A second pro-Palestinian protest camp has been set up at a university in B-C, two days after the establishment of the first camp at U-B-C in Vancouver. Protesters say students at the new encampment at the University of Victoria are demanding that the school divest itself from investments linked to Israel.
The British Columbia government is spending more money to recruit and retain health-science workers, especially those in rural and remote communities. Health Minister Adrian Dix says $155.7 million has been set aside at a time when B.C. has a "significantly increasing population" and more skilled health-care staff are needed, particularly in remote communities.
The province is one year into a three-year pilot project to decriminalize possession of small amounts of certain illegal drugs, including heroin, fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine. A Health Canada exemption was issued to allow the pilot to proceed. Last week, B.C. Premier David Eby asked Health Canada to recriminalize the use of those drugs in public spaces, such as hospitals and parks. Possession in private spaces would still
Citizens' Services Minister Terry Beech says 1,200 seniors have already visited a dentist and had their claims processed by the federal government's new dental care plan. He says 1 million seniors received their benefits card and are eligible to make claims under the program as of today.
Police say a 44-year-old woman has been arrested in a hate-crime investigation over a speech in Vancouver that praised the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel. A statement from the Vancouver Police Department says the woman "referred to a number of terrorist organizations as heroes."
A Transportation Safety Board report says experience, recent training and safety equipment were key factors in a pilot surviving the crash of a firefighting plane south of Cranbrook in August 2022. The report says the pilot was alone in the Air Tractor AT-802A aircraft and had just finished his eighth water drop when the engine suddenly lost power, with no time to recover because of the low altitude.