19 restart plan will be a slow, cautious progression to normal life, but they acknowledge it may cause anxiety or fear in some people. In a news release Wednesday, Health Minister Adrian Dix and provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry say many others are excited about the transition and people will be able to progress along with the restart plan or in a slower, more gradual process. Dix and Henry say people must be mindful of communities that are assessing their own risks and take time to welcome back visitors. They also say businesses will be r

The super-heated housing market in Metro Vancouver cooled slightly in May but the Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board says sales still remained active. A statement from the board says 4,268 homes changed hands across the region last month, a 13 per cent drop compared with April. While May didn't match record-breaking activity seen earlier in the spring, the board says transactions were still 187.4 per cent higher than those recorded in May last year during the pandemic shutdown. Sales last month were 27.7 per cent above the 10-year sales average for May and the board says listing activity als

Summer is still nearly three weeks away but a heat wave is already bringing record temperatures to parts of BC. Environment Canada says records were broken in 10 places yesterday from 29 degrees in Fort Nelson just edging a record set in 1961 to 34.6 in Trail, and highs ranging from 27 degrees to the low 30s in Sechelt, Gibsons, Clinton, Merritt, Pemberton, Princeton and the Malahat on Vancouver Island. Lytton claimed the hot spot for all of Canada yesterday with a withering 35.2 degrees, two-tenths of a degree hotter than on the same day 60 years earlier. The weather office says more records

Quick response from Frontline officers lead to the arrest of a suspect with two imitation firearms in the Central City Shopping Centre in Surrey.On May 30, 2021 at 5:53 pm, Surrey RCMP Frontline officers responded to a report of a male with a gun inside the Central City Shopping Centre located at 10153 King George Blvd. The male suspect allegedly threatened staff and a customer at a business inside the mall with a weapon before fleeing. He was arrested a short time later by officers with two imitation firearms and a knife.Thirty-six-year-old Cody Doherty of Surrey is facing numerous charges in

A Surrey RCMP Frontline officer located a loaded handgun on the driver following a traffic stop in the Newton area.On May 28, 2021, at approximately 1:45am, a Surrey RCMP Frontline member was patrolling in Newton and observed a vehicle with inactive insurance. The officer initiated a traffic stop in the 7600-block of King George Boulevard and upon further investigation, a loaded firearm was located on the driver. The vehicle was towed, the driver was arrested and later released on an undertaking as the investigation continues.The driver has a non-restricted Possession and Acquisition License w

Abbotsford police are warning of a recent uptick in scams revolving around claims a relative has been jailed and needs money to be bailed. Police say victims were called by someone impersonating a criminal lawyer who stated they were calling on behalf of the victim's family member, asking for money. Police say alleged fraudsters are able to make their phone number appear to have originated from a legitimate source. Officers say those who are targeted need to resist the urge to send money right away and to check the story's accuracy with a family member first. Abbotsford Police Department on T

Vancouver Police are investigating the city’s eighth traffic fatality of 2021, which occurred early Wednesday morning when a motorcyclist was thrown from a bike near Queen Elizabeth Park. The incident occurred around 1:40 a.m., when the 27-year-old motorcyclist was heading south on Cambie Street, near 35th Avenue. VPD investigators believe he somehow lost control of the red Honda CRB, struck the curb, and was thrown from the bike. A passerby provided first aid until VPD and BC Ambulance Service arrived moments after the collision, however the rider sadly died at the scene. VPD’s Collision

British Columbia health officials say about 70 per cent of eligible adults in the province have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Officials say in a news release that they will be following the National Advisory Committee on Immunization guidelines on mixing and matching vaccines. They say those who got a first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine can now receive either the same one, Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna for their second shot. Officials say more information will be given later this week on second doses for those who received AstraZeneca for their first shot. The provinc

An Indigenous author has just won a major award for her first novel which tracks the paths of five residential school survivors living in east Vancouver but Michelle Good says instead of celebrating she's mourning the children whose deaths at residential schools are just now being acknowledged. Good who lives in Savona near Kamloops but is a member of Red Pheasant Cree Nation west of Saskatoon, was awarded the 25,000 dollar Governor General's Literary Award for fiction today for her work ``Five Little Indians.'' She won the Amazon Canada First Novel Award last week but the lawyer-turned-autho