B.C. is reporting 59 new cases of COVID-19, for a total of 147,915 cases in the province. One new death has been reported in the Interior heath region. The province says the death toll from the pandemic is now 1,760. There are currently 649 active cases of COVID-19 in the province with 74 patients in hospital, including 19 in intensive care. Health officials say 78.4 per cent of residents aged 12 and up have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine and 40 per cent have received both doses. Province has administered 5,497,150 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vacci

Visitors to long-term care homes in British Columbia will soon be allowed to see loved ones without COVID-19 restrictions as part of a plan to resume usual social activities for residents. Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry says high vaccination rates have made the return to unscheduled visits possible starting July 19, but staff will be required to report whether they have been immunized. She says unvaccinated workers must continue wearing a mask and take a rapid test three times a week, and all volunteers must be immunized. Dr. Henry has issued a new order for facilities to provide

A man and a police dog are dead in what RCMP in British Columbia say was a confrontation with officers that is now being investigated by the provincial police watchdog. A statement from the RCMP's head office in B.C. says it started Thursday morning when an officer tried to stop a vehicle over an outstanding warrant in Campbell River on Vancouver Island. Police say the vehicle failed to stop and other police officers were sent to the area. The vehicle was stopped a short time later by an officer who had a service dog and police say the confrontation resulted in the dog being stabbed and kille

A 33-year-old Coquitlam man has been charged with six offences related to possession of prohibited weapons, allegedly importing prohibited weapons and drug trafficking. The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit, which focuses on gang activity in BC, says the charges stem from an investigation that began in January of last year. A statement from police says a search of a home and separate storage locker led to the discovery of four conducted energy weapons, often called Tasers, drugs, cash and police uniforms. The suspect is also charged with an attempt to import a firearm suppressor, a pro

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier John Horgan say BC and the federal government have reached an agreement on funding for 10-dollar-a-day child care. Speaking in Coquitlam this morning, Horgan and Trudeau say the two governments have agreed to reach 10-dollar-per-day spaces for children under six before 2026. Trudeau told a news conference in Coquitlam the agreement will bring the cost of regulated daycare in the province down significantly. The pact would create as many as 30-thousand spaces in BC while cutting fees in half for regulated spaces by next year. BC is the first province t

More than two dozen wildfires sparked overnight across British Columbia and the BC Wildfire Service website shows nearly half are believed to have been caused by lightning. One of those blazes has already charred more than two-square kilometres of bush in northwestern B.C., forcing an evacuation order and alerts for properties around Bulkley Lake. The wildfire service says the fire is classified as out of control but 15 firefighters, backed by five pieces of heavy equipment, worked through the night to keep flames away from any structures. The evacuation area covers a section of Highway 16 no

A moment of silence marked the end of the search for survivors of a South Florida condominium collapse. The ceremony last night came after authorities said the rescue mission would now shift to an effort to recover remains from the rubble of the condo tower in Surfside, just outside Miami. A former Montrealer is the first Canadian victim identified. Ingrid ``Itty'' Ainsworth, who was 66, died in the collapse in late June along with her 68-year-old husband. Officials say the death toll stands at 54 with 86 people, including three Canadians, still unaccounted for.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and federal N-D-P Leader JagmeetSingh are in different regions of British Columbia. Trudeau's first stop is a meeting with members of his cabinet'sIncident Response Group in Metro Vancouver to discuss B-C'swildfires and the recent heat wave. B-C is the third province on Trudeau's cross-country tour,following visits to Alberta and Saskatchewan, while Singh launcheshis own tour, starting on Vancouver Island.

Independent MP Jody Wilson-Raybould has announced she will not seek re-election, saying Parliament has become "toxic and ineffective." The former Liberal cabinet minister announced her decision in a letter to constituents of her Vancouver riding that was posted to Twitter this morning. She says she is not leaving to spend more time with family or focus on other challenges, but because of the "disgraceful" emphasis on partisan politics over real action. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed Wilson-Raybould as Canada's first Indigenous justice minister in 2015, but she was booted from the Libe