A team from the Transportation Safety Board has been assigned to investigate the fire that destroyed containers aboard a freighter now moored off the south coast of Vancouver Island. A statement from the board says the team will "gather information and assess the occurrence" aboard the MV Zim Kingston. The fire was reported in a row of containers stacked on the deck of the ship shortly after the vessel was caught in a severe storm on Oct. 22, near the entrance to Juan de Fuca Strait. That storm also swept 109 other containers into the ocean, where most are still missing, and the few that washe

World leaders at the UN climate summit are promising to protect the world's forests, cut methane emissions and help South Africa wean itself off coal. Britain is hailing the commitment by over 100 countries, including Canada, to end deforestation in the coming decade as the first big achievement of the conference known as COP-26. Meanwhile, the U-S is launching a plan to reduce methane emissions, a potent greenhouse gas that contributes significantly to global warming. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau used his speech at the opening of an event on carbon pricing to urge the world to have 60 per c

Over a three-day period, B.C. is reporting 1,370 new cases of COVID-19, including three epi-linked cases, for a total of 206,284 cases in the province:Oct. 29-30: 568 new casesOct. 30-31: 470 new casesOct. 31-Nov. 1: 332 new casesThere are 4,668 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 199,107 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 436 individuals are in hospital and 140 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 72 hours, 25 new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,181.The new deaths include:Fr

International delegates attending a UN climate convention underway in Glasgow were reminded of images of homes burning and people fleeing from the Fraser Canyon community of Lytton as a wildfire levelled it in just hours on June 30th. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau discussed the fate of the village during his opening address to the COP-26 climate convention in Scotland. Trudeau noted an all-time Canadian high temperature of 49.6 degrees Celsius was set in Lytton just one day before the flames broke out. He reminded other world leaders that ``what happened in Lytton can, has and will happen any

B.C. is reporting 584 new cases of COVID-19, including 10 epi-linked cases, for a total of 204,914 cases in the province.There are 4,982 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 197,396 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 436 individuals are in hospital and 156 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, nine new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,156.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: threeVancouver Coastal Health: twoNorthern Health: twoIsland Health: two From Oct. 21-27, peop

B.C. is reporting 758 new cases of COVID-19, including two epi-linked cases, for a total of 204,330 cases in the province.There are 4,961 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 196,858 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 434 individuals are in hospital and 155 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, 10 new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,147.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: fourInterior Health: fourNorthern Health: twoFrom Oct. 13-26, they accounted for 74.0% of hospi

The Tk'emlups te Secwepemc First Nation says it would be ``deeply meaningful'' to welcome Pope Francis to Kamloops when the pontiff visits Canada on yet-to-be-determined dates. The Vatican announced yesterday that the pope will willing to visit this country as part of the process of reconciliation with Indigenous people. But Tk'emlups Chief Rosanne Casimir says in a statement issued this morning that if the only objective is reconciliation, and there's no concrete action associated with the visit, the visit will miss the ``hard truths'' First Nations are confronting as they recover from the g

B.C. is reporting 609 new cases of COVID-19, for a total of 203,582 cases in the province.Note: The numbers of total and new cases are provisional due to a delayed data refresh and will be verified once confirmed.There are currently 4,748 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 196,342 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 422 individuals are currently in hospital and 157 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, six new deaths have been reported, for a total of 2,137.The new deaths include:Fraser

An independent group of researchers analyzing the course of COVID-19 in British Columbia says cases are declining at about two per cent a day but children under 10 could now be more at risk of contracting the virus because they are unvaccinated. The experts in epidemiology, mathematics and data analysis from three universities in B.C. and the private sector say that age group had half the case rate earlier this year relative to those who are older, but that risk may rise. They say in a new report that the use of masks indoors and regional measures in areas with high case counts helped to stabi