Record numbers of people in British Columbia are being vaccinated against COVID-19 and flu, as the province ramps up its immunization campaign for respiratory illness season. The health ministry says in a news release invitations for priority populations started going out on Oct. 8, and on the first day of delivery on Oct. 15, B.C. pharmacies administered almost 82,000 vaccinations. It says that was a record for any single day, with about 50,000 shots for the flu, and about 32,000 for COVID-19. The ministry says there are updated vaccines for both influenza and COVID-19 on offer, including new

British Columbia police say three people have been charged with first-degree murder in the overdose death of a woman from Nanaimo. A statement from B.C.'s Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit says their team on Vancouver Island began investigating in August 2023 after obtaining information that led them to believe the woman's death was ``suspicious.'' The investigation led to the identification of three suspects, two men and one woman, all from nearby Duncan and ranging in age from 41 to 59 years old. The statement says the B.C. Prosecution Service approved first-degree murde

Police say a woman has been found dead after her home was swept away by a mudslide triggered by torrential rain across British Columbia’s south coast. RCMP in Coquitlam, B.C., east of Vancouver, say emergency crews had been searching for the 57-year-old since the slide occurred on Saturday. They say she was found the following evening by firefighters and members of Canada Task Force 1, a specialized search and rescue team based in Vancouver. The Mounties say officers responded to the slide near Pinecone Burke Provincial Park midday on Saturday, and found one home had been “swept away.”

Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau has lost her seat in the legislature after changing ridings to Victoria-Beacon Hill. Furstenau lost to Grace Lore, the minister of children and family development in the previous NDP government. The Green leader was first elected 2017, when her party played a key roll in helping the New Democrats form government with a confidence and supply agreement between the two parties.

The final results of British Columbia's weekend election won't be known until at least next week. Elections BC says official recounts are being held in two tight ridings where the difference between the New Democrat and B.C. Conservatives candidates is less than 100 votes. The NDP candidates hold slim leads in both the Surrey City Centre and Juan de Fuca-Malahat ridings, and the results could determine who forms government. Elections BC says it will also be counting about 49,000 absentee and mail-in ballots. The election's initial results have the NDP leading or elected in 46 ridings, with the

Three teenage girls have been charged with assault after two separate violent attacks took place on Metro Vancouver's transit system. Metro Vancouver Transit Police say the assaults happened on July 11, the first of which was on board a SkyTrain while it travelled from New Westminster to Surrey. Police say a 16-year-old student was attacked by the three suspects after she tried to prevent one of them from prying open the doors while the train was moving. The attackers are accused of punching and kicking the girl, then dragging her by her hair before other passengers and SkyTrain attendants in

The Transportation Safety Board says a mistake by a Canadian Pacific Railway supervisor set off a crash between a freight train and a railway work vehicle in Cache Creek, B.C. The board's report says the supervisor was inspecting the main tracks on Dec. 29, 2022, in a vehicle that can operate on both roads and rail when he noticed a defect that needed repair. It says that while the man was repairing the track, an eastbound freight train crashed into the unoccupied vehicle, but no one was hurt. The board says that its investigation found when the supervisor noticed the problem, he requested a s

Environment Canada has issued the first snowfall warnings of the season along the British Columbia and Yukon border, with accumulations up to 20 centimetres expected in some areas. The weather office says the snow will spread through southwestern Yukon starting today and will persist until Saturday. It says 10 centimetres of snow is expected in most regions, but predicts up to 25 centimetres in Swift River. But it says an arctic ridge of high pressure will clear the skies on Sunday and temperatures will fall to about -20 degrees Celsius by Monday. Environment Canada says the "first substantial

Leaders of British Columbia's main political parties have converged on Vancouver Island in the final stage of campaigning before the provincial election on Saturday, with record numbers of voters already casting their ballots in advance polling. Elections BC says more than 181,000 people voted on Tuesday, breaking a record set on the first day of voting last week. The election office says 778,000 people have already voted ahead of today's final day of advance voting. NDP Leader David Eby and B.C. Conservative counterpart John Rustad both have announcements scheduled in Nanaimo, while Green Par