British Columbia's provincial health officer and health minister say the province's COVID-19 case count is ``trending in the right direction.'' Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix say public restrictions will ease if the number of COVID-19 cases continue to drop. The province reported 500 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday. There have been a total of 62,412 cases since the pandemic began and there are 4,345 active cases. There have also been 14 new deaths, bringing to 1,104 the number of COVID-19 related fatalities since March. Dr. Henry and Dix say in a joint statement that 98,12

Residents of a tiny community in northeastern British Columbia are suing the local and provincial governments over two slow-moving landslides they claim caused their property values to plummet. In a notice of civil claim filed in B.C. Supreme Court this week, 35 residents in Old Fort., B.C., allege negligence and breach of their charter right to security of the person. Evacuation orders and alerts were issued in September 2018 and June 2020 after a slope above the community of about 50 homes slumped, damaging the only road in and out. The claim alleges that the first slide was caused by activ

Shareholders of Vancouver-based West Fraser Timber and Toronto-based Norbord have voted to join forces. The move unites two of Canada's largest producers of wood products, creating a single Vancouver-based firm which keeps the West Fraser name. It now boasts 10,000 employees. Officials behind the merger say the new company, which will be owned 56% by West Fraser shareholders and 44% by Norbord investors, aims to be a "one-stop shop" for construction customers. West Fraser has 45 mills and other facilities across BC, Alberta, and the southern US, while Norbord has an oriented strand board mill

A medical health officer with Interior Health says COVID-19 is still spreading among people who live and work at a Kelowna ski resort. Dr. Silvina Mema says the health authority is testing broadly at Big White and 28 more cases have been linked to the cluster identified last month. The latest cases push the total to 203. It includes 43 active infections. Ski resort and local authorities are working to map possible exposures. Big White says in an update posted online Interior Health has advised that most people affected work on the mountain.

Illicit drug overdoses are rising in northern British Columbia and health officials warn a new mix of street drugs can make a key life-saving medication less effective. Northern Health and the First Nations Health Authority have issued an overdose alert, warning that benzodiazepines, or benzos, have been found in illicit drugs circulating in the region. The alert says users of drugs contaminated with benzos might be difficult to rouse and could also be slow to respond to naloxone, the drug that reverses opioid overdoses. Health officials say benzos impede brain activity and raise the potentia

Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, and Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, have issued a joint statement regarding updates on the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) response in British Columbia."Today, we are reporting 465 new cases, including 13 epi-linked cases, for a total of 61,912 cases in British Columbia."There are 4,331 active cases of COVID-19 in the province. There are 329 individuals currently hospitalized with COVID-19, 70 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation. "To date, 92,369 doses of COVID-19 vaccine h

British Columbia's health minister says the province will adjust its vaccination plans in light of the news that Pfizer-BioNTech will not send any doses to Canada next week. Adrian Dix says the province had expected to receive about 5,800 Pfizer-BioNTech doses, a relatively small amount compared with the roughly 25,000 it's supposed to receive the week after. But he says the 5,800 doses are still "very significant" to B.C. and any time the province gets news it will receive less vaccine, it is "obviously disappointing." Dix says the province will have to devote more of the Pfizer-BioNTech vac

The new member of Parliament for the Victoria riding, Laurel Collins, says she's running again in the next federal election, regardless of personal circumstances or when the vote is called. Collins makes the pledge as she announces she and her partner are expecting a baby in April. She has issued a statement saying leaders such as New Zealand's Jacinda Ardern have paved the way for new moms in politics, and there is no reason why women starting a family should be barred from pursuing meaningful roles. Collins won the Victoria riding for the NDP last fall. She replaced Murray Rankin who steppe

A man and woman have each been fined for pretending to cough on customers in a gym just steps from Vancouver police headquarters. A statement from police says the owner of the gym flagged down two passing constables outside the business Saturday night. He said a man and woman, who were not wearing masks and were not members of the gym, were inside coughing in the general direction of patrons and equipment. A 60 year old man and his 25 year old girlfriend told the officers they were only pretending to cough. Police say the couple claimed they reacted because gym members were staring at them. Th