From dancing cops and Golden meteors to floods, fires and COVID, here’s a look at the most popular Black Press articles of 2021.
1. Whales appear during Indigenous ceremony for 215 children in Campbell River
The 7 Generations Steward Society had a surprise during a small ceremony they held to commemorate the 215 children found buried at the Kamloops Residential School.
2. Meteor gives Golden woman late night shock
Golden, B.C. resident Ruth Hamilton awoke to a bang and a rock as big as her fist on her pillow.
3. Video of dancing cops in Vanderhoof goes viral
Vanderhoof RCMP entertained thousands after a video of their coordinated dance moves went viral.
4. Abbotsford farmer among first in B.C. to grow and harvest ‘world’s most expensive spice’
An Abbotsford farm has become the first in the Fraser Valley – and one of a few in Canada – to grow and sell the flower that produces the world’s most expensive spice.
5. Oak Bay resident uses notes to claim street parking
A woman who parks her car on the street near her workplace in south Oak Bay has had about half a dozen notes put on her car from a resident claiming it’s in front of their house.
6. Company has B.C. operating licence suspended after truck caught driving dangerously on Hwy 5A
The company behind the commercial truck caught on camera driving dangerously on Highway 5A last week has had its licence suspended by the B.C. government.
7. Burns Lake man grabs lynx by scruff after chickens attacked
A Burns Lake man is turning heads after taking a lynx by the scruff after it broke in and attacked his chicken coop.
8. 3 separate slides close Coquihalla, Highway 1 and 7
Three separate slides closed the Coquihalla and Hwy. 1 just north east of the Lower Mainland after an unprecedented atmospheric river on Nov. 14.
9. ‘Cocaine bananas’ arrive at Kelowna grocery stores after mix up from Colombia: RCMP
The RCMP has concluded an almost two-year-long international drug investigation after finding nearly two dozen bricks of cocaine in bananas shipped to Central Okanagan grocers in February 2019.
10. Bikers pay respects at Maple Ridge funeral for Hells Angels chapter president
Riders from motorcycle clubs across Canada attended the Langley service for the president of the Haney chapter of the Hells Angels, Mike Hadden on Saturday, Sept. 4.
11. ‘Bad-ass dude that took on a grizzly bear’ doesn’t let 2019 B.C. attack bring him down
It’s been nearly two years since Colin Dowler freed himself from the claws and teeth of a grizzly bear using a pocket knife.
12. Dash-cam footage captures semi on Highway 1 in Salmon Arm running red light
“We saw him barrelling down the highway and we said, he’s not going to stop. I laid on the horn for a good 10 seconds and he blew right by us,” Salmon Arm resident Phaedra Idzan said.
13. South Surrey senior who went to U.S. to buy gas hit with $5,700 fine
A South Surrey grandmother thought she was doing the right thing by going into the U.S. to buy gasoline after the B.C. government placed a 30-litre limit on the amount of fuel drivers are allowed to purchase at one time.
Instead, Marlane Jones was hit with a $5,700 fine.
14. ‘Tiger Dam’ being built on Highway 1 in Abbotsford to hold back floodwaters
The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure built a “Tiger Dam” across Highway 1 on Nov. 28 to try to keep floodwaters in the Sumas River.
15. Illegal pet pig in Chilliwack dies hours after being re-homed
A family who owned a pet pig in downtown Chilliwack received some tragic news after they were forced to re-home him due to a violation of a Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD) bylaw.
16. Chilliwack school trustee asked to resign by peers, lights up cigarette in meeting
Chilliwack school board asked Barry Neufeld to resign due to a controversial Facebook post. In the same meeting, Neufeld lit a cigarette, drank wine and appeared to fall asleep.
17. Orca pod returns to the Broughton Archipelago for first time in more than 20 years
After more than 20 years a celebrated orca family has ventured back into an old haunt near the North Island.
18. First Nations teen set to block destructive tourists from Tofino-Ucluelet wilderness area
Frustrated by the amount of destruction and disrespect he’s seen in his First Nation’s territory this summer, Tla-o-qui-aht member Timmy Masso is planning to block tourists from accessing West Main Forest Service Road on Tuesday.
19. 290 homes in Princeton under evacuation as flooding causes chaos
Two hundred and ninety homes were hurriedly placed on evacuation order late Sunday night, Nov. 14.
20. PAW Patrol to the rescue: dollar store helmet saves two-year-old from eagle attack
It was PAW Patrol to the rescue for an adventure-attracting Loon Lake two-year-old and Felix the cat, who presumably only has eight lives left after a potentially nasty eagle encounter was averted by a dollar store helmet.
21. Footage shows homes, buildings up in flames as wildfire races through Lytton
Footage taken through Lytton shows mass destruction in wake of a quick-moving fire that raced through the central B.C. town Wednesday, amid a provincial heat wave that saw national record-breaking temperatures.
22. Well-known Chilliwack homeless man says ‘thank you’ to firefighters for building him a shelter
James has been living on the streets of Chilliwack for years. He has been sleeping on Vedder Road, on the sidewalk outside the BC Liquor Store in Sardis.
But on Thursday (Feb. 11) James had a new place to sleep.
23. Dozens of vehicles burning at RV holding centre in Abbotsford
Hundreds of RVs were on fire at the site near the flooded Highway 1, just east of Whatcom Road. Plumes of thick black toxic smoke could be seen from miles away, with fire crews being hampered from getting closer to the scene due to flooding in the area.
24. Bobcat frozen to train track near Trail rescued by a train conductor
A little bobcat was enjoying his breakfast of duck just outside Trail when he froze to the train track he’d been sitting on. Lucky for the cat, a train crew spotted him and came to the rescue.
25. White Rock Lake wildfire grows to 55,000 hectares
The summer’s massive White Rock Lake wildfire led to the evacuation of entire communities.
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