British Columbia's health minister says he isn't as worried about the newest COVID-19 variant, Omicron, because the focus needs to stay on the Delta variant, which is having a ``profound impact'' on the province. Adrian Dix says the Delta variant is disproportionately affecting those who haven't been vaccinated, citing more than 150 people, most of them unvaccinated, who have been moved from the Northern Health authority to southern hospitals. He says the transfers are weighing down the health-care system because most of those people are in critical condition and require teams of health-care

B.C. is reporting 405 new cases of COVID-19, including five new epi-linked cases, for a total of 219,584 cases in the province.There are currently 3,071 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 214,047 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 276 individuals are currently in hospital and 95 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 an overall total of 2,351.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: threeIsland Health: twoVancouver Coastal Health: oneThere is one new h

The RCMP say there have been several dangerous incidents recently where rocks have been thrown from an overpass on Highway 99 in south Surrey, B.C. The Mounties say the rocks were thrown from a pedestrian overpass between the 32nd Avenue and King George Boulevard exits and have struck vehicles, but no one has been injured. Vehicles that have been damaged include a bus, and police say in one incident, a rock the size of a baseball was found. The first of the three incidents happened on the evening of Nov. 26 when a semi-truck and the bus were damaged. The next one happened at night three days

B.C. is reporting 368 new cases of COVID-19, including one new epi-linked case, for a total of 219,180 cases in the province.There are currently 3,020 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 213,694 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 284 individuals are in hospital and 97 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, five new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,345.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: threeNorthern Health: twoFrom Nov. 24-30, people not fully vaccinated accounted fo

Highway 99 will remain closed today, Thursday, Dec. 2, between Pemberton and Lillooet, as crews prepare to clear the highway following recent slides.The highway was closed Wednesday evening due to a mudslide. Another larger debris flow occurred overnight in the closure area near Duffey Lake, depositing a significant amount of material across the highway.No drivers were affected by the first slide, after which the highway was pre-emptively closed. The second, larger slide occurred after this.Because of what is in the debris flow and how much there is, cleanup will be challenging. Geotechnical a

B.C. is reporting 375 new cases of COVID-19, including no epi-linked cases, for a total of 218,801 cases in the province.There are 2,936 active cases of COVID-19 in the province, and 213,394 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 301 individuals are in hospital and 98 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.In the past 24 hours, seven new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,340.The new deaths include:Fraser Health: threeIsland Health: threeVancouver Coastal Health: one From Nov. 23-29, people not fully vacci

A government bill seeking to ban conversion therapy has cleared the House of Commons and is on its way to the Senate. Bill C-4 was fast-tracked through the legislative stages in the House of Commons with the unanimous consent of all MPs after Conservative Rob Moore introduced a motion to do so. Erin O'Toole had been set to once again allow his caucus to have a free vote on the bill, but also pledged that his MPs would work to get it passed quickly. The so-called therapy is widely discredited as a harmful practice, aimed at trying to change an individual's sexual orientation or gender identity

British Columbia has become the fourth province to identify its first case of the COVID-19 Omicron variant. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says the affected person recently returned from Nigeria and lives in an area covered by the Fraser Health authority. Dr. Henry says 204 people who recently returned from parts of southern African with outbreaks of the variant are undergoing testing while in quarantine. The federal government has announced that all air travellers, except those coming from the United States, will now be tested for COVID-19 when they arrive at Canadian airports, r

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada may need to do more at the border to protect against the Omicron variant of COVID-19 coming to Canada. The government has already banned foreign nationals who have recently travelled to several southern African countries. Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino told reporters public health advice will guide their actions.The World Health Organization warned against the potentially dangerous impact of the Omicron variant again today, though there are still many questions about its transmissibility and the severity of illness it causes.