Cole Schisler

A construction sign on a fence surrounding an excavation indicates the danger is Covid-19 as a construction worker walks past. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Businesses call on WorkSafeBC to rebate $2.9 billion in surplus funds

B.C. is one of three provinces that does not have a rebate policy

A construction sign on a fence surrounding an excavation indicates the danger is Covid-19 as a construction worker walks past. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
Snowpack levels are at an average of 113 per cent above normal across B.C., leading to an increased risk of spring flooding. (Photo: Abbotsford Police Department)

B.C. spring flood risk ‘increased considerably’ due to colder than normal weather

B.C. River Forecast Centre warns that a prolonged heat wave could result in catastrophic flooding

Snowpack levels are at an average of 113 per cent above normal across B.C., leading to an increased risk of spring flooding. (Photo: Abbotsford Police Department)
Award-winning CBC journalist Angela Sterritt (left) will be a mentor for the 2022 Audible Indigenous Writers’ Circle program. Samantha Krilow (right) was a participant in the 2021 program. (Submitted photos)

Applications open for Audible Indigenous Writers’ Circle mentorship program

21 participants will be matched with one of seven mentors in the six-month program

Award-winning CBC journalist Angela Sterritt (left) will be a mentor for the 2022 Audible Indigenous Writers’ Circle program. Samantha Krilow (right) was a participant in the 2021 program. (Submitted photos)
B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry speaks during a COVID-19 update news conference. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

B.C. Supreme Court rules challenge to health worker vaccine mandate can proceed

Province sought to have challenge against the order tossed

B.C. provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry speaks during a COVID-19 update news conference. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
A real estate sign is pictured in Vancouver, B.C. THE CANADIAN PRESS Jonathan Hayward

’Dramatic imbalance’ between supply and demand at core of B.C.’s housing problem: analyst

Rising interest rates likely to have only a temporary cooling effect on housing demand

A real estate sign is pictured in Vancouver, B.C. THE CANADIAN PRESS Jonathan Hayward
Vancouver Police Department headquarters is seen in Vancouver, on Saturday, Jan. 9, 2021. An uptick in random assaults that has been highlighted by the Vancouver police points to bigger problems in the city that may be magnified because of the pandemic, say experts. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Body of young B.C. woman missing since 2020 found in empty Vancouver home

Police say her death was not suspicious

Vancouver Police Department headquarters is seen in Vancouver, on Saturday, Jan. 9, 2021. An uptick in random assaults that has been highlighted by the Vancouver police points to bigger problems in the city that may be magnified because of the pandemic, say experts. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
An architectural rendering of the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology campus and Urban Native Youth Association Centre at Commercial Drive and East Hastings in Vancouver. (Submitted photo)

B.C. funds concept plan of new urban Indigenous education centre

Province will contribute $2.5 million in funding for the business case development of the project

An architectural rendering of the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology campus and Urban Native Youth Association Centre at Commercial Drive and East Hastings in Vancouver. (Submitted photo)
In this Jan. 31, 2018, file photo, a Lyft logo is installed on a Lyft driver’s car next to an Uber sticker. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Women working in gig-economy face harassment, lack of safety support

A study found ‘gender agnostic’ design of apps allows women to be harassed with little recourse

In this Jan. 31, 2018, file photo, a Lyft logo is installed on a Lyft driver’s car next to an Uber sticker. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
FILE: Chilliwack firefighters and paramedics tend to a teenager who was struck by a vehicle outside Chilliwack Secondary. (Paul Henderson/ The Progress)

Cyclists and pedestrians injured in crashes no longer need to pay costs: ICBC

Changes made after cyclists and pedestrians went public with their stories

FILE: Chilliwack firefighters and paramedics tend to a teenager who was struck by a vehicle outside Chilliwack Secondary. (Paul Henderson/ The Progress)
Small business owners are feeling the pinch from inflationary pressures and taxes. (Black Press File Photo)

B.C. small business owners worried about tax bills, inflation

A survey from Ownr found 31 per cent of small business owners are worried about their tax burden

Small business owners are feeling the pinch from inflationary pressures and taxes. (Black Press File Photo)
(Black Press file photo)

$177M in unclaimed funds waiting to be reunited with B.C. owners

The B.C. Unclaimed Property Society says the largest individual unclaimed amount is $1.9 million

(Black Press file photo)
FILE: Four-year-old Jonah Arbez holds a protest sign at a Friday’s Strike for Climate on the steps of Nanaimo City Hall in 2019. (Cole Schisler/Black Press)

Cole’s Notes: It’s hard to be young these days

It won’t be easy to solve our problems, but our futures are worth fighting for

FILE: Four-year-old Jonah Arbez holds a protest sign at a Friday’s Strike for Climate on the steps of Nanaimo City Hall in 2019. (Cole Schisler/Black Press)
New regulations on B.C. shooting ranges will not be moving forward. (File photo)

B.C. drops regulations for shooting ranges from legislation meant to curb gun violence

The B.C. Wildlife Federation says the rules would have shuttered ‘more than 100’ ranges

New regulations on B.C. shooting ranges will not be moving forward. (File photo)
A B.C. Appeals Court Justice has dismissed a class-action lawsuit against WestJet over a company policy requiring certain travel credits to expire after one year. (WestJet Photo)

Flyer beware: B.C. court dismisses lawsuit against WestJet over expired flight credits

Flight credits, unlike prepaid gift cards, can expire Justice Patrice Abrioux ruled

A B.C. Appeals Court Justice has dismissed a class-action lawsuit against WestJet over a company policy requiring certain travel credits to expire after one year. (WestJet Photo)
FILE Members of the RCMP wait for instructions on what to do on the scene of a shots heard call in Surrey, B.C., Friday, May 31, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

Report on reforming B.C.’s Police Act receives mixed reviews

Indigenous leaders applaud the report while other advocates say the report doesn’t go far enough

FILE Members of the RCMP wait for instructions on what to do on the scene of a shots heard call in Surrey, B.C., Friday, May 31, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
Dr. John Madden and Yuta Dobashi with one of the hydrogel sensors. (Kai Jacobson/UBC Faculty of Applied Science)

Gelatin could hold the key to developing electronic ‘smart skins’: UBC study

UBC researchers found that the movement of ions through hydrogels produces electric currents

Dr. John Madden and Yuta Dobashi with one of the hydrogel sensors. (Kai Jacobson/UBC Faculty of Applied Science)
People take part in a rally calling on the federal government to expand the permanent status program to include all refugees, international students, undocumented migrants and temporary foreign workers near Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s constituency office in Montreal, Sunday, May 16, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

Feds extend post-grad work permits for 50,000 students — but advocates say it’s not enough

International students cannot count work experience during their studies toward permanent residency

People take part in a rally calling on the federal government to expand the permanent status program to include all refugees, international students, undocumented migrants and temporary foreign workers near Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s constituency office in Montreal, Sunday, May 16, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
A man wearing a face mask to curb the spread of COVID-19 carries a dog as he and others walk on a trail at Garry Point Park, in Richmond, B.C., on Saturday, January 22, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

570 people currently in B.C. hospitals with COVID-19

47 people are in critical care

A man wearing a face mask to curb the spread of COVID-19 carries a dog as he and others walk on a trail at Garry Point Park, in Richmond, B.C., on Saturday, January 22, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
B.C. Forests Minister Katrine Conroy describes overhaul of forest policy to redistribute Crown timber cutting rights, B.C. legislature, June 1, 2021. (B.C. government photo)

Save Old Growth denies doxxing B.C. forests minister, but says she should be arrested

Minister Katrine Conroy said protesters have been leaving her and her family harassing voicemails

B.C. Forests Minister Katrine Conroy describes overhaul of forest policy to redistribute Crown timber cutting rights, B.C. legislature, June 1, 2021. (B.C. government photo)
Ukrainian refugees walk along vehicles lining up to cross the border from Ukraine into Moldova, at Mayaky-Udobne crossing border point near Udobne, Ukraine, Saturday, Feb. 26, 2022. The U.N. refugee agency says nearly 120,000 people have so far fled Ukraine into neighbouring countries in the wake of the Russian invasion. The number was going up fast as Ukrainians grabbed their belongings and rushed to escape from a deadly Russian onslaught. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)

‘This is what B.C. does’: Minister Cullen commends community response to Ukrainian refugees

Donations, accommodations, and work opportunities flow freely for refugees in B.C.

Ukrainian refugees walk along vehicles lining up to cross the border from Ukraine into Moldova, at Mayaky-Udobne crossing border point near Udobne, Ukraine, Saturday, Feb. 26, 2022. The U.N. refugee agency says nearly 120,000 people have so far fled Ukraine into neighbouring countries in the wake of the Russian invasion. The number was going up fast as Ukrainians grabbed their belongings and rushed to escape from a deadly Russian onslaught. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)