British Columbia is getting a new phone area code next year.
The 2-5-7 area code will be introduced gradually starting May 24th.
It follows a decision by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission aimed at meeting the growing demand for new phone numbers.
Kelly Walsh with the Canadian Numbering Administrator says the addition of a new area code creates millions of additional phone numbers
Police in Agassiz say a man has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of a woman in a case of possible intimate partner violence. Mounties say police were called to a home at the Seabird Island Band in April and found a 33-year-old woman dead at the scene.
Jagmeet Singh is delivering a message of hope today in his first speech following the NDP's exit from its supply and confidence deal with the minority Liberals. But the NDP leader acknowledges one of the party's biggest challenges will be persuading Canadians it can actually form government.
A third BC United legislator has declared his candidacy as an Independent in the Oct. 19 provincial election. Dan Davies, first elected in 2017 in the Peace River North riding, says if elected this fall he could become a "powerbroker" in a potential minority government situation.
The union's local chapter in Prince George says in a statement that about 325 of the 500 workers at the Plateau mill in Vanderhoof and Canfor's Fort St. John operation belong to United Steelworkers. The statement says the union membership was "devastated" to hear Canfor's announcement on Wednesday that the mills would close by the end of this year, removing 670 million board feet of annual production capacity.
B.C. Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau has announced an election policy to make all public transit in the province free. She says the policy, released ahead of the fall provincial vote, would relieve financial strain on families, create more livable communities and reduce carbon emissions.
British Columbia says its current supply of COVID-19 vaccines will remain available until new formulations are approved, unlike other provinces that say they're following instructions from the Public Health Agency of Canada to remove and destroy existing doses. A spokesman for the provincial health officer says B.C. residents are encouraged to wait for the updated COVID vaccines if possible, but people can still get last season's shots if they need them.