A three-storey apartment building near the shores of Skaha Lake on Penticton's southeast side has been heavily damaged in an early morning fire. Social media posts from the Penticton fire department show flames engulfing most of the top floor of the 30 unit complex. The blaze was so intense that firefighters are still waiting to conduct a sweep through the building to ensure everyone made it out safely. Crews from Summerland helped their Penticton counterparts control the fire while displaced residents have been taken to a city-run reception centre and will be housed temporarily in area hotel

A Vancouver Island man is facing charges after choosing a poor time and place to let his creative impulses flow. Nanaimo RCMP say an officer was called to a doughnut shop on Sunday when staff reported someone had just spray-painted the shop floor. The suspect was gone by the time police arrived, but as the officer was taking photos of the damaged floor, a bystander noticed someone was spray-painting the RCMP cruiser parked outside. Const. Gary O'Brien says the person was ``meticulously painting the windshield'' before delivering a final blast of paint to the side of the cruiser as the officer

Four men from the Surrey and Langley areas are facing charges in connection with a cannabis exportation investigation that saw five search warrants executed in the lower mainland last year. In June, 2018, Federal BC RCMP Major Projects investigators commenced Project EPROMINENT, assisted by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), RCMP Liaison Office in The Hague and the Belgian Federal Public Service Finance, Customs and Excise division, into the export of illicit cannabis from Canada to Europe. The investigation culminated in the execution of five search warrants on June 18, 2019 in Langley

Provincial health officer Doctor Bonnie Henry has announced a new limit on gatherings in private homes to immediate family members and no more than an additional safe six guests. Dr. Henry made the announcement as she reported 817 new cases of COVID-19 since Friday. This is the highest number recorded over a three-day period in B.C. She also reported three more deaths, all residents of long-term care facilities in Vancouver Coastal health. Dr. Henry says two schools have also closed due to COVID outbreaks, one in Fraser Health and one in Kelowna in a previously announced outbreak.

Premier-elect John Horgan says he'll be returning to work today with an aim to win the confidence of voters in rural areas after picking up mostly urban seats. Horgan says sectors like forestry are important in smaller communities and he intends to meet the needs of those dependent on that industry. The NDP's win of 53 seats means the party is no longer dependent on the Greens for support, but Horgan says he'll work across party lines for the benefit of all BC residents. The Liberals won 27 seats and the Greens three, while four ridings were too close to call. More than half a million mail-in

BC Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson has announced his resignation after the party's worst election loss in decades. Wilkinson says he'll step down as soon as a replacement is selected. He took no questions at a news conference today following the party's loss of about a dozen seats in Saturday's election. The former provincial cabinet minster took over as party leader in 2018 after Christy Clark stepped down when the Liberals lost power after the 2017 election.

Voter turnout in the British Columbia election dropped to just 52.4 per cent, the lowest participation rate in more than 90 years. Statistics from Elections BC going back to 1928 show the second lowest voter turnout was 55.14 per cent during the 2009 election. The elections agency says in a statement the calculation this year includes ballots cast in advanced polls and on election day, as well as estimates of the numbers of absentee and mail-in ballots returned. It says fewer people voted on election day that those who voted in advanced polls. While there were more than 700,000 requests for v

One of the largest illicit drug labs ever found in BC has been raided in the north Okanagan. RCMP say the lab in Lumby was busted earlier this month and five BC men and an Alberta man are charged, but two of the BC suspects haven't been caught, although the other four men are expected to appear in a Kelowna courtroom tomorrow. Police say large quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl were seized in the October 19th raid, along with hundreds of litres of chemicals and enough waste material to put area residents at risk and cause serious contamination to nearby farms. Removal and disposal of

Fraser Health has confirmed outbreaks of COVID-19 at two more assisted-living or long-term care homes in the hard-hit region. The health authority says in a statement individual staff members at Amenida Seniors' Community in Surrey, B.C., and Agassiz Seniors' Community near Chilliwack have tested positive. It says enhanced outbreak control measures are in place at each site and communication with residents and families is underway at both facilities that are privately owned and operated. B.C. reported 223 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, tipping the number of active infections over 2,000, whi