British Columbia is reporting 498 new cases of COVID-19 and four more deaths, pushing the death toll in the province to 1,411. Among more than 89,000 cases diagnosed to date, 4,851 are active, including 281 people who are in hospital. A statement from provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix says no data about new cases of COVID-19 variants of concern is available today due to a lab sequencing issue. BC had confirmed close to a thousand variant cases earlier this week. More than 444,000 doses of three approved COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in BC and

Police say a woman has been fatally shot in Vancouver. A statement from Sgt. Steve Addison says police responded to a call at about 4 a.m. on Wednesday. Addison says the woman was found in a social housing building in the Downtown Eastside and died later in hospital. Police believe her attacker fled. Addison says no arrests have been made and the woman has not been identified. The shooting is Vancouver's third homicide of the year. Vancouver Police Department on Twitter: #VPDNews: Vancouver Police are investigating the city’s third homicide of the year, which occurred Wednesday morning in a

RCMP in Nanaimo say a 57 year old man is facing criminal charges after driving into multiple police vehicles causing damage Monday. They say the first police vehicle was side-swiped while driving with its siren on for another call, and later the same man appeared to steer his pickup truck into two parked police cars before driving into the side of a building. After being blocked in, Mounties say the man got out of his truck and charged at an officer. The officer used a Taser and pepper spray. Constable Gary O'Brien says in a statement officers have had extensive interactions with the man who'

B.C.'s top doctor is reminding the public to follow COVID-19 rules during St. Patrick's Day celebrations, while the province has again extended its ongoing state of emergency in response to the pandemic. Dr. Bonnie Henry says in a statement that last call for alcohol sales at restaurants, pubs and liquor stores will be at 8 p.m. Wednesday. There are 4,999 active COVID-19 cases in B.C. with 556 new diagnoses, including 470 in the Fraser and Vancouver Coastal health regions. B.C. has confirmed 116 new cases of COVID-19 variants of concern in the last day for a total of 996, of which 130 remain

A police officer and a driver were both hurt last night when a vehicle slammed into a police cruiser blocking a lane of Highway 99 though Surrey. The lane had been closed as officers investigated an earlier shooting in the same area. RCMP say both the officer and the driver of the vehicle that hit the cruiser have non-life-threatening injuries. A charge of impaired driving has been laid and Mounties are appealing for information or dashcam video as they continue the investigation. Surrey RCMP on Twitter: A suspected impaired driver crashed into a roadblock last night on Highway 99. One of our

The family of missing Merritt-area ranch manager Ben Tyner has announced an increase in the size of the reward for information about him that could also lead to charges in his suspected death. In a post on Facebook, Jen Tyner says the reward has grown to 30-thousand dollars after the owner of a Merritt ranch added 15-thousand dollars to the total. The 33-year-old was last seen leaving the Nicola Ranch on horseback in January 2019 and his body has never been found. His riderless horse was found unharmed a few days later. Police say they believe Tyner is the victim of homicide. Jen Overstreet T

For the second year in a row, Surrey’s Vaisakhi Khalsa Day Parade – considered the world’s largest with more than 500,000 spectators annually – has been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizers at Gurdwara Sahib Dasmesh Darbar confirmed the April 24 event will not proceed in order to comply with provincial health orders restricting mass gatherings. Vaisakhi, which marks the creation of the Khalsa in 1699, is the most significant day in the Sikh calendar. Parade spokesman Moninder Singh told Connect News Team that families will celebrate in smaller, private ways this year. “

The Surrey RCMP General Investigation Unit (GIU) is investigating a suspicious fire that occurred last night in Whalley. On March 15, 2021 at approximately 11:30 p.m., Surrey RCMP was called to assist the Surrey Fire Service with a vehicle fire, in the 10700-block of 133 Street. Upon arrival, officersfound a vehicle in the carport of a residence fully engulfed in flames. The vehicle sustained significant damage while the carport was moderately damaged, no one was injured as a result of the fire. The investigation was assumed by the Surrey RCMP GIU who located evidence suggesting the fire was s

The Transportation Safety Board will conduct a broader investigation into the deadly sinking of a tugboat last month along British Columbia's north coast. Two men died and one survived when the Ingenika sank Feb. 11 south of Kitimat while towing a barge, which remained afloat. A data collection investigation has been completed by the board but a spokesman confirms a wider investigation is now planned looking for any contributing factors or safety deficiencies. Chris Krepski says an investigation page will soon be posted on the board's website and a report will be released when the probe wraps