Daily News Update from CHLY 101.7FM

Tuesday COVID-19 updateIsland Health continues to fare poorly in terms of recent pandemic numbers. 39 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in the past 24 hours and one more death. There are 260 active cases currently and so far there have been 23 deaths in our region. Health orders lay the groundwork for mass vaccination clinicsThe Provincial Health officer has issued a new health order, to allow more people to help run the mass vaccination clinics that are being planned for next month. The Provincial Health Office order will allow dentists, pharmacy technicians, paramedics, retired nurses and midwives to either administer vaccines or assist with duties like monitoring people for side effects or assisting elders at the clinics. Dr. Bonnie Henry says plans are underway to set up 172 clinics across the province with up to 500 staff in each health region."We are moving forward and doing a lot of work behind the scenes to make sure that the systems in our health authorities across the province, we have the tools and resources to take on this incredible and significant task. So we are very excited to be able to have the workforce that we are going to need over the next six months to ensure that we can get vaccine into as many people as wanted as efficiently as possible."—Chief Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry.Henry says more details about the mass vaccination clinics will be presented next Monday. Police act needs reforms to protect children and youthBC's Advocate for Children and Youth is urging the province to change the Police Act to help young people in crisis. Jennifer Charlesworth presented a series of recommendations to an all-party committee that is tasked with reforming BC's 50-year-old Police Act. Charlesworth says young and vulnerable children have frequent contact with police because of domestic violence, sexual exploitation, child neglect, drug addiction and mental health breakdowns, but police are not always equipped to do the best for these children. “Currently, police are now having to do work that was never envisioned as policing, because other systems are falling short. And not only are systems falling short, but police are not trained or prepared to do the work they're now being called upon to do in a good way. So children and youth who are living with vulnerabilities are experiencing interactions with police at very young ages, and when they may be at their most vulnerable.”—BC's Advocate for Children and Youth, Jennifer Charlesworth.Charlesworth is asking the committee to involve young people in its consultations. She is also asking that all police be trained in trauma-informed practice and that there be specialized training in child development for officers who have the most contact with children. The all-party committee is expected to present its report and recommendations to the legislature in mid-May.

Mayor emphasizes cost will not be borne by the city aloneIt's been more than a year in the making, but Nanaimo City Council has approved the recommendations from its Health and Housing Task Force. The plan includes the creation of a funders' table, made up of representatives from groups like BC Housing, Island Health, Vancouver Island University, the City of Nanaimo, Snuneymuxw First Nation and others. Its goal will be to contribute $65 and a half million dollars over five years on housing and health supports for Nanaimo's most vulnerable populations. Mayor Leonard Krog points out the financial burden will not be borne by city taxpayers."I want to emphasize, the City of Nanaimo is not budgeting itself $65.5 million dollars, but we are certainly going to ask the levels of government that have the jurisdiction and legal responsibility to step up to the plate and coordinate their spending in a way that effectively uses significant monies that have already been spent and are being spent with not much improvement in sight for a number of our fellow citizens, we estimate over 600, who are without housing in Nanaimo."—City of Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog.The next step includes the creation of a self-sustaining group, made up of social service agencies, government representatives and others, to implement the Health and Housing Plan and to attract and coordinate the funding for various projects. The chair of the task force and city councillor Don Bonner says he's confident in that model."The work that we're going to start out on, cannot be done by one organization alone. And I think that coming out of this task force and this report, we now how the groundwork for a very good partnership, where we will create a made-in-Nanaimo solution to what is afflicting the most vulnerable in our town."—City of Nanaimo Councillor Don Bonner.The city has set aside $300,000 for this work during 2021. It expects other funders will contribute to what will eventually become a million dollar a year budget for the group.Winter coats for the homelessMeanwhile, homeless people in Nanaimo may be feeling a little more comfortable these days, thanks to a donation of winter coats. Dodd's Furniture store on Uplands Drive has collected forty coats so far, and it continues to take donations of gently used coats, hats, scarves and gloves. The winter wear is being distributed by the 7-10 club and the Society for Equity, Inclusion and Advocacy. Both groups are also offering warming centres that are open 10 a.m. till 4 p.m. Monday to Saturday at 489 Wallace and seven days a week at 285 Prideaux. Vancouver Island Regional Library online services down during upgradesOnline library users will not be able to access services for most of today. The Vancouver Island Regional Library system is undergoing upgrades until 5 p.m. That means library users will not be able to log into their account to place holds, renew items or access any e-resources like the online catalogue. However, library branches will be open for checkouts although there will be no access to public internet computers.

Monday COVID-19 updateCOVID-19 cases counts spiked in the Island Health region over the weekend, with 99 new cases reported since Friday. 63 are on the Central Island, 13 in the south and 23 in the north. 16 people are in hospital and one Islander, a member of the Cowichan Tribes has died. So far in the pandemic, 24 islanders have died from COVID-19.Vaccination delayed for Cowichan TribesMeanwhile, the Cowichan Tribes has been forced to delay a planned vaccination clinic because of a shortage of Pfizer vaccine. The Director of the Ts'ewulhtun Health Centre says 600 Cowichan Tribes members were scheduled to receive their second dose of vaccine at clinics that were supposed to begin today. Derek Thompson says that plan changed over the weekend when Island Health informed the community its vaccine shipment was delayed."It's disappointing but we also understand our community, like every nation and municipality across the province, are in the same queue awaiting the vaccine and like many nations and municipalities across the province we know that that time frame is going to shift here and there are we are ready to respond accordingly."—Derek Thompson, Director of the Ts'ewulhtun Health Centre.Thompson says the clinics have been postponed for two weeks until March the 8th. He says that's how long it will take to reschedule those receiving the vaccine and the availability of those who will administer them.Gaps in complaints process allows no recourse against IIO or civilian employees of RCMPBC's Ombudsperson says people who feel mistreated by guards at RCMP lockups or by BC's Independent Investigations Office have no formal recourse to make a complaint. Jay Chalke says his office is not allowed to investigate any complaints against police officers' conduct, however, there are agencies that do. But he says there is no process at all for people who want to file complaints against civilian employees who work for the RCMP, including guards at holding cells in RCMP detachments. Chalke urged a legislative committee that's examining BC's Police Act to fill that gap."This gap concerns the most significant intervention the state can make in an individual's life: the deprivation of their liberty. The circumstances and issues here implicate fundamental human rights and international law."—BC's Ombudsperson Jay Chalke.Chalke says people detained under the mental health act also have no recourse to complain, nor does anyone who is unhappy with how BC's Independent Investigations Office has handled investigations into police-involved injuries and deaths."I want to point out that there is no independent investigation of the complaints process set out in the regulation, and therefore no public accountability for how complaints are handled."—BC's Ombudsperson Jay Chalke.Chalke says BC's Solicitor General has acknowledged the gaps but so far, has not offered any legislative or regulatory changes.

Legal petition filed by West Moberly First Nation regarding Site CThe former chair of the Joint Review Panel into Site C says it's time to draw back the veil of secrecy surrounding the ten and a half-billion-dollar project, the largest ever in BC's history. Harry Swain says the cost of the project represents twice the amount of revenue it will collect over twenty years. He points out BC Hydro has not filed its last two quarterly reports into Site C's progress with the BC Utilities Commission, and the Premier has refused to release two independent reports into whether the dam can be built safely."I think Mr. Horgan is in quite a dilemma right now. If all the advice that he's been getting from BC Hydro, from consultants and so on was to the effect: 'yes this can be safely built, yes the price is going to be acceptable. If that were the case, there would be no secrecy, there would be no reports out back. we would have had an announcement by now about where we're going to go. and the fact that it's taken this long means it's highly controversial within the government because those assurances aren't there.”—Harry Swain, former chair of the Joint Review Panel into Site C. Meanwhile, the West Moberly First Nation has filed a legal petition to force the government to release that information. Roland Willson is also urging Horgan to suspend work on the dam until cabinet makes a decision on the project. The Premier has not responded.Province focused on the culturally safe delivery of COVID-19 vaccine for First NationsBC's Provincial Health Officer is promising Metis people that health officials are working on ensuring the COVID-19 vaccine rollout will be a culturally safe experience. Dr. Bonnie Henry spoke at a panel discussion at the annual general meeting of Metis Nation British Columbia over the weekend. She said officials are planning for 172 vaccination clinics that will begin mid-March. The acting Chief Medical Officer for the First Nations Health Authority says it is in discussions with the province on how to make mass vaccination clinics culturally safe. Dr. Shannon McDonald says clinics on reserves have including blessings of the vaccine and the time needed to ensure those receiving them feel confident about what's happening to them."I know the province's goal is to maximize the number of people that can be vaccinated, but we also want to make sure that the people who walk in the door are happy with what happened when they're inside the doors before they go home.”—Acting Chief Medical Officer for the First Nations Health Authority, Dr. Shannon McDonald.Metis and other Indigenous people ages 65 and up will be eligible to get their shots at the same time as clinics begin for non-indigenous people over the age of 80.

Friday COVID-19 updateThere are 22 new cases of COVID-19 in the Island Health region. Province-wide, there has been another large increase with 508 new cases and six more deaths.Vaccination will lead to increased access to family in long-term careBC's Minister of Health says despite vaccine delays, the province will immunize all citizens over the age of 80 by the end of March. Adrian Dix says starting March the 1st, British Columbians over the age of 80 who receive home care will begin receiving vaccine, and others in that age group who are not connected to health care programs will start receiving vaccine on March 15th. Dix says almost all seniors in long term and assisted living will receive their second dose of vaccine this month. He says that means it won't be long before visiting restrictions now in place will be lifted."What we hope is going to change soon in long-term care, what we hope is going to change soon in assisted living, we believe in the month of March where people are going to have more access, not less and more opportunities to engage and not less."—Minister of Health Adrian Dix.Dix notes COVID-19 outbreaks in care homes have declined from 59 in December to 14 today is a result of immunity that residents have with the first dose of vaccine.Replacement of NDSS highlighted in school district planNanaimo District Secondary School is at the end of its useful life and desperately needs to be replaced. That's one recommendation in Nanaimo-Ladysmith Public School's latest long-range facility plan. The report says the school needs significant maintenance, is a high priority for seismic upgrades and is environmentally unfriendly. The school district's secretary-treasurer, Mark Walsh, identifying NDSS in the plan is meant to send a message.“It's our number one seismic priority, it's end of life, school districts around the province are getting replacement schools right now, and NDSS, this again is a message to our community, to the ministry, to political partners, that this needs to happen.“—Mark Walsh SD-68 Secretary-Treasurer.The plan also projects other schools could be seriously overcrowded in the next 10 years. Dover Bay Secondary and Pleasant Valley Elementary are already feeling the strain and are predicted to reach more than 180 per cent capacity by 2030. Walsh is recommending developers pay a School Site Acquisition Charge to help fund expansion."We are certain, at least in Nanaimo and Lantzville, that the school site acquisition charge is an absolute slam dunk. There's hundreds of thousands of dollars waiting for the district to go collect from development."—Mark Walsh SD-68 Secretary-Treasurer.The next step is for the board to discuss the plan with the community.

City of Nanaimo, Nanaimo RCMP, and VIU criminology students team up to conduct neighbourhood safety auditsThe City of Nanaimo, the RCMP and student criminologists from Vancouver Island University are teaming up with selected neighbourhoods to help make them safer. The group is preparing to conduct safety audits. Nanaimo's community policing coordinator, Christy Wood says the audits are a response to what citizens have been asking for."Community members wanted to have a voice, and they wanted to not feel helpless and feel empowered to build some resiliency in their neighbourhoods and communicate their concerns to those social service agencies and local decision-makers about what was happening for them in their neighbourhood."—City of Nanaimo Community Policing Coordinator, Christy Wood. The process is underway, with a crime analyst crunching statistics about the type of crimes committed and the harms they cause in various neighbourhoods. Census data and anecdotal information is also being collected to select neighbourhoods that need the most help. Wood says after that, local surveys will measure the perception of neighbourhood crime and the level of fear people are feeling. The team will present a final audit report to the neighbourhoods and to decision-makers and organizations in late March or early April. The audits will include what can be done to address the safety issues in each neighbourhood and identify partnerships to implement the recommendations. Decline in enrollment cited as a factor, Ministry of Advanced Education approves deficitsVancouver Island University says a decline in student enrolment and extra costs due to COVID-19 has led to a deficit in the current fiscal year and will likely lead to another deficit next year. The university says international student enrolment dropped by 34 per cent while domestic enrolment dipped by 13 per cent. It says pivoting to online instruction and extra cleaning has also affected the bottom line. VIU is not alone. That's why the Ministry of Advanced Education is allowing post-secondary institutions to run deficits. VIU's Provost, Carole Stuart says post-secondary institutions would have preferred increased funding from the Ministry."You're speaking to the converted [laughs] we have tried."The Ministry says colleges and universities will have to dip into their reserves to pay for the deficits. Stuart won't reveal the projected size of the deficit for 2020-2021, but she says dipping into reserves will have a long-lasting impact."While we can accommodate that over the next two years and deal with it we also have to come up with a deficit recovery plan so that means we'll be running very lean for the next two years in order to do that."—VIU Provost, Carole Stuart.Stuart says at best, running deficits will allow the university to keep its focus on students and programming, while areas like building maintenance take a back seat.

Shelter in place order extended by Cowichan TribesThe Cowichan Tribes has extended its shelter in place order until March the 5th in the wake of two deaths from COVID-19 last weekend. Chief William Seymour delivered the news on social media that the two people who died were young adults. They were in their 30s with pre-existing health conditions. Seymour says their deaths underline the danger the virus presents."It's not only a high risk disease for our elders. We all need to be careful and to take it seriously. I am asking you, please, get tested at the first sign of symptoms. If you catch this virus early you will have a much better chance of recovering from it."—Cowichan Tribes Chief William Seymour.There are currently 14 active cases of COVID-19 among the Tribes. CTV News is reporting there will be a delivery of 600 doses of Pfizer vaccine to Cowichan Tribes next week, which will allow elders to receive their second doses. Meanwhile, the Snuneymuxw nation, near Nanaimo has wrapped up two days of second dose vaccinations for 300 of its members. Chief Mike Wyse says there is one active case of the virus on reserve and two others off-reserve. Thursday COVID-19 updateMeanwhile, BC has hit its highest daily new case count since early January, with 617 new cases and four deaths. There are 19 new cases of COVID-19 in the Island Health region, bringing the total active cases to 169 on Vancouver Island.City of Nanaimo to vote on the creation of SPO on MondayNanaimo city council will be asked on Monday, to give its blessing for the next steps toward the goal of providing a range of housing and other supports for vulnerable people. The city's Health and Housing Task Force has completed its work with a Health and Housing Action Plan. Step one is to create an entity to implement it. That entity, a Systems Planning Organization, or SPO, would be responsible for a number of duties. Task Force co-chair and city councillor Don Bonner says the SPO's main job would be to coordinate the needs of existing social service organizations with the funding agencies."If we all sit down and coordinate the work that they're doing, and we create a coordinated ask to the province and the feds, we will be successful in getting the money that we need in making a serious dent in this issue...and we'll have a lot less homeless people on the street and when people are approaching homelessness, there will be a lot more services to help them out.”—City of Nanaimo Counsillor Don Bonner.The SPO is also expected to attract members to what's being called a "funders' table," made up of groups like BC Housing, Island Health, local government and the Snuneymuxw First Nation. And the SPO must come up with self-sustaining funding. In its first year, it will be mostly funded through a $300,000 dollar contribution from the city. The recommendations to accept the Task Force Report and to create a working group to design the SPO goes to council on Monday.

Henry cites delay in vaccine delivery for late second doseThousands of seniors and long-term care workers in BC will not be getting their second dose of anti-COVID-19 vaccines before the 42-day maximum recommended interval. More than 30,000 seniors in care and 30,000 care workers in BC have received their first dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. As of the end of January, less than half of 1% had received their second dose. At that time, BC's provincial health officer said because of a shortage of vaccine, the dates between doses would be extended from the 21 to 28 days recommended by the manufacturers to 42 days, which is the maximum recommended by Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization. Earlier this week, Dr. Bonnie Henry revealed the 42 day extended interval period will not be met in all cases."The Pfizer vaccine most people are still within the 42 days, at least starting to get second doses at day 42. We have some challenges with Moderna because the amount we are getting next week is lower than expected, so there will be some people will be delayed, so it's in the range of four to six thousand for both."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Henry says she is confident people will not lose their immunity to the virus because of the delay. She says although there are no studies to prove this with the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, she says the history of vaccine efficacy shows people can go for months between doses without losing immunity.Provincial Government loosens restrictions for COVID-19 recovery grantBC's Minister of Labour is sweetening the pot, in an effort to entice more small and medium-sized businesses to apply for a COVID-19 recovery grant. Businesses can be granted up to $30,000 and tourism businesses, up to $45,000 but so far, less than a third of the $300 million dollar pot of cash has been accessed. The province changed the criteria for the grants in December to enable more businesses to qualify. Now, Ravi Kahlon is hoping to remove another barrier to business, namely the need to create a business plan to qualify."So we've streamlined the process. The amount of paperwork you are required to submit is minimal. And the biggest change I think now, is that now you can go to your own bookkeeper, you can go to your own accountant to have them do the work and we will pay them to do the work for you. So they will do your business recovery plan, and they will submit it for the money and we will pay them up to $2000 for the work they're doing."—Minister of Labour Ravi Kahlon.But, larger businesses, including Victoria-based Harbour Air have complained they don't qualify because they employ more than 150 people. Kalon is promising a new program for them will be introduced soon.

Wednesday COVID-19 updateThere has been another death from COVID-19 in the Island Health region. It's the third death this week, bringing the total number of COVID-19 fatalities in our region to 23. Island Health is reporting 18 new cases of the virus over the past 24 hours, while the province is reporting 427 new cases and 3 deaths.Ladysmith approves BC Housing projectLadysmith council has cleared the way for BC Housing to turn the Island Hotel on First Avenue into a homeless shelter for the duration of the pandemic. BC Housing and the Ladysmith Resources Centre Association plan to open a 15-bed shelter that has space for physical distancing. The current shelter in the Rialto building had to reduce capacity from 10 beds to five due to COVID-19 precautions. Mayor Aaron Stone says the new shelter could help lead some to find permanent housing.“Creating trust and a welcoming space is step one to getting them into an opportunity to have a connection with somebody that could lead to better things. I know that through the shelter and through the tenting site that was temporary through the summer we were actually fortunate to find a couple homeless in our community more stable long-term housing.“—Town of Ladysmith Mayor Aaron Stone.Councillor Duck Patterson, who ran for the BC Liberals in the last election, opposed the application and suggested the old hospital site would be better."Having a temporary homeless shelter there will probably cause the same feelings that this application has caused by the neighbours but for me it is a bit of an easier pill to swallow than kicking our downtown merchants and residents while they are still down."—Town of Ladysmith Councillor Duck Patterson.The current cold-weather shelter at the Rialto building is scheduled to close at the end of March.Deputy Fire Chief is promotedNanaimo's Deputy Fire Chief will take the helm as the new Fire Chief. Tim Doyle has been with Nanaimo Fire Rescue for the past 20 years and has been Acting Chief since the new year when the former Chief Karen Fry became Vancouver's fire chief. Doyle will officially begin his tenure next Monday.Nanaimo creator wins film prizeAnd finally—Sound Clip—That's The Short Lebowski, a one-minute movie of a movie that has won a Nanaimo man the fan favourite prize in a contest that had close to 350 entrants. Todd Cameron is a local filmmaker who used plastic dolls and home-made sets in his stop motion production. Cameron estimates it took 70 hours to produce his one-minute masterpiece, which he says is a labour of love."It's all stuff that I really love doing. Most of the time it was using my hands in a way that's fun for me so it was just kind of a cool opportunity to use some of the toys that I have."You can watch The Short Lebowski on YouTube or on the CFOX-FM website, which sponsored the contest.

Fraser Valley churches to be heard by BC Supreme CourtBC's Provincial Health Officer has lost her bid for an injunction against three Fraser Valley churches that continue to defy COVID-19 rules banning in-person religious gatherings. Dr. Bonnie Henry applied for the injunction in response to the churches launching a legal challenge to her orders. But the chief justice of the BC Supreme Court has turned down the request. Justice Christopher Hinkson says the health orders already prohibit in-person religious services and Henry and the province have the power to escalate enforcement. Earlier this week, Henry said she isn't sure about that."My ability to under the public health act, to add additional measures to the orders, I don't think. I'm not aware that I have that authority, let's put it that way. But I think it is important that we needed to ensure that people realized that while the court challenge that the churches brought was being heard, that these rules still apply."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.The larger court challenge to the health orders by the Riverside Calvary Chapel in Langley, the Immanuel Covenant Reformed Church in Abbotsford and the Free Reformed Church of Chilliwack will be heard next month.Social service agencies impacted by pandemicAn interim report on the effects of the pandemic on social service agencies has found some good and some bad. Researchers from the Department of Social Work at Vancouver Island University interviewed representatives from eleven social service groups in greater Nanaimo last September. They found the organizations felt they were thrown into chaos when the pandemic was declared last March. The agencies had to respond to dramatic shutdowns, public health orders, and local directives they say changed from one day to the next. In the months that followed, some organizations were able to resume some in-person services. Many said they benefited from having time to train employees in online services and to collaborate with others to share best practices. The report found the organizations were grateful that emergency funding did not come with strings attached. That allowed them to act on what was urgently needed but not predicted. However, researcher Holly Bradley says some challenges remain unresolved."Who is becoming invisible? Not everyone is getting the same kind of service through remote service delivery. Not everyone is able to access it. Not everyone has access to free internet, to cell plans with phone minutes, with internet data, so there is that awareness that there are gaps, that there are people falling through the cracks, that there are needs that are not being met."—Survey Researcher Holly Bradley.Bradley and her research partner, Jeanette Schmid hope to delve into that topic in the next round of research that begins next month when they re-interview the agencies' representatives. Their final report is planned for September.

Nanaimo a COVID-19 hotspotThe Nanaimo region has now become the epicentre of the pandemic on Vancouver Island. Cases of COVID-19 in greater Nanaimo more than doubled last week. The BC Center for Disease Control is reporting 94 new cases of the virus in the Nanaimo region on the week ending February 6th, compared to 45 the week before. Meanwhile, the number of cases in Cowichan Valley South, which had experienced high numbers due to an outbreak in the Cowichan Tribes has fallen dramatically. The case count declined from 53 during the week of Jan. 24, to 22 cases the week after that.No evidence gay Qualicum Beach councillor was harassed: reportA report into allegations of mistreatment made by a Qualicum Beach councillor has found no evidence of discrimination, bullying or harassment. Councillor Robert Filmer claimed he was the victim of such conduct at the hands of his council colleagues. A report by Innova Strategy Group acknowledged there were strained relations on council. However, it found no evidence of discrimination against the 22-year-old openly gay councillor. Filmer posted his reaction to the report on his Facebook page. He questions the report's findings and accuses council of victim shaming, instead of improving their relationship. Filmer who is on a leave of absence has not said whether he will return to Qualicum Beach council.‘Godmother of dub‘ to speak at VIUVancouver Island University is welcoming a two-time JUNO Award winner and dub poet at a virtual event this evening. Lillian Allen will deliver the annual Gustafson Distinguished Poet Lecture. The chair of VIU's creative writing and journalism department, Sonnet L'Abbe says Allen was selected for her important contributions to poetry in Canada and around the world."She's the godmother of dub poetry. Dub poetry is an entire form that emerged in Jamaica out of reggae but spread around the globe very quickly in the 70s. It has had an influence on pop on reggae itself and on spoken word culture. So it is the roots of a lot of forms of poetry that are popular right now. The kind of cadence that you heard Amanda Gordon use at the inauguration has connections to dub poetry. Lillian Allen is a huge figure and we are really excited to have her"—Sonnet L'Abbé, chair of VIU's creative writing and journalism department.Allen agrees Gorman's reading at the inauguration was an important moment for spoken word poetry.“It is a validation and a celebration of the voice, and especially that she's a young person, and crafting her terms and our words, in such a fine way to touch people and to bring people together, idealistic as it might be, that's the work of poetry, that's the work of the soul."—Lillian Allen, Distinguished Gustafson Distinguished Poet.Allen's lecture begins at 5 p.m. on Thursday. You can register by clicking on this link.

New in this update:Monday COVID-19 updateCOVID-19 cases in BC continue with an average of just over 400 new cases per day with 1236 new cases confirmed since Friday and 13 more deaths. In the Island Health Region, there were 86 new cases confirmed over the past three days, most of which continue to be on the central island. It leads with 168 active cases, followed by the south island with 63 and the north with 9. The provincial health officer says number of cases of the UK and South African variants continues to increase. So far, there have been 25 cases of the UK variant in BC including four in the Island Health region. There are 15 cases of the South African variant confirmed in the Fraser and Vancouver Coastal health regions. Dr. Bonnie Henry says the province is planning more testing to try to figure out how prevalent the variants are."It does change the game in some ways if it starts to take off and become dominant in the community. And I think all of us are dreading that and right now we need to take actions and figure out how to assess how many cases we have, how much of a risk it is. Similar to what Ontario did where they tested they ran a screening test and did whole-genome sequencing on a whole day's worth of tests and we will be doing that as well so we have a better understanding of are we catching people or is there more out there that we're missing?"—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Henry says of the 40 variants of concern cases in BC, just three are currently active.Development permits applied forBC Housing has started the ball rolling on two supportive housing facilities it announced more than a year ago. It has applied for development permits for 285 Prideaux Street which is the site of the city-owned Community Services Building and for 702 Nicol Street, which is currently a vacant lot, owned by BC Housing. 50 supportive housing units are planned at Prideaux Street for people who are homeless or are at risk of homelessness. A four-storey facility is planned for Nicol Street with 59 supportive housing units for people requiring special care. During a public information meeting last August, the city's Manager of Development, Dale Lindsay, explained how the development permit process works."So a development permit process is looking in this case primarily at the form and character of the building and make sure it fits into the context of the neighbourhood. As part of that process, we do early notification to the neighbourhood and to the community. We also take the step of sending applications to neighbourhood associations so that they can provide comments and depending on the development permit, may ultimately go to council for approval."—City of Nanaimo Manager of Development, Dale Lindsay.Both sites are already zoned for those uses. However, the development permit application for the Nicol Street project is expected to come before council at its meeting on February the 22nd.

Friday COVID-19 updateThere are 28 new cases of COVID-19 on Vancouver Island today and 471 new cases across British Columbia. Six people have died of Covid since yesterday for a total of 1,246 deaths since the start of the pandemic. Health orders extended indefinitely as infections slowly decreaseThe provincial health officer is holding out a carrot at the same time she is extending health orders. Dr. Bonnie Henry says the ban on social gatherings and events will remain in place indefinitely. She says B.C.'s COVID-19 infection rate is slowly decreasing but remains high among those in the 20 to 29 year age group. And, she worries that more transmissible variants could take off. But B.C.'s top doc is holding out hope that churches, sports teams and the safe-six bubble could be back in place by the beginning of March, but she says certain things have to happen first."Case rates are an important piece of it. Looking at outbreaks is an important piece. Looking at whether these variants are taking off and increasing so part of it is having that more detailed, multilayered surveillance in place. So it is all of the above and it is also making sure that we are starting on that road to be able to protect those who are most at risk in the communities."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Henry says much will depend on B.C.'s vaccination program ramping up in the third week of February.Stay at home order extended until February 19th for Cowichan TribesMeanwhile, the Cowichan Tribes has extended its shelter in place order. The order requires people to stay at home, prevents people from visiting, and people can only venture out for essential reasons, like medical appointments and groceries. The order, which has been in place for over a month, has been extended until February the 19th. The nation reported 181 cases in total as last week. It decided not to post numbers this week, out of respect for those mourning a person who died from the virus last week.COVID-19 exposures and anxiety on the rise in Nanaimo schoolsIsland Health is reporting COVID-19 exposures at two more schools. Brechin Elementary and Nanaimo District Secondary join the list of nine schools with exposures on the central Island. Three other schools, Barsby, Rock City and Qwam Qwum Stuwixwulh are experiencing clusters, meaning there has been at least one COVID-19 transmission within the school itself. The grievance officer for the Nanaimo Teachers Association, Jeremy Inscho says the clusters have heightened anxiety for everyone at these schools."We have three schools where transmission has happened. That's a concern. We aren't doing enough, especially in light of knowing there are new variants of the disease are more transmissible."—Jermy Inscho, Nanaimo Teachers Associaiton.The teachers association says it is disappointed the Ministry of Education has not expanded its mandatory mask order to include students in elementary schools as Ontario and Alberta have done.Twitter account of Nanaimo Clippers owner 'lost at sea'The owner of the Nanaimo Clippers has deleted his Twitter account after a tweet caused a storm of controversy last month. Wes Mussio tweeted he is "heading to Tampa Bay for the start of the Super Bowl party week.” Mussio faced a barrage of comments, criticizing him for travelling during the pandemic. But Mussio says he's been living in Florida since last October and travelling to the Super Bowl means travelling across a bridge.

COVID-19 transmission confirmed at three Nanaimo Elementary SchoolsOn the same day that BC announced increased COVID-19 safety measures in schools, there have been COVID-19 transmissions confirmed at three Nanaimo elementary schools. The clusters are at Rock City, Bayview and Qwam Qwum Stuwixwulh schools. The province's new safety measures mean middle school and high school students must now wear masks at all times indoors, except when they are sitting or standing at their desks. But students in elementary schools and those in grades six and seven who attend elementary schools will not have to wear masks. The Nanaimo District Teachers Association says that's just one shortfall of many in the new regulations. Association spokesperson, Jeremy Inscho gives the new measures a failing grade."I don't think they're meeting expectations. Very little came in today that is actually helpful. The mask mandate is only for the students who were wearing it anyways in most cases. Doing a little bit more is probably not enough, when we know the virus is doing a lot more."—NDTA Spokesperson, Jeremy Inscho.Inscho is welcoming the establishment of school response teams to better manage exposures and outbreaks, but he says more rapid testing is needed and communication with teachers, students and their parents must be improved.Thursday COVID-19 updateThere have been 27 new cases of COVID-19 in the Island Health region confirmed over the past 24 hours. Province-wide there were 6 deaths and 465 new cases.“Overwhelming evidence of racism in this system”Disturbing data from an investigation into racism in the health care system shows indigenous women are one and a half more times likely to develop cervical cancer. Indigenous elders and those with chronic health conditions are 89% more likely to not have a doctor to help manage those conditions. As a result, indigenous people access health care at emergency departments at rates far higher than anyone else in B.C. The report's author Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond says the data proves an unacceptable truth."When you combine these inequities with the overwhelming evidence of racism in this system, it's not difficult to see why health outcomes for indigenous people are poorer.—Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond. B.C.'s Minister of Health says steps are being taken to change that. Adrian Dix says an Assistant Deputy Minister of Indigenous Health has been appointed. Funding is in place for five Indigenous Health Liason Officers and nine of 32 new Indigenous Health Representatives have been hired. And Dix says a Task Force to implement Turpel Lafond's report has been established."Racism is toxic for people and it's toxic for care. The situation as it exists, cannot stand. Together with indig leadership, health professionals colleagues and partners we will address systemic racism in our health care system and root out its damaging effects."—Minister of Health Adrian Dix.Dix is also promising cultural sensitivity training will take place in every health authority. Turpel Lafond says she will continue her involvement until, as she says "the report's recommendations have been achieved."

Kids in school to mask upStudents in middle school and high schools in BC will now have to wear masks in all indoor areas, including classrooms, except when they are seated or standing at their desks. Masks are now required when singing, and physical distancing must be maintained when playing instruments. The provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry offered no data to show why the stepped-up measures are needed. However, both the Minister of Education, Jennifer Whiteside and the head of the BC School Trustees Association Stephanie Higgenson suggest anxiety over safety by teachers and students was the major impetus for change."There is absolutely, anxiety amongst students and staff and their families in schools and their communities and it certainly is my hope that this does go some way in making folks feel more secure and confident."—Minister of Education Jennifer Whiteside."I have noticed a heightened sense of divisiveness in the way people are expressing their concern about school safety. For the sake of the students who are watching, we must refocus this energy on the important tasks that we have at hand."—B.C. School Trustee Association Stephanie Higgenson.Students in elementary schools, including those in grades seven and eight, will not be ordered to wear masks, however, the advice being given to elementary schools has changed from "mask-wearing is not recommended" to "mask-wearing is encouraged."“NoNo” returns home after three and a half yearsA Nanaimo woman whose cat came back after three and a half years believe he was deliberately taken and dumped far from home. "NoNo" the cat was found by staff at the Living Forest campground near Cedar last week. Staff contacted the Nanaimo SPCA and it tracked down Nono's owner, through a tattoo. Laura Brethour says she was shocked and surprised at both the phone call and the fact that Nono was found 20 kilometres from where he went missing. Brethour does not believe her cat wandered that far away on his own."Without saying names and without 100% certainty, we actually know he was taken and he was dumped south of the city in hopes he wouldn't find his way home."—Laura Brethour, NoNo's owner.Lesli Steeves says she's not surprised. Steeves is one of the founders of ROAM, a volunteer group devoted to finding lost pets. She says she's dealt with cases of cats being removed from neighbourhoods and dumped far away.”There are occasions when it happens and there are certainly some little hot spot areas we do keep our eyes on and we try to work closely with the owners to try to pull out as much information as we can to see if they've had any problems with the neighbours or have heard anything in the neighbourhood."—ROAM's Lesli Steeves.Steeves urges neighbours to work together to find creative solutions like installing a motion sensor sprinkler to deter a wandering cat. She believes Nanaimo's new animal responsibility bylaw will also prevent cat-nappings in the future because people can call a bylaw officer to resolve such disputes. Meanwhile, Brethour says NoNo is now an indoor cat.

New in this update:Wednesday COVID-19 updateThere has been another death from COVID-19 on Vancouver Island. 20 people have died from the virus in the Island Health region since the pandemic began. Province-wide there were 16 deaths over the past 24 hours and 414 new cases. Cases on Vancouver Island continue in the double digits, with 26 reported today. Our active case count stands at 273.Update to school guidelines to be announced at 10 a.m. ThursdayMeanwhile, B.C.'s Minister of Education and the Provincial Health Officer are poised to announce enhanced health and safety guidelines for students and staff, and more funding to support the continued safe operations of schools. COVID-19 exposures in schools continue to climb with the latest exposure at John Barsby Community School in Nanaimo. It's the tenth central island school to report an exposure over the past month. Education Minister Jennifer Whiteside and Dr. Bonnie Henry are planning a news conference on the subject tomorrow at 10 a.m. on the government of BC Facebook page or YouTube channel.Grant launched for businesses to pivot onlineThe province is hoping a new grant program will help small and medium-sized businesses to sell their products online. B.C.'s Launch Online Grant program offers businesses up to $7500 dollars to work with web specialists to create or enhance online sales. The Minister of Labour, Ravi Kalon, expects up to 1,500 businesses will benefit. The founder of Goldilocks Wraps in Esquimalt says the pandemic forced her to pivot sales of her beeswax wraps from craft fairs to the internet."Our online sales made up nearly all of our revenue in 2020, which was a huge shift. The pandemic has really changed the way that businesses need to operate to stay afloat. And having an online presence has gone to being an added bonus to an absolute necessity."—Amy Hall, founder of Goldilocks Wraps.Amy Hall says this will be the first government assistance program she'd applied for."Currently I have been personally doing all of the work on our website but I am not a website developer so it's something that's gotten us by until now, but it will be really great to work with an outside expert who really knows what they're doing so I am really looking forward to applying for this specifically."—Amy Hall, founder of Goldilocks Wraps.Eligible businesses must have had minimum annual sales of $30,000 dollars in 2020 or 2019, employer fewer than 150 people and must develop a grant proposal to show how they will spend the money. Businesses have until March 31st to apply at www.launchonline.ca.Bus company suspends service indefinitelyPeople who depend on regional buses to travel Vancouver Island no longer have that option. The Vancouver Island Connector and the Tofino bus will not be resuming service this month and will remain suspended indefinitely. The company says its business has declined by 95% since last March. It has applied for an emergency COVID-19 recovery contract from the Ministry of Transportation, but so far, no luck. The Vancouver Island Connector started operations in 2015 and had provided bus service from Victoria to Campbell River.

Nanaimo hasn't had an EDC for four yearsNanaimo council will create a new, arms-length economic development corporation. The move comes four years after a previous council killed a similar organization that was rife with conflict, resignations and firings. The new economic development corporation will see the city of Nanaimo as the main shareholder. So-called Class B Shareholders will include the Snuneymuxw First Nation, the Nanaimo Airport, the Chamber of Commerce, the Nanaimo Port Authority and Vancouver Island University. The membership will also include one representative from the non-profit sector and two members at large. The city's Director of Community Development, Bill Corsan described the corporation's purpose at a presentation to council on Monday night."The mandate is to maintain and update the economic development strategy and make sure that certain initiatives that attract business and employers to the community are being done and help with that coordination piece. There is kind of a common goal here to have a group of people providing leadership at that level."—Bill Corsan, City of Nanaimo Director of Community Development.The city's economic development strategy includes the redevelopment of downtown and the waterfront as well as making Nanaimo a healthcare center of excellence. The corporation should be in place by the middle of this year, with a five-year-long mandate. Its first annual budget will be just over half a million dollars, which is far less than the minimum million dollars that similar-sized cities spend on Economic Development Corporations. COVID-19 updates from Cowichan Tribes temporarily suspendedThe Cowichan Tribes will not be providing any COVID-19 outbreak numbers this week. Last Friday, the nation reported 26 active cases of the virus, for a total of 181 cases since the outbreak began in early January. The acting general manager of the Cowichan Tribes, Derek Thompson says updates will be suspended until next week."We decided to pause in an effort to be mindful and respectful of families in our community who are hurt and going through a process of grieving. We want to be respectful of the family going through a process of just profound loss and in the broader context of things, just families in our community who have gone through such profound loss."—Derck Thompson, Acting General Manager for Cowichan Tribes.One member of the tribes died from COVID-19 last week. Thompson says case counts continue to rise and they will continue to do so until more members of the community start following provincial health orders and a local shelter in place order that is set to expire on Friday.Meanwhile, there have been 27 new cases of COVID 19 confirmed in the Island Health region over the past 24 hours. With 23 on the central island, 3 in the south and one in the north. There are 17 people in the hospital with the virus, six of whom are in intensive care.

Tuesday COVID-19 updateAnother Nanaimo school has been added to the list of COVID-19 exposures. Island Health says there was an exposure at Rock City Elementary school last Wednesday. Rock City joins eight other schools on the central island that have experienced COVID-19 exposures, but none has turned into an outbreak. There have been 27 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in the Island Health region since yesterday, bringing our case count to 294. Province-wide in the past 24 hours, there have been 8 deaths from COVID-19 and 429 new infections.Shovels in the ground for new ICU at NRGHThe sod was turned at the Nanaimo Regional General Hospital this morning, to mark the start of construction of a new intensive care unit. The new unit will be triple the size of the current ICU, providing the space for the high-tech equipment needed to treat the most critically ill patients. It will increase from 10 to 12 beds, with overhead patient lifts, and there will be space for a high acuity unit to transition patients from ICU to other hospital units. Dr. Ben Williams, the vice president of medicine and quality for Island Health says the new layout will provide both physical and emotional comfort to patients and their families. "Our old ICU is a very small unit, located at the end of a hallway that every critically ill patient has to be wheeled through, in front of staff members and patients and families. This new ICU is larger, it's state of the art. In the old ICU, there wasn't a family room where they could really go and be safe and have private conversation. This ICU is a much better and kinder place for our patients and their families."—Dr. Ben Williams.The 41 and a half million dollar project is expected to be completed in early 2023.Animal Responsibility bylaw is approved by Nanaimo City CouncilNanaimo City Council has passed a controversial animal bylaw that could see outdoor cats scooped up and sent to the pound. The new Animal Responsibility bylaw says owners must prevent their pets from wandering onto any private property without permission. Owners must have direct control over the animal when outside. When the bylaw was first proposed in November, it generated what Mayor Leonard Krog called a "voluminous" response from residents who were opposed to it. But Councillor Erin Hemmens says it's needed to manage conflicts between neighbours.“This is not about leashing cats, this is not about keeping cats inside, this is setting up mechanisms and structures in order to support animal health for animals that either don't have a home or are creating a nuisance and that nuisance isn't resolvable between neighbours. Then we have some next steps to take based on this bylaw.”—Nanaimo City Councillor Erin Hemmens.Cats must now have identification, such as a collar or microchip, and be sterilized. Having a cat without ID could cost you between $25 and $75 dollars, while fines for an unsterilized cat range from $100 to $150 dollars.

Shovels in the ground for new ICU at NRGHThe sod was turned at the Nanaimo Regional General Hospital this morning, to mark the start of construction of a new intensive care unit. The new unit will be triple the size of the current ICU, providing the space for the high-tech equipment needed to treat the most critically ill patients. It will increase from 10 to 12 beds, with overhead patient lifts, and there will be space for a high acuity unit to transition patients from ICU to other hospital units. Dr. Ben Williams, the vice president of medicine and quality for Island Health says the new layout will provide both physical and emotional comfort to patients and their families."Our old ICU is a very small unit, located at the end of a hallway that every critically ill patient has to be wheeled through, in front of staff members and patients and families. This new ICU is larger, it's state of the art. In the old ICU there wasn't a family room where they could really go and be safe and have private conversation. This ICU is a much better and kinder place for our patients and their families."–Dr. Ben Williams The 41 and a half million dollar project is expected to be completed in early 2023. Animal Responsibility bylaw is approved by Nanaimo City CouncilNanaimo City Council has passed a controversial animal bylaw that could see outdoor cats scooped up and sent to the pound. The new Animal Responsibility bylaw says owners must prevent their pets from wandering onto any private property without permission. Owners must have direct control over the animal when outside. When the bylaw was first proposed in November, it generated what Mayor Leonard Krog called a "voluminous" response from residents who were opposed to it. But Councillor Erin Hemmens says it's needed to manage conflicts between neighbours. “This is not about leashing cats, this is not about keeping cats inside, this is setting up mechanisms and structures in order to support animal health for animals that either don't have a home or are creating a nuisance and that nuisance isn't resolvable between neighbours. Then we have some next steps to take based on this bylaw.” —Nanaimo City Councillor Erin HemmensCats must now have identification, such as a collar or microchip, and be sterilized.Having a cat without ID could cost you between $25 and $75 dollars, while fines for an unsterilized cat range from $100 to $150 dollars. However, the city will waive seizure and impound fees for cats caught outdoors until the end of 2022, if the cat is retrieved within 24 hours.ICBC rebate incoming for drivers in B.C.Drivers in BC will be getting a rebate next month, thanks to the pandemic. ICBC says it saved $600 million dollars last year because the pandemic led to fewer drivers on the road, and therefore fewer accidents. It is passing along those savings to those insured last year. It predicts the average driver will receive a $190 dollar rebate cheque, which will start rolling out in March. That is in addition to what ICBC calls Enhanced Care refunds customers will receive when they renew their insurance in 2021.

COVID-19 variants a growing concern in British ColumbiaConcerns over new COVID-19 variants have prompted the province to step up genome testing. There are 14 cases of the U.K. variant in B.C., all of which are linked to international travel and those in contact with those travellers. There are four cases of the South African variant but officials do not know how those cases were transmitted. The provincial health officer says genome testing is now being targeted to any international traveller who tests positive for COVID-19 along with random sampling in areas with outbreaks or a high number of cases. Dr. Bonnie Henry says 11,000 genome tests have been completed and testing will continue to ramp up."This is one of the things that is most concerning for us right now. We are seeing some transmissions in some communities of this variant and this is one of the things that is factoring into the decisions that we have to make together over the next coming weeks.”—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Henry says data on the variants and next steps will be announced on Friday. That's when current COVID-19 health orders are set to expire. Four cases of the UK variant were detected on Vancouver Island. Island Health says one traveller and three household members tested positive for the variant, but those cases have been contained.Man charged with second-degree murder in beating death of homeless manA man has been charged in the beating death of a homeless man in Campbell River last October. 60-year-old Dean Dool was attacked outside the Royal Bank on Shoppers Row around 11 p.m. on October the 15th. Campbell River RCMP says Justin William Arnett has been charged with second-degree murder. Police say Arnett was arrested on an unrelated warrant last Thursday and remains in custody.A new investigative team gives a boost to cold case murderMeanwhile, a high-profile cold case in Victoria is getting a boost, with the creation of a new investigative team. 24-year-old realtor Lindsay Buziak was murdered 13 years ago today when she was showing a house to an unidentified couple. Saanich Police Constable Marcus Anastasiades says fresh eyes and new technology will now be applied to the investigation."We have established a task force, comprised of new investigators who are taking a fresh look at the case. The task force has obtained assistance from the FBI and continued support from the RCMP. Technology not available at the time of the crime has allowed us to develop new investigative leads. Advancements in fields of genealogy and DNA analysis has led to the resolution in many other cases.”—Saanich Police Constable Marcus Anastasiades.Anastasiades says investigators are urging those with knowledge about the crime to come forward.

Monday COVID-19 updateThe provincial health officer is hinting current health orders that are set to expire on Friday will continue and there could be more restrictions if COVID-19 cases continue to remain high. Dr. Bonnie Henry says many new cases are the result of people between the ages of 20 to 50, having small get-togethers, and others not obeying health orders in restaurants and bars."We will be providing an update on Friday, about the orders, but I am calling on everybody right now, hold off on the Super Bowl celebrations this year. You should not be planning whether it's at home, in a bar, at a restaurant, viewing of the Super Bowl so that we can keep our bars, our restaurants, our retail spaces, our workplaces open."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Since Friday, there have been 21 more deaths from COVID-19 and more than 1100 cases province-wide. In the Island Health region, there were 78 new cases confirmed over the past three days. There are 252 active cases in our health region.Stz'uminus mother and daughter receive an apology from Island Health over treatmentMeanwhile, Island Health is apologizing over complaints of a racist incident at the Ladysmith Community Health Centre. The Ladysmith Chronicle is reporting allegations by an unidentified woman that she and her 13-year-old daughter were treated like a nuisance, rather than a patient when they sought help there last week. The woman says the doctor admonished them for not staying home due to the pandemic and suggested the daughter might die. Island Health released a statement to the newspaper which says: “Island Health acknowledges that this patient did not receive culturally safe care and the care provided did not meet the family's expectations. We are deeply concerned about the impact of this experience on the patient, their family, the Stz'uminus First Nation, and the broader community.” But Stz'uminus chief Roxanne Harris told the Chronicle she wants to see action from the health authority instead of empty apologies. Woman survives avalanche due to well-prepared groupThe head of Comox Valley Search and Rescue says an injured skier survived an avalanche near Mount Cameron yesterday because she was with a group that was well-prepared and educated in avalanche safety. A group of experienced backcountry skiers triggered the avalanche, at two o'clock yesterday afternoon. The slide carried two of them 200 metres down a slope. One was buried nearly one and a half metres under the debris. The second skier skidded along the slide's surface and was able to locate and free the injured woman within five minutes. Paul Berry says those venturing out in the backcountry need to be fully prepared."They should not be going alone. They should be going with people who have equal skills in terms of training and fitness and they need to know how to use their avalanche beacon and shovel. As was the example yesterday, they were able to locate the subject and had to dig a good metre and a half to reach her. So time is of the essence."—Paul Berry, Comox Valley Search and Rescue.Members of Comox Valley Search and Rescue assisted in airlifting the injured woman to hospital in Vancouver. She suffered multiple fractures of her legs, a dislocated shoulder and cuts and bruises. The avalanche danger remains high on Vancouver Island from alpine areas to below the tree line.

Quam Qwum Stuwixwulh Community School temporarily closes due to COVID-19 exposureStudents at an elementary school on the Snumeymuxw First Nation will not be attending classes today or tomorrow because of a COVID-19 exposure. Qwam Qwum Stuwixwulh school will be closed for the next two days for deep cleaning. A letter to parents and guardians yesterday says the exposure happened last Thursday. It says the school is closed out of an abundance of caution, while Island Health completes its contact tracing and risk assessment. The Snuneymuxw reported a cluster of COVID-19 cases earlier this month, but the nation says there are currently no active cases of the virus in the community.Island Health identifying groups who are not on the province's listIsland Health's Chief Medical Officer says the health authority is asking the Ministry of Health and the Provincial Health Officer to include more health care workers on its priority list for COVID-19 vaccines. Dr. Richard Stanwick says Island Health's clinical advisory committee has identified several groups of health care workers who are not on the province's list."Whether it's community workers and we're talking about some of our outreach workers who are seeking out individuals who may be COVID or are high risk, the individuals who do the home visits, in terms of home care. All of the people who are providing a service are being identified. They aren't under the radar. They are on the radar and these lists are actually being put forward to the province and saying 'this is the way we believe we need to prioritize people, based on the risk.' So we do not want to miss anybody."—Island Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Richard Stanwick.So far, Island Health has offered vaccines to everyone who works and lives in long term and assisted living facilities.Urban Mayors: complex care facilities needed in B.C.Mayors from B.C.'s largest cities, including Nanaimo, are asking the province to help address the mental health, substance use and homelessness crises with the creation of a new type of housing. The B.C. Urban Mayors' Caucus wants the province to build five complex care housing facilities across the province within a year. Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog says the need is painfully obvious."There are a number of individuals in each of our communities who suffer from severe mental health and addiction issues, often coupled with brain injury. What we're asking for as urban mayors is a realistic acceptance of the fact that there are people in dire straits on our streets, whose lives are not improving, who are literally dying in the streets, who we are condemning to die in the streets because we do not have the complex care facilities that they need."—City of Nanaimo Leonard Krog.The pilot project proposes the construction of 40 to 50 unit housing facilities, staffed with doctors, addiction counsellors and mental health specialists with one on Vancouver Island, the north, the interior and two in Vancouver. Krog says the proposal was well received in meetings last week, with the Minister of Housing, David Eby and the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Nanaimo MLA Sheila Malcolmson. However, a response may not come until the province tables its annual budget in April.

Dr. Bonnie Henry welcomes move by feds to suspend flights to vacation destinationsThe provincial health officer is welcoming new federal rules, aimed at limiting international travel. Ottawa has announced flights by Canadian airlines to Mexico and the Caribbean will be suspended, starting this Sunday until April the 30th. Dr. Bonnie Henry believes that will discourage British Columbians from travelling abroad. And, she hints there may be similar restrictions to US vacation destinations like Hawaii and California in the coming days."People from BC do go to Mexico quite a bit and myself, I'd be running away to the Caribbean if I could, but that's not in the possibility this year, so yes, we understand that Canada is having ongoing discussions with our neighbours to the south, with the United States as they are updating and revising their border measures, so I expect to hear more about that in the coming days."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.The federal government will impose new requirements for international travellers, starting February the 3rd. Those arriving at Canadian airports will be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival. They will have to quarantine at a government-approved hotel, at their own expense, while awaiting test results. Those who are positive for the virus must then quarantine for two more weeks at a government-approved facility. International flights will be restricted to airports in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal. People crossing into Canada at a land border will have to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test.Friday COVID-19 updateMeanwhile, in BC today, there were 514 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed, and 5 deaths. The Island Health region has recorded 29 new cases, 19 in the Central Island and 10 in the South Island, bringing our active case count to 246.Controversial subdivision on Hornby Island will not go aheadHornby Island Local Trustees will not allow a controversial division of land to proceed. The trustees voted unanimously against a request by a local doctor to subdivide a four-hectare lot in a rural area. The rejection of the rezoning application came after a well-attended virtual public hearing today.Neighbours, including Allan Fletcher who runs a farm across from the property spoke against the plan."David Wiseman is a neighbour and he is a friend. He was my doctor when I was growing up. I don't like being in the position that I'm in now, where I'm having to say to him 'no, you can't do that.' Why are we even discussing this? There is a covenant on the property. There are many reasons why this property was not allowed to be subdivided. It just dumbfounds me why we're here."—Hornby Island Resident Allan Fletcher.Trustee Alex Allen noted all but two of Wiseman's neighbours opposed the subdivision and that their participation in the public hearing was important. "Really, you can't always choose your neighbours. I've been next to a vacation rental, the guy who pretends he's in a woodlot with his chainsaw down the road and on and on and on. But this is a time where democracy is speaking out."—Hornby Trustee Alex Allen.The property owner, said he was disappointed by the decision. Dr. David Wiseman hinted that it might prompt him to leave the island. "I was counting on this for my future here on Hornby and it's gonna make a huge difference to how much longer I can live here."—Hornby Island Resident Dr. David Wiseman.Wiseman is now unable to divide the lot under current zoning.

Complainant wants more data about COVID-19 available to publicA Victoria man is asking BC's Privacy Commissioner to begin an investigation that could force the province to release more data about COVID-19. BC's Information and Protection of Privacy Act says a public body must disclose to the public, information about a risk of significant harm to the environment or to the health or safety of the public or a group of people, or any topic clearly in the public interest.Anthony Roy says the Minister of Health, the Provincial Health Officer and the BC Center for Disease Control have not lived up to that standard. Roy says data sets about where and under what conditions people are being exposed to the virus are not being released. For example, he says there is no public data that explains why church gatherings are banned, while AA meetings of the same size are allowed. "I'm not asking for one minute that people shouldn't respect the orders. I'm happy to obey. What I'm not happy about is the lack of proper discussion and lack of proper justification for the orders. This is the proper discussion people should be having without somebody trying to shut it down by not providing the information."—Anothony Roy.Roy says public health orders that ban people from gathering, attending events or worshiping in faith settings are an infringement of their charter rights. He's hoping the privacy commissioner will agree denying people the information needed to assess those decisions should not be allowed to continue.Bob Joseph on Indigenous relationsOne of the country's leading experts on Indigenous relations is encouraging young people to pursue a career in reconciliation. Bob Joseph is the author of the best selling book "21 Things You May Not Know about the Indian Act." He led a virtual discussion yesterday, that included more than 1000 people from across Vancouver Island. Joseph has delivered courses and advised countless companies and organizations for decades, on how to work with first nations. Joseph says Indigenous relations is a growing industry."Every level of government, federal, provincial and local government, nothing gets built in this country without talking to indigenous peoples, and I mean lengthy conversations, so if you're looking for a career path that way, you could get involved in consultation and engagement. Some of my friends who are really good at it charge out at $1700 to $2000 dollars a day because it's such a specialized skill. And so if you want a job where I get to change the world, meet new people and do stuff that's never been done before, Indigenous relations is it."Yesterday's virtual question and answer session was hosted by the Vancouver Island Regional Library. The discussion included the future of Indigenous governance, how to approach first nations as an ally and how the Indian Act needs to evolve.

Wing locked down after outbreak was declared last SaturdayIsland Health's chief medical health officer says he's confident an outbreak of COVID-19 at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital is contained. The outbreak was declared last Saturday, after two staff and one patient tested positive for the virus. The east wing of the hospital's fourth floor has been locked down. Dr. Richard Stanwick says he's confident that it will not spread further. "It does appear that at this point in time, it is limited to that area. Nanaimo has it contained. Remembering, Nanaimo had an experience with an outbreak earlier. They've built on that experience and are certainly aware of what the infection control measures that are needed to contain it to that particular area."—Island Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Richard Stanwick.Today's COVID 19 numbers show there are 30 new cases of the virus in the Island Health region, bringing our active case count to 236. Province-wide, there have been 546 new cases confirmed over the past 24 hours and 12 deaths. 2020 saw a small decline in the Indigenous graduation rate, but is trending upwards compared to prior yearsGraduation rates in the Nanaimo Ladysmith School District have improved for some groups of students, but not for others. New data shows graduation rates for students with special needs increased by more than 5% last year and by more than 8% for students whose first language is not English. However, the graduation rate of indigenous students declined by 1.4% last year, compared to the year before. School District 68 Superintendent, Scott Saywell says the reasons for the decline include socio-economic inequities and the challenges of COVID-19."We know students that are going to struggle. They're children that are new to our country. They're children from low socio-economic situations and they're indigenous children. not all of them, but a lot of them. And we know that covid has disproportionately affected students in low socio-economic situations."—School District 68 Superintendent, Scott Saywell.Saywell says the district has tried to help overcome COVID-19 challenges by providing computers for online learning, but students continue to struggle. The school district board's vice-chair Jessica Stanley says she's concerned that the raw data provided by the ministry of education doesn't tell the whole story."And that, to me, it portrays our school district inaccurately, because it doesn't indicate what great work we do in this district. It doesn't indicate what great work we do to lift those students up, and I worry that this is undermining to confidence in our system and to staff."—SD 68 vice-chair Jessica Stanley.Although indigenous graduation rates fell slightly last year, they have been steadily increasing in the Nanaimo Ladysmith School District. In 2017 the graduation rate of indigenous students was 56%, whereas last year, it was just under 68%.

Shortage of vaccine will result in rationingIsland Health's chief medical officer says he's frustrated, disheartened and concerned by what he calls the “international squabbling” and the hoarding of vaccines in certain countries. Dr. Richard Stanwick says there will be no shipments of Pfizer vaccine delivered to BC this week or next, and it's still not clear how many vaccines will be delivered after that. As a result, provincial health officials have decided people who need their second dose of the vaccine will not get it within 35 days as planned. Now they will receive it at day 42. Stanwick says the shortage has also forced Island Health to consider rationing which health care workers will be vaccinated during phase one."And it's gotten to the point where we may even have to ration it to only those hospitals where there are COVID units. So I think some of the really big frustration is the degree to which we're playing who gets into the lifeboat and who gets out of the lifeboat, when it comes to vaccine."—Island Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Richard Stanwick.Nevertheless, Stanwick is making no apologies for being one of the first in line to receive the Pfizer vaccine. He says he is the only member of the executive team at Island Health to receive the vaccine. Stanwick says he did so after consulting with the provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry."I spoke to Dr. Henry about this, asked her about the appropriateness and I can tell you, given as the advocate for this particular vaccine, did I believe in it? and I can tell you I have had more than half a dozen members of the community, walk up to me and ask: 'Do you believe the vaccine is safe?' and I've said 'I've taken it.' 'Oh, so you really believe in it?' And I've said 'yes.' So if I'm gonna preach about something, I'm going to basically practice it as well."—Island Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Richard Stanwick.Stanwick adds he plans to take part in future immunization clinics.

New in this update:Wednesday COVID-19 updateVancouver Island is reporting one of the highest numbers of new COVID-19 cases in a 24 hour period. There are 45 new cases of the virus in the Island Health region, bringing our active case count to 220. Province-wide, there have been 485 new cases and four deaths.Island Health's top doc is sounding the alarm. Dr. Richard Stanwick says the region has seen a spike in cases, with 500 this month alone. He says most are the result of gatherings during Christmas and New Year. But he says many others are the result of workers letting their guard down."The people you work with are not your household contacts. They are the people you work with so you need to practise the same sorts of physical distancing, making sure if you can't that you mask properly, you wash your hands regularly. You have to treat them as members of the general public and take those same measures because we have definitely seen workplace spread."—Island Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Richard Stanwick.Stanwick says the health authority is stepping up workplace inspections, especially where there have been complaints. However, he says the goal is to educate businesses on compliance, rather than imposing fines or closures.Premier cites differences between B.C. and Manitoba for not imposing a mandatory quarantine for interprovincial travelersThe Premier is rejecting calls to tighten up the BC border in the fight against COVID-19. John Horgan says he will not impose a mandatory quarantine for people travelling from other provinces, as Manitoba has done.The differences between Manitoba and B.C. are obvious to most people, there are four roads into Manitoba and dozens of roads into B.C. We have major airports, there is but one major airport in Manitoba.—Premier John Horgan.The Premier says he would consider quarantine measures if the Provincial Health Officer advised him to do so. Instead, Horgan says visitors are expected to follow public health guidelines and orders from Dr. Bonnie Henry."If you are coming to BC on non-essential travel you better behave appropriately, you better follow our public health guidelines or we will come down on you like a ton of bricks."—Premier John Horgan.Horgan is not discouraging people from visiting BC. He says ski hills like Whistler are COVID-safe, but the danger comes from what people do off the slopes.“It's when people leave the hill and look for the party that we're seeing transmission and that's where we are very concerned. And that's where Dr. Henry and Minister Dix are looking at what the consequences are of those that are coming from away as well as those quite frankly who are coming from downtown Vancouver, or the Island, or any other part of British Columbia looking for a party.”—Premier John Horgan.So far, the province has issued 650 tickets for violations of public health orders and 80 tickets related to the federal Quarantine Act.

Island Health's top doctor alarmed over COVID-19 case countVancouver Island's Chief Medical Officer is sounding the alarm about the rising case counts in the health region. Dr. Richard Stanwick says there have been 500 new cases of the virus recorded in Island Health since Christmas. Close to 200 are the result of an outbreak within the Cowichan Tribes, but Stanwick says case counts are rising everywhere."What has given us some concern, is there has been evidence of community spread in the Duncan area. We've also seen it emerging in Nanaimo and just in the last day or so we're seeing an uptick in cases on the south island. So we have tools at hand and if people would just practise them to keep this virus under control until we can get more vaccines in arms."—Island Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Richard Stanwick.Stanwick says some cases are the result of people not wearing masks or keeping their distance in workplaces, but most are the result of gatherings during Christmas and New Year's. He says the fear is with Chinese New Year, BC Family Day and Valentine's Day on the horizon, people will ignore health orders to stay within their households. He says currently, 700 Islanders are in isolation because they have had contact with someone who has tested positive for the virus.A treatment program for PTSD sees positive resultsA unique psychedelic therapy has led to a five-year, $450,000 grant for a nursing professor at Vancouver Island University. Dr. Shannon Dames developed a 12-week program that uses the drug, ketamine along with group therapy to manage depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. The first group of health care workers has completed the treatment program. Dames says she chose health care workers to take part in the therapy because of the nature of their work."Health care prof are a high-risk population. We know PTSD, depression and a whole lot of other mental health conditions we are at much higher rates and health care providers and really anyone that in a high stimulus and trauma-laden work environments, it leads to people turning themselves off so they can continue to serve others which is really difficult to address with typical psychotherapy and typical pharmaceuticals.”—Dr. Shannon Dames.Dames says the results of the therapy are impressive, with all 16 participants showing no signs of PTSD after completing 12 weeks of treatment. The nearly half-million-dollar grant from the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research and the Lotte and John Hecht Memorial Foundation will allow for more groups to receive the therapy, as well as a peer-reviewed research project and by next January, the first course in Canada to offer a certificate program to train therapists and other health care providers.

Tuesday COVID-19 updateThere has been another death, related to COVID-19 in the Island Health region. It's the second death reported in our region this week. The Cowichan Tribes is reporting one of those deaths is related to its outbreak. Province-wide, there have been 14 more deaths related to COVID-19 over the past 24 hours. The BC Center for Disease Control is reporting 22 new cases in our region, and 407 new cases across the province.ICBC rates tool releasedA new online tool will allow ICBC customers to calculate how much they will save the next time they renew their auto insurance. Customers can also view and adjust coverage options. The Minister responsible, Mike Farnworth used the announcement to repeat the government's message that the average auto insurance premium will decrease by $400 dollars."The biggest decrease in basic insurance rates in 40 years and a large decrease in optional liability rates aren't the only great things ahead, which you can now see for yourself with this estimator tool. We're making affordability and caring for people a priority and more than ever, ICBC's going to reflect that, going forward."—Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth.Farnworth is also promising a COVID-19 rebate will be announced very soon. ICBC plans to base the rebate on how much it saved in costs due to the fact there were fewer drivers on the road and fewer accidents during the pandemic. Meanwhile, the new online tool can be found at icbc.com/enhancedcare.Seawall fight wraps up with a win for Islands TrustA fight over a seawall on Mudge Island has ended eight years later, with a ruling by the BC Court of Appeal. The court has ruled the Islands Trust has the right to create land-use zoning bylaws that may affect the rights of landowners to use or protect their property. The case went to court after the Gabriola Island Local Trust Committee ordered a landowner to remove a deck, fencing and seawall because they were non-conforming structures. The BC Supreme Court said the local trust committee bylaws applied to all but the seawall. Last week, the Court of Appeal overturned that decision, ruling the bylaws apply to seawalls as well. The Chair of the Islands Trust Council, Peter Luckham, says the ruling is important both locally and province-wide."It's significant because of our mandate, which is to preserve and protect the Islands Trust area, which includes over 1200 kilometres of shoreline and so this decision has asserted that we do have that jurisdiction and it affects every coastline in British Columbia."—Peter Luckham, Chair of the Islands Trust Council. Luckham says there are many soft shore protection designs that reduce erosion and preserve the natural shoreline. Owners can get more information through the Island Trust's document entitled "Landowner's Guide to Protecting Shoreline Ecosystems."

Vaccine delayAnother delay in Pfizer vaccine deliveries means British Columbia will increase the time between first and second doses from 35 days to 42 days. The provincial health officer says the province already knew it would not be receiving any Pfizer vaccine this week, but expected it would be able to deliver second doses within 35 days. Dr. Bonnie Henry says that changed over the weekend, after being informed there may not be any Pfizer vaccine delivered next week either, and deliveries for the following two weeks in February remain up in the air. Henry says now, second doses will be extended to 42 days."This means we can use what little supply we have right now to finish our long term care home immunizations and to address the outbreaks that are happening in our hospitals and our communities. This is about putting out fires before they get out of control."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Meanwhile, Island Health has completed the first round of vaccinations of staff and residents at all long term care homes and assisted living facilities. However, a COVID-19 outbreak has been declared at the Nanaimo Regional General Hospital, where two staff and one patient on the east wing of the Fourth floor have tested positive for the virus. Over the weekend, the Island Health Region recorded 77 new cases of COVID-19 and one death. Province-wide there were 1344 new cases and 26 deaths.Appeals court overturns a decision made over Mudge Island seawallA fight over a seawall on Mudge Island has ended eight years later, with a ruling by the BC Court of Appeal. The court has ruled the Islands Trust has the right to create land-use zoning bylaws that may affect the rights of landowners to use or protect their property. The case went to court after the Gabriola Island Local Trust Committee ordered a landowner to remove a deck, fencing and seawall because they were non-conforming structures. The BC Supreme Court said the local trust committee bylaws applied to all but the seawall. Last week, the Court of Appeal overturned that decision, ruling the bylaws apply to seawalls as well. The Chair of the Islands Trust Council, Peter Luckham, says the ruling is important both locally and province-wide."It's significant because of our mandate, which is to preserve and protect the Islands Trust area, which includes over 1200 kilometres of shoreline and so this decision has asserted that we do have that jurisdiction and it affects every coastline in British Columbia."—Peter Luckham, Chair of the Islands Trust Council.Luckham says there are many soft shore protection designs that reduce erosion and preserve the natural shoreline. Owners can get more information through the Island Trust's document entitled "Landowner's Guide to Protecting Shoreline Ecosystems."

Change to vaccination schedules due to pause in vaccine production The provincial health officer says another delay in Pfizer vaccine deliveries means British Columbia must increase the time between first and second doses from 35 days to 42 days. Dr. Bonnie Henry says the province already knew it would not be receiving any Pfizer vaccine this week, but she says over the weekend, it was told there may not be any Pfizer vaccine delivered next week either, and deliveries for the following two weeks in February remain up in the air. Henry says that has forced a change in vaccination schedules."This means we can use what little supply we have right now to finish our long term care home immunizations and to address the outbreaks that are happening in our hospitals and our communities. This is about putting out fires before they get out of control."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Meanwhile, Island Health has completed the first round of vaccinations of staff and residents at all long term care homes and assisted living facilities. However, a COVID-19 outbreak has been declared at the Nanaimo Regional General Hospital, where two staff and one patient on the east wing of the Fourth floor have tested positive for the virus. Over the weekend, the Island Health Region recorded 77 new cases of COVID-19 and one death. Province-wide there were 1344 new cases and 26 deaths.Casino CEO who jumped vaccination queue resignsThe head of the country's largest casino company has resigned after he and his wife lied to get a COVID-19 vaccine in a remote community in the Yukon. Last Thursday, the then-CEO of the Great Canadian Casino Corporation, Rodney Baker and his wife Ekaterina Baker went to the vaccine clinic in Beaver Creek, an isolated Indigenous community of 100 people. The couple apparently travelled from Vancouver to Whitehorse, before chartering a private plane to Beaver Creek. Yukon's Minister of Community Services, John Streicker, told the Yukon News that the couple claimed to be workers at a local motel, in order to receive a dose of the Moderna vaccine. The pair was ticketed $1150 dollars each and charged under the Yukon's Civil Emergency Measures Act for breaking isolation requirements and misleading officials. The Great Canadian Casino Company announced Baker's resignation as CEO earlier today.Snowfall advisory liftedEnvironment Canada has lifted its snowfall advisory for the east coast of Vancouver Island. The predicted 5 to 15 centimetres of snow did not materialize this weekend. Residents expecting to wake up to a dump of snow on Sunday woke to a rainy day instead. However, the advisory continued until this morning.

Local government issues join statement calling out racist behaviourCowichan Valley residents honked horns and drove around the region in a convoy of 50 vehicles yesterday, in a show of solidarity with Cowichan Tribes members. An ongoing COVID-19 outbreak among Tribes has led to an alarming number of anti-Indigenous comments and treatment by some residents and local businesses. Cowichan Tribes member Joe Elliot says the rally was a positive show of force. “It was awesome! It was awesome to witness. Most of the people we passed, there was a lot of support people coming out, waving their hands and honking their horns in appreciation. so I thank the organizers for that support.”—Cowichan Tribes member Joe Elliot. The mayors of Duncan and North Cowichan along with Cowichan Chief Willie Seymour reacted to the recent events with a joint statement on Friday. In it, the leaders called out racist behaviour by some businesses, advising them to stop asking customers if they live on reserve, and then refusing service to those who do. The tribes say the stress of the outbreak and the racist reactions has made many fearful to venture out for groceries. Cowichan Tribes Councillor Stephanie Atleo took part in an anti-racism forum after the car rally. She called upon her non-indigenous neighbours for support."What would you do if you were standing in line and the cash register asked the brown person in front of you if they're allowed off the reserve to be shopping? What would you do if you were the person who was next in line? So those are the questions that I am challenging those watching right now."—Cowichan Tribes Councillor Stephanie Atleo.Outbreak at Nanaimo Regional General HospitalMeanwhile, a COVID-19 outbreak has been declared at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital. It's the second in as many months. The latest outbreak involves 2 staff and one patient. The health authority says the hospital's fourth-floor east wing is locked down. Staff, there will not be working in other areas of the hospital and patients on the fourth and fifth floors, along with those in rehab will not be transferred to care homes while the outbreak is underway. The hospital suffered another outbreak in November when five staff in the transitional care unit tested positive for COVID-19.And there is another case of COVID-19 at a long term care home in Nanaimo. Island Health says a second staff member at Chartwell Malaspina Care Residence has tested positive. It says the staff member had been working on one of the ongoing outbreak units. Seven residents and two staff have now tested positive for the virus since the outbreak began on December the 27th.Local photographer wins competitionFinally, a shout out to Cumberland photographer and teacher Sara Kemper for placing first in a Canadian Geographic Photography Competition. Kemper took first place in the magazine's "What is Home? Location Photo Competition." Her winning shot is the beach at Seal Bay, where she grew up. Kemper calls it "an homage to my childhood."

Revised plan for vaccination in B.C.British Columbia has revised its COVID-19 vaccination plan to focus on age as being the deciding factor in the next phase of immunizations. The first priority group underway now, includes those who live or work in long term care and other vulnerable populations. Starting in late March, age will determine vaccination dates, rather than the risk of exposure due to where someone works. That means teachers, first responders and grocery store staff will not be given priority. The first in line will be those over the age of 80 who live outside of care homes. Mass vaccination clinics will continue throughout the spring and summer with people in their 70s starting in April, people in their 60s in May and so on. The youngest group 18 to 24 year-olds will get their shots in September. Meanwhile, the provincial health officer says the vaccine rollout does not mean she is about to lift current restrictions. Dr. Bonnie Henry is urging people to stay close to home in their household bubble."Do not make plans for family day, stay local, stay in BC. We won't be at a place where we can travel. We need to think more about staying in our communities as we're rolling out this program. We know there are a number of celebratory events coming up like Chinese new years and others and we need those to remain low-key virtual events this year."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry. Dr. Henry says it may be possible to relax some restrictions by Canada Day but it will likely be the fall before things start returning to normal.Friday COVID-19 updateMeanwhile, in BC today, there are 508 new cases of COVID-19 and 9 deaths. In the Island Health region, there are 13 new cases today, bringing our weekly total to 78. According to Island Health, there are 194 active cases of the virus, with the vast majority 152 on the central island.Weekend snow?Nanaimo and the east coast of Vancouver Island could see some snow this weekend. Environment Canada is forecasting between 5 and 15 centimetres will fall Saturday night and into Sunday morning. That could make driving the Malahat and higher elevations a challenge. But, meteorologist Bobby Sekhon says the white stuff probably won't be around for long."We're gonna have temperatures right around the freezing mark and above freezing during the day so we're not expecting it to stick around too, too long. We will get some melt during the day so this is probably going to be wet, slushy type of snow where we don't quite have the arctic air in place to give that light, fluffier kind of snow so it's going to be a high moisture content.”—Meteorlogist Bobby Sekhon.Sekhon says the region hasn't seen any snowfall so far in January. He says the norm for the month is 21 centimetres.

New in this update:Vaccination implementation plan changes to focus on ageBritish Columbia has revised its COVID-19 vaccination plan to focus on age as being the deciding factor for when people will get their vaccines. The province has not changed its plan to deliver the vaccine to those who live and work in long term care, along with other vulnerable populations. But, starting in late March, mass vaccination clinics will begin, with the first in line being those over the age of 80 who live outside of care homes. Age groups will continue on a descending scale with 70-year-olds starting in April, 60 to 70-year-old starting in May and so on, with the youngest group 18 to 24 being done in September. Premier John Horgan acknowledged that some groups including teachers and others with less critical medical conditions will be disappointed."I know how people feel about this. In almost every sector in the economy, I receive mail, a couple of inches thick, from advocates saying that their particular sector, that their particular profession, deserves a higher priority and all of the arguments are pretty compelling. But the science is pretty clear. Age is the dominant, determinant factor on severe illness and death. If given the opportunity to have a vaccination today, knowing that there are other people more vulnerable, I am confident that the vast majority of British Columbians would defer their vaccination, to protect someone more vulnerable."—Premier John Horgan.Meanwhile, the provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, says she expects British Columbians will be allowed non-essential provincial travel and larger get-togethers by the summer.COVID-19 counts continue to rise in central islandCOVID-19 case counts continue to rise on central Vancouver Island. Of the 47 new cases confirmed yesterday, 36 are on the central island. There are 212 active cases of the virus in Island Health, with three-quarters of those in the central region. Many of those are due to an outbreak within the Cowichan Tribes. As a result, the chief and council extended the shelter in place order until February the 5th. They also took to social media to underline that message. As of Monday, there were 128 members who tested positive for the virus and seven in hospital. Councillor Cindy Daniels says the rising cases counts weren't really surprising."We knew in these two weeks, that the numbers may spike if the community didn't keep still during the holidays. And right now our numbers are spiking but it is my hope now that with the shelter in place that our numbers start dropping."—Cowichan Councillor Cindy Daniels.Other councillors, including Deborah Toporowski, urged members to self-isolate and to not be afraid to get tested."I've had questions from our community members about the confidentiality of these testing. We don't even know who's getting tested or who's tested positive or negative. It is all confidential and it is safe."—Cowichan Tribes Councillor Deboarah Toporowski.Meanwhile, the Snuneymuxw First Nation lifted its shelter in place order on Wednesday. saying it has contained its outbreak to 36 cases, only six of which are currently active.

New in this update:Malcolmson to focus on building up systems of careThe Minister of Mental Health and Addictions says she has no intention of reintroducing a controversial bill that would allow young people to be involuntarily admitted to hospital for treatment after a drug overdose. Bill 22 drew criticism from civil liberties groups, BC's Representative for Children and Youth and the provincial coroner. They feared young people would not seek medical help if they thought they would be forced into rehab. The province withdrew the bill, and the Premier said one reason he called the election was because the Green Party would not support it. However, Sheila Malcolmson says she will not re-introduce Bill 22 in the upcoming session of the legislature, which begins on March the 1st."I've got a lot of work to do with indigenous leadership, with all kinds of partners and stakeholders across the province on what we learned from the Bill 22 discussions that happened last summer, but honestly, my priority is on building up the system of care and particularly getting at the interventions we can do outside of hospital, to prevent things from building to a crisis."However, Malcolmson is not ruling out reintroducing a revised Bill 22 during her government's 4-year term.Filmmaker hopes film will give youths tools to recognize exploitation A Cowichan Valley production company is hoping to shine a light on Victoria's dirty little secret. Empress Avenue Media is in the midst of filming “Tug of War” which explores in disturbing detail the impact sexual exploitation of youth has on victims and their families in the region and beyond. The documentary's director, Mia Golden is also a counsellor with the Mobile Youth Services Team in Victoria. "People don't really know how extensive the youth exploitation situation is within our communities. They didn't realize to what extent and that it is happening in all our backyards and that there are children that they know that are being exploited without their knowledge."—Mia Golden, Counsellor with Mobile Youth Services.Golden says the internet has made that exploitation so much easier for pedophiles, who she says spend their days online, grooming and exploiting hundreds of kids at once. She says others are exploited through escort agencies and sex trafficking rings. And she says the dysfunctional nature of internet porn teaches kids that violent sex is normal. Golden says no family and no community is immune. Her documentary is set to debut at middle schools in Victoria this spring. She's hoping it will give young people the tools to recognize what's not normal and to recognize when they're being exploited. She also hopes it will help parents to prevent their children from becoming victims and to know how to seek help if they do.Bilingual signs in DuncanThe city of Duncan is going bilingual. Its council has approved a plan by the local Business Improvement Association to erect street signs in English and Hul'q'umi'num the traditional language of the Cowichan Tribes. Some of the names are translations while others hold significance in Cowichan Tribes' culture. For example, Third Street is named Smuyuqw'a which means ladybug and was chosen for its significance in Cowichan storytelling. Seven streets will include names in the Hul'q'umi'num language.

New in this update:Thursday COVID-19 updateCentral Vancouver Island continues to be a hotspot for COVID-19. Island Health is reporting 47 new cases of the virus today. There are now 212 active cases in the health region, with the vast majority, 157 on the central island. Province-wide, there were 564 new cases confirmed over the past 24 hours and 15 deaths.Gaming grant funding to help vulnerable youthVulnerable youth in the Cowichan Valley and Nanaimo are getting a boost, through a series of gaming grants. The Cowichan Valley Branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association will receive $121,000 dollars to buy two vans. Its executive director, Lise Haddock says the vans are the key to connecting youth at risk with the supports they need."Many of our kids who are being impacted by homelessness, the opiate crisis, the impact of COVID and the lack of resources and a lack of services, really need to be reconnected,. and we see these vehicles as a mechanism around relational practices and a mechanism to connect. So the use of vehicles, we see them as a therapeutic tool. They're more than a vehicle."—Cowichan Valley CMHA Executive Director Lise Haddock.The Vancouver-based Take A Hike program for youth at risk says it will also buy a van with its $76,000 dollar grant, and it will be used in its Nanaimo program that serves 40 young people.VIU benefiting from Health Career Access programMeanwhile, Vancouver Island University will benefit from the province's plan to train and hire more long term care workers. The government's Health Career Access program will fund 600 post-secondary seats across the province, including 72 at Vancouver Island University. The health care assistants will be paid while they complete their courses and train at care sites. And, incentives are paid to those who remain in the industry after graduation. The $8.4 million dollar program was announced last September in response to the pressure put on the system by the pandemic. Today's announcement is the second this week in relation to health care education funding. On Monday, the province announced it would spend $800,000 dollars to fund more seats to train community mental health workers at four BC universities including VIU. The Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and the MLA for Nanaimo, Sheila Malcolmson says the programs will also benefit those already working in the sector. "To give those already facing burnout in the sector, to give them that optimism that we've got some fresh, newly trained, energetic young workers on their way to lend their support and make their work more sustainable."—Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Sheila Malcolmson.VIU will offer 16 more seats in its spring session for community mental health workers as a result of the new funding.

New in this update:Wednesday COVID-19 updateIsland Health says two of the four COVID-19 deaths reported this month are related to the outbreak at the Chartwell Malaspina long term care home in Nanaimo. There have been seven residents and one staff member who tested positive for the virus since the outbreak was declared two days after Christmas. Meanwhile, there are 32 new cases of COVID-19 in the Island Health region today, bringing our active case count to 183. Province-wide, there are 500 new cases and there have been 14 deaths over the past 24 hours.Coroners Report: teenager's death due to lack of trainingA Nanaimo teenager was killed on the job because of inadequate training, according to a coroner's report, released today. 18-year-old Aidan Webber died while working on a tugboat near Port Hardy in March 2019. He was crushed between the hull of a tugboat and a stanchion barrier, as the tugboat was docking. The coroner's report concluded a number of workplace safety violations by his employer, Sea Roamer Services, contributed to Webber's death. It said, "the training that had been provided to Mr. Webber was informal in nature and did not provide specific guidelines for docking safely." Webber was an accomplished BMX rider, who won Canada's BMX championship for junior men in 2018. He also represented Canada at the world championships in 2016.Word on the Street is…CHLY is joining Literacy Central Vancouver Island's "Word on the Street" Project. Starting this week, copies of our news update can be read on Literacy's "Bulletin Board." The "Bulletin Board" hangs in the window of Well Read Books on Commercial Street and is accessible to all. The group's adult literacy outreach coordinator, Rhiannon, says the idea came to fruition because of the pandemic."The Bulletin Board is a feature of that program that's dedicated as a communications space and a creative space for homeless individuals and other people who don't have regular access to the internet. Particularly since the beginning of COVID-19, at which time so many services shut down, including libraries and other points where people might be able to get on a public computer."—Rhiannon, Literacy Central Vancouver Island Adult Literacy Outreach Coordinator.Besides news, the bulletin board includes event posters, maps to social services, creative writing and a weekly joke. VIRL launches SOLAROSpeaking of literacy, the Vancouver Island Regional Library is helping students from grades 3 to 12 with their homework. It's launched a new, online resource called SOLARO. SOLARO is aligned with the BC school curriculum and provides practice tests along with study materials and can be accessed with your library card.

New in this update:Public meetings ‘lacking' for health authorities during pandemic B.C.'s Minister of Health says he will "have a word" with the province's health authorities about a lack of public meetings. The Board of Directors at Island Health has not held a public meeting in a year. Previously, the board would hold three or four public meetings annually but all of that changed with the pandemic. Adrian Dix says the work done by Health Authority boards over the past year has been "exceptional," but he says he understands how suspending all public meetings during that time might raise some concerns."The nature of COVID-19 and the intensity of the work has meant that some things that are very important as well, including public meetings haven't happened as much as we'd like, or as you describe in Island Health, at all and we'd obviously like to get back to that and that is an issue that I can raise with the chairs of the health authorities.”—Minister of Health Adrian Dix.Meanwhile, Island Health's board chair, and former deputy minister of health Leah Hollins, has not responded to several requests for comment. Island Health's media relations department has not said when a public meeting will be held but in a written reply, it said the board is still working on some of the logistics of holding a virtual public meeting. It also said the board held closed, in-camera meetings over the past year, and it is not aware of any requirement to hold public board meetings. Improvements needed in treatment of mental healthThe province says it is committed to improving how the health care system deals with young people who are involuntarily committed to hospitals for mental health treatment. A newly released report by BC's Representative for Children and Youth found an alarming 162% increase in the number of youth committed for treatment without consent between 2008 and 2018. The report's author says she is concerned there is no legislation or regulations to guide the use of restraint, drugging or confinement measures. Jennifer Charlesworth says involuntary committal to hospital should only be used as a last resort. The Minister of Mental Health and Addictions agrees. Sheila Malcolmson says her goal is to increase community-based programs while improving the way treatment in hospital is delivered."We are determined as a government to work with First Nations leadership, with families, with health care workers and with youth to make sure they get the most healing out of the time they are in hospital and that's a very high priority for our government and work that we must do quickly."—Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Sheila Malcolmson.The representative's report sets out deadlines in late 2021 and throughout 2022 to implement its 14 recommendations. They include the creation of culturally sensitive and trauma-informed treatment to the establishment of a patient's rights advocate and review board.

New in this update:Tuesday COVID-19 updateSeniors in BC continue to succumb to COVID-19, with 12 deaths reported over the past 24 hours. There are 465 new cases in the province, including 21 in the Island Health Region. 9 schools in Island Health are reporting exposures. The high number of cases among staff has forced the Duncan Christian School to close for the next two weeks, and the elementary school on the Snuneymuxw first nation is also closed as part of the community's shelter in place order.Immunization program will ensure a second doseThere is more bad news today about the supply of the Pfizer vaccine. Now the federal government says it will not receive any doses of the Pfizer vaccine next week. Late last week, Ottawa said the shipments would be cut in half over the next month because Pfizer shut down part of its factory in Belgium to prepare it to manufacture more vaccines. BC's Minister of Health says although the reduction in vaccine deliveries over the next month is "disappointing," Adrian Dix says the province will still be able to immunize everyone who needs their second dose within 35 days of their first."I think getting the second dose is important. It's important to both the strength of the program and people's confidence in the program. So we'll have to make adjustments. We'll have to see. Hopefully, this is s one-time interruption but what we can do in British Columbia is use the vaccine we receive and use it effectively and on vulnerable populations and that is what we're gonna do. And that means second doses are particularly important, it seems to me, in making our long term care facilities safer."—Minister of Health Adrian Dix.More details about the revised vaccine roll-out plan will be released tomorrow.Report contains heartbreaking stories from young people in mental health systemYoung people in BC are being involuntarily detained for treatment under the mental health act at an ever-increasing rate, but no one is able to say why. That's just one finding in a report, released today by BC's Representative for Children and Youth. The report is calling on government to amend the mental health act to ensure compassionate care for youth who are forced into mental health treatment. Jennifer Charlesworth says her report contains dozens of heartbreaking stories from young people, forced into mental health treatment that she says results in trauma."They were really concerned and distressed by what had happened to them and they often said 'when does the healing begin?' You know this was an experience in sedation and medication and maybe some stabilization, but it was not an experience of helping."—Jennifer Charlesworth, BC's Representative for Children and Youth.What would help, according to the Representative, is for government to ensure involuntary hospital detention is truly the last resort, instead of it being the default position due to the lack of community-based programs. Charlesworth says young people should be involved in or at least informed about what mental health treatments they will receive and why. She says Health Authorities need to start collecting consistent data about who is being committed, restrained, sedated and how often. And, she's recommending a Mental Health Review Board be created that is trauma-informed and culturally sensitive.

New in this update:Wild mink also at risk from farmingA Nanaimo veterinarian and several animal scientists are calling on the province to end mink farming in B.C. Dr. Ken Langelier says COVID-19 outbreaks at two farms in the Fraser Valley have shed light on the unnecessary risks posed to human health. Scientists are concerned because the virus can mutate in mink and the mutations could affect vaccine efficacy. Animal welfare specialists say wild mink are also at risk for the virus because of the farms and mink farming itself is cruel. Langelier says the public health risk posed by the mink farms far outweighs any social or economic benefits."And it's a big concern as the virus continues to mutate, that we may all of a sudden have something come up in our own province and do we want to continue to take this chance. And really, this industry that provides fur and false eyelashes and mink oil, we don't need it. It's not really providing what I would say is a valuable function in our society and it should go.”—Dr. Ken Langelier. The letter, to BC's Ministers of Agriculture and Forests and Lands, calls on the province to help BC's 13 mink farms transition to other types of agriculture. It is signed by Langelier, 2 animal welfare scientists and environmentalist David Suzuki. The BC SPCA has also called on the province to end mink farming, but so far, no one from the province has responded to those requests. Immunization program will ensure a second doseThe provincial health officer says a delay in the supply of the Pfizer vaccine means BC will receive only half the doses it expected over the next three weeks. Dr. Bonnie Henry says that's why the immunization program will focus on those who need a second dose. “We have, however, been able to rearrange and look at the process we have to make sure that we are continuing with providing the first of two doses to those at highest risk and that we are able to start second doses at day 35. So it is a bit of a setback but it is only a delay.”—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Despite the setback, Henry says residents and staff at every care home in BC will have received their first COVID-19 vaccine by the end of next week.Mountain rescueThree people from Victoria were rescued from a steep section of Mount Arrowsmith on Sunday. The Alberni Rescue Squad Search manager says a helicopter hoist was used to remove the hikers, who were clinging to each other on a ridge. Dave Poulsen told Nanaimo News Now that had “one of the hikers let go, more than one of them would have fallen." One woman is in serious condition in hospital, while another is stable. The male hiker suffered no injuries. Witnesses say the trio left the Judge's Route Trail and were hiking in uncharted territory.

New in this update:Monday COVID-19 update31 more people died from COVID-19 in BC over the weekend, including two seniors in the Island Health region. Since Friday there have been 1330 new cases of the virus confirmed, with 65 of those cases in Island Health.Christian School temporarily closes due to COVID-19 cases and exposuresThe Duncan Christian School is closed for the next two weeks, due to a cluster of COVID-19 cases. School officials say "a high number of staff members are affected, which makes it difficult to function, operationally." The Christian School is one of seven in the Island Health region to report COVID-19 exposures, and it is the second school to close due to the virus. The other is the Qwam Qwum Stuwixwulh elementary school on Snuneymuxw territory. It was closed, not because of an exposure at the school but as part of a community-wide shelter-in-place order that is set to expire on January the 19th.Dr. Bonnie Henry comments on pause in Pfizer vaccine productionMeanwhile, the provincial health officer says a delay in the supply of the Pfizer vaccine means BC will receive only half the doses it expected over the next three weeks. Dr. Bonnie Henry says that's why the immunization program will focus on those who need a second dose. “We have, however, been able to rearrange and look at the process we have to make sure that we are continuing with providing the first of two doses to those at highest risk and that we are able to start second doses at day 35. So it is a bit of a setback but it is only a delay.”—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Despite the setback, Henry says residents and staff at every care home in BC will have received their first COVID-19 vaccine by the end of next week.The saddest day of the year?Today is Blue Monday, so named by a group of British promoters in 2005 who called it "the most depressing day of the year." Psychologists worldwide have used the day as an opportunity to talk about mental health. Vancouver Island University's Mental Health Strategist Sara Lamarr, says VIU's Talk to Me program helps students beat the blues. "The world itself is going through a lot this past year, obviously with COVID and then when we add in things like the stress of not being able to see the people we love over the holidays and bills and all of those kinds of things, it wouldn't surprise me if students and the general public are feeling it more at this time of year."—Sara Lamarr, Vancouver Island University's Mental Health Strategist.Ashley Sandhu is one of six student wellness promoters, who facilitate events like virtual games night. They help students maintain good mental health, and connect those who need more support, with programs or counselling. Sandhu says being a wellness promoter has also helped her personally."I was a new student to VIU when I moved from Vancouver so I had no social connections on campus so for me, the talk to me team is pretty much like my family. They've made VIU very much like my home and I've been able to create so many connections through the talk to me program and I'm so grateful for that."—Ahsley Sandhu, VIU Student Wellness Promoter.If you'd like to connect with the Talk to Me program, go to their Facebook pages under "Talk to Me" or "Thrive”.

New in this update:One-third of BC Recovery Benefit applications flaggedIf you're still waiting for your BC Recovery Benefit, don't hold your breath. The province admits one-third of those who have applied for it have had their applications flagged for review, and of those flagged, just 13% have been resolved. The Ministry of Finance says manual reviews are triggered for reasons including a change in marital status, errors on applications or the information provided does not match up with the information government has on file. The $500 dollar per individual or $1000 dollars per family benefit was an election promise that John Horgan said would be delivered in early January if not before Christmas. The Premier has offered little comfort to those still waiting for that promise to be delivered."Could we have done better? Of course we could but I'm convinced that most British Columbians, in fact 1.4 million of them, are pretty happy with the way the program rolled out."—Premier John Horgan.The premier's statistics are not accurate. The Ministry of Finance says 1.4 million British Columbians have applied for the benefit, but 400,000 applications are under review and it has no idea when that backlog will be eliminated.Province unclear how it will proceed with a gap in vaccine productionMore details will be released this afternoon, about how the province will handle a reduction in shipments of the Pfizer vaccine. The vaccine maker says it is shutting down some of the lines in its plant in Belgium, to prepare it to manufacture more vaccine. The Minister of Health says BC will receive about half of the 50,000 doses it had expected this month and next. Adrian Dix says it is not clear how that will affect those who have received their first dose, and were expecting to receive their second dose in just over a month."So what it means for British Columbia is it will have some effect, some significant effect on this stage on the priority one groups and when they get their doses, so some of the issues before us, and no decisions have been made about this is, of course, is the 35-day gap and what this might mean for that."—Minister of Health Adrian Dix.Dix and the provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry are expected to release more details about a revised vaccine roll-out plan this afternoon.Park closed by City of Nanaimo for maintenanceThe Beban Kinsmen Participark will be closed this week. Crews will be removing hazardous trees and invasive plants starting today until Friday. Participark was built in the 1970s as part of Ottawa's ParticipACTION program to motivate Canadians to exercise. Participark includes 12 exercise stations along a 2-kilometre trail circuit. This week's tree removal is the first step in a project that will see the old wooden workout stations replaced with a new circuit.

New in this update:Pfizer pausing production in order to expand capacityB.C.'s Minister of Health says vaccination rollout plans are being reassessed after Pfizer announced it will reduce the number of doses it will send to Canada over the next month. The pharmaceutical firm says it's pausing some production lines at its plant in Belgium, in order to expand its long term manufacturing capacity. Adrian Dix says that means BC will receive less than half of what it expected in February. Dix says that will have an effect on who gets a first dose and when others get their second dose."It just means that a significant number of people in the first priority groups won't get their doses either first or second and in particular first doses, as soon as we would like, which is like, yesterday, so in that sense it has an impact and it's our hope that this is just a small blip but regardless, with the change in circumstances, we'll have to get organized around that change."Dix says details of the revised vaccination plan will be made public on Monday.Alberni hospital to get an upgradeThe West Coast General Hospital is getting a long-awaited shot in the arm, with the announcement of a $6.25 million dollar capital plan to expand and improve its emergency department. Construction will begin in March to create three new beds along with a new private seclusion room for mental health emergencies. The waiting area will be expanded and there will be two entrances created for ambulances and the general public. The newly-elected MLA for the area, Josie Osborne says the expansion has been a long time coming."As a former chair of the hospital district myself, and the mayor of Tofino, this is a project that we discussed around the board table many, many times and I know just how important it is to the residents of the Alberni valley and out on the west coast. So it's exciting to see it and once again, just can't wait for it to get started. I know everybody is waiting and wants it finished yesterday and getting it finished within the next year is going to be fantastic."The $6.2 million dollar project will be cost-shared among the province, the West Coast Hospital Foundation and the Alberni Clayoquot Regional Hospital District. It is expected to be completed by the summer of 2022.Today is the very first Black Shirt Day in BC. It is a grassroots initiative to show solidarity with Black and racialized communities in B.C. in their ongoing struggle for equity, equality and justice. Jan. 15 is also the birth date of Martin Luther King Jr. Monday is a national holiday in the United States in honour of the civil rights leader.

New in this update:Troubled dam project has an unstable foundation and other geotechnical problemsThe saga over the future of the Site C dam has taken another strange turn, resulting in the government delaying its decision to sometime in the future. The Premier has announced two new technical reviews of a new fix being proposed by BC Hydro. The Horgan government hired a former deputy minister of finance to assess the troubled project one year ago. Peter Milburn was supposed to recommend to the government, whether the dam's unstable foundation and other geotechnical problems made the project unsafe or too expensive to proceed. At that time, BC Hydro said it did not know how to fix the problems, how long it would take or what the cost would be. Yesterday, Premier Horgan said Milburn's report did not answer the safety questions. In addition, he disclosed BC Hydro is now proposing a solution. Horgan says that's why the government has commissioned two more reviews."Milburn worked with the information that was available to him: the fix that's been proposed by Hydro and we're now asking for two other opinions on the efficacy of that fix and when we have those and they've been assessed and digested, that will all be made public." —Premier John Horgan.Horgan did not provide the names of the experts doing the reviews, nor any details about Hydro's proposed fix, nor any timeline about when a decision on the future of the project will be made.Calls for kindness from various leaders counter racist remarks and action towards Cowichan TribesThe Mayor of North Cowichan is calling for kindness, in the wake of racist and anti-racist battles on social media. Last Sunday, Al Siebring posted on Facebook, condemning racist comments and actions that had been directed toward members of Cowichan Tribes following a COVID-19 outbreak in the First Nations community. Siebring says that the post went viral, with more than 200,000 views. Provincial and federal leaders endorsed Siebring's call to end racism, including the provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry.Yesterday, Siebring posted again saying one of the people he called out had received hateful messages and death threats. He says the person tried to apologize unreservedly and was on a suicide watch, due to the harassment. Siebring is calling for kindness from all sides, writing "We're all human. We all make mistakes. And we all need to learn to apply grace and forgiveness. Please, please let's tone things down."

New in this update:Thursday COVID-19 updateThere have been 536 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in BC over the past 24 hours, with 21 in the Island Health region. Seven more people have died from the virus including one senior in our health region. Meanwhile, BC's Provincial Health Officer says genome testing has revealed four cases of the UK variant in B.C. Three of those are within the same family on Vancouver Island, and the other is an individual in the Vancouver area. The discovery of the first case of the South African variant is also causing concern. It is feared that variants may affect the efficacy of vaccines. Dr. Bonnie Henry says the person with the variant resides in the Vancouver area but has not travelled and has not had any contact with international travellers. "So we are still investigating where this person may have contracted this virus. It is concerning to not know where this arose. However, we don't believe that either of those variants are causing a lot of spread within our communities yet, but we are not by any means out of the woods."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.Henry says random genome testing to identify variants is being increased and health officials are looking at whether to start monitoring for the variants by sampling wastewater.Bus to link RDN and CVRDA new public transit bus route between Nanaimo and Duncan will become a reality in September 2022. The Regional District of Nanaimo has endorsed a plan that would provide six round trips a day between Nanaimo's downtown bus exchange on Front Street and the Village Green shopping centre in Duncan. The service will cost $1.2 million dollars a year. The RDN and the Cowichan Valley Regional District will split $460,000 in annual operating costs and BC Transit will cover the rest. Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog and Maureen Young, the Regional Director for Nanaimo Lakes and East Wellington say they're thankful the long-awaited service is about to come to fruition. "This has been a public request for a very long time. It's consistent with the strategic environmental values of the regional districts and most of the politicians around this table this morning so thanks to staff and well-done."—City of Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog."I know the people in the south will be very happy for the connection between Ladysmith and South Wellington and the Cassidy extension. A great connection, thank you."—Maureen Young Region Director for Nanaimo Lakes and East Wellington.A survey of more than 2000 area residents found most did not plan to use the bus service to commute to work, as planners had expected. Instead, most riders plan to use the route to access recreation, entertainment and connections to ferries.

New in this update:Would a travel ban violate charter rights? Cabinet to get legal adviceThe Premier says he's getting legal advice on whether BC can close its borders to travellers. John Horgan says he's been hearing from British Columbians who are concerned about the number of out of province visitors at places like Whistler, while they are making sacrifices by staying at home. He says the province has resisted calls to close its borders because Canadians have the right to travel freely within their own country. However, he says cabinet will be consulting with lawyers on whether a travel ban would be a violation of Canada's Charter of Rights."I want to put this either to rest, so that British Columbians understand that we cannot do that and we're not going to do that or there is a way to do it and we will work with other provinces to achieve it. But people have been talking about it for months and I think its time we put it to bed finally and said either we can do it and this is how we would do it or we can't and this is the reason why and that is the objective over the next couple of days."—Premier John Horgan.The Premier says the discussion will be part of a two-day virtual cabinet retreat. He says other items on the agenda will include more initiatives related to the overdose crisis, affordable housing and daycare.More information on outbreaks not the answer to countering racism against First NationThe First Nations Health Authority says it is not convinced that releasing more information about where outbreaks are occurring in non-indigenous communities would stop-racist incidents in areas where first nations have disclosed the size of their outbreaks. The issue came to the fore after the Cowichan Tribes released detailed information about the size of their outbreak and the age of those who had contracted the virus. The mayor of North Cowichan said he was angry after learning some Cowichan Tribes members were refused service at a dental clinic and grocery store. Al Siebring suggested that Island Health start releasing similar statistics to show that the virus is in all communities, not just indigenous ones. But, the acting deputy chief medical officer for the First Nations Health Authority, Dr. Nel Wieman does not think that is the answer. "The racism that's experienced is probably not only related to the release of data. It probably speaks to existing tensions that have been around and relationships between different communities for a long time and it's the pandemic that puts these strained relationships into high relief."—Acting FNHA Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr. Nel Wieman.Wieman says what's really needed is to create an atmosphere of zero tolerance for racist behaviours, rather than a release of more data. She says she's pleased that the Cowichan Tribes have been given support by local municipal leaders, in calling out racism in the community.

New in this update:Storm knocks out hydroHigh winds knocked out power to more than 100,00 hydro customers on Vancouver Island overnight. The hardest hit were on the south island. Fewer than 2000 customers are still without power in North Cowichan, Duncan and several gulf Islands, however, BC Hydro expects to have power restored to all by the end of the day.Vaccination start for Cowichan TribesMembers of the Cowichan Tribes who are over the age of 60 started receiving COVID-19 vaccines today. Six hundred doses of the Pfizer vaccine have been allocated to the community and vaccine clinics are planned for the rest of this week. Health officials decided to make the vaccine available to try to control a COVID-19 outbreak in the Cowichan Tribes that began on New Year's Day. Last week, Island Health's chief medical officer said there were no plans to divert vaccine to that outbreak. Today, BC's provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry contradicted that version of events."We never rejected calls. It was all part of the outbreak response. So this was one of the things that was discussed very early on in the operations centre that was set up initially in the outbreak and as vaccine became available we were able to look at where it could best be used so we are targeting it to seniors at risk in that community, where we know there is ongoing transmission."—Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.The outbreak in the Cowichan Tribes is currently at 72 cases. So far, no one has had to be hospitalized. Most cases are in people between the ages of 20 to 30. Only six people over the age of 60 have contracted the virus so far.Province-wide, more than 62,000 people have been vaccinated with their first dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine as of today. They are workers and residents at long term care homes along with essential visitors and hospital personnel who work in COVID-19 care wards and intensive care units. YCD at 70% of it's pre-pandemic air trafficThe CEO of the Nanaimo Airport Commission predicts business will not return to usual until 2024. Dave Devana says passenger counts hit an all time high of 500,000 in 2019, but he says those numbers plummeted by 96 per cent in April, after the pandemic was declared. He says the current numbers are 70% of what they were last January. Devana says the industry is predicting it will not return to pre-COVID-19 numbers until 2024 even if Canada completes its vaccine program by this fall.“And while Canada may have everyone vaccinated by September, 2021, It's still going to be a world-wide issue. And so we just think that it's going to take a bit longer.”—Dave Devana, The CEO of the Nanaimo Airport Commission.The Airport Commission is reporting a $1.4 million dollar loss in 2020, but it still plans to implement a five year $28 million dollar capital plan for improvements to the runway, taxiway and apron.

New in this update:Serious injuries send 3 to hospital after Duke Point highway accidentA serious accident has closed the Duke Point highway for most of the day. Three people have been taken to hospital with serious injuries following a 3 vehicle collision. RCMP say a westbound van crossed over the centre line just after 7:30 this morning, and collided with an eastbound semi-tractor, causing the semi to go off the roadway. A female passenger in the van was ejected onto the roadway. Shortly after, a westbound pickup truck collided with the van. The pickup driver was seriously injured and was airlifted to a Victoria hospital. The female passenger and the semi-tractor driver were taken to Nanaimo Regional General Hospital with serious injuries. The driver of the van received only minor injuries but was also taken to the Nanaimo hospital. Police say all three vehicles were destroyed. They are asking any witnesses or those with dashcam footage, to come forward.Last sailings out of Duke Point cancelledMeanwhile, BC Ferries has cancelled the last sailing of the day out of Duke Point. The ferry corporation says bad weather has forced the cancellation of the 8:15 p.m. from Tsawassen and the 10:45 p.m. from Duke Point. Tuesday COVID-19 updateCOVID 19 case counts continue in double digits in the Island Health region. There are 17 new cases being reported today, bringing our active case count to 185. Province-wide, there were 446 new cases, and 9 more deaths.Cowichan Tribe to receive vaccineIsland Health has decided to divert vaccine to some Cowichan Tribes members, in an attempt to control an outbreak that includes 70 cases of COVID-19. Island Health says it will administer vaccine to Cowichan Tribes members over the age of 65, starting tomorrow. The Tribes are currently under a shelter in place order, that asks residents to not leave their homes except for work, school, medical appointments or to get groceries or medications. Last week, members of the Snuneymuxw first nation received enough vaccine to innoculate 71% of its on-reserve population. At the time, Island Health's Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Richard Stanwick, said there were no plans to do the same for the Cowichan Tribes."At this point in time, we're sticking with the traditional model and have not entertained using vaccine as an intervention. Eventually, we hope we will be in a position to have sufficient vaccines and if it proves to be an effective measure, to use vaccine in community outbreak control."—Dr. Richard Stanwick.Island Health has not responded to requests for comment about why it reversed its position and will now deliver vaccine to senior Cowichan Tribes members.

New in this update:Monday COVID-19 UpdateCOVID-19 case counts in the island health region set a new weekend record, with 59 new cases reported since Friday and one death. There have been 13 deaths related to COVID-19 in the Island Health region since the start of the pandemic. It is not known if the most recent death is the result of outbreaks at any of the three senior care homes on Vancouver Island. Currently, there are 187 active cases of the virus in Island Health. Province-wide, there were 1475 new cases confirmed and 22 deaths since Friday. Back to school has meant more exposure to the virus. Six schools in the Island Health region are reporting exposures, including Duncan Christian School, Quamichan middle school and Cowichan Secondary in Duncan as well as the Distance Education Centre on Smith Road in Courtenay and St Michael's University School in Victoria.Rollout continues of Pfizer and Moderna vaccine in B.C.The provincial health officer says protocols are evolving as more is being learned with the roll out of vaccine in BC. Dr. Bonnie Henry says immunizations are now being targeted to senior care facilities that are experiencing outbreaks. However, she says not everyone will benefit from those immunizations."People who are positive today who have symptoms, the vaccine is unfortunately not going to give them benefit, but we do want to give it to people who have been exposed who are in the incubation period. Some of those people, it will be too late. They will already have enough virus that they will develop illness, regardless of having the vaccine but for some people, if they have not yet been exposed in an outbreak situation, it will prevent that next generation of exposures and that's what we're hoping for."—Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.More than 70,000 doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines will have been distributed in BC by the end of this week. Some concerns have been raised about how many care home workers may refuse to be immunized. Henry says the uptake has been very high and she will present those numbers on Thursday. Rental vacancies have increased by 7 per centThe Ministry of Finance says the province's speculation tax has led to an increase in long term rentals. A statement from the Ministry says vacancy rates across the province have increased by 7 per cent. It says taxation data from 2019 reveals the levy encouraged owners to “repurpose” formerly vacant properties into long-term rentals, but no hard numbers were provided. More than $130 million dollars has been raised by the tax since it was introduced in 2018. All revenues from it helps fund housing, shelter or rental initiatives in the five regional districts where the tax applies, including Lantzville and Nanaimo.

New in this update:COVID-19 case at Hart House care home.Island Health has declared another COVID-19 case at a care home. One staff member at Hart House in Victoria tested positive for the virus. Island Health says all 17 residents have been tested in the long-term care home, but there are no positive cases among them. Outbreaks have also been declared at Chartwell Malaspina long-term care home in Nanaimo and the Ts'i'ts'uwatul' Lelum assisted living facility in Duncan.71% of Snuneymuxw received vaccinationThe chief of the Snuneymuxw first nation says a two-day vaccination clinic has resulted in "community immunity" against COVID-19 among those who live on the reserve. Chief Mike Wyse says 71% of the reserve population received the Moderna vaccine last week. The acting Chief Medical Officer for the First Nations Health Authority says it the Snuneymuxw was not on the original list of indigenous communities to receive the first doses of the vaccine, but some vaccine was diverted to examine whether it could stop the spread of an outbreak involving 28 cases. However, Dr. Shannon McDonald says that does not mean that other nations with outbreaks, including the Cowichan Tribes, will also receive vaccines while the outbreak is occurring."This is the first time that we have gone away from our original plan and list of prioritized communities. This is an opportunity that we had because there was vaccine made available to respond to this cluster. Depending on, as time goes on how many vaccines we're alloted, we may not have the opportunity to do this."—FNHA Acting Chief Medical Officer Dr. Shannon McDonaldMcDonald says the first eight nations to receive the vaccines last week were chosen because of their remote locations and for having experienced COVID-19 outbreaks. In total, there have been 191 cases of the virus among indigenous people both on and off-reserve on Vancouver Island during the pandemic. The First Nations Health Authority will not confirm how many deaths have occurred.VIU student selected for Canada's Culinary Olympic TeamA burgeoning chef and student at Vancouver Island University have been named a member of Canada's Junior Culinary Olympic Team. 19-year-old Otis Crabbe is working on his Red Seal designation and will receive his Culinary Management diploma from VIU this spring. At the same time, he will start training with eight other Olympic culinary students from across the country at the Culinary Institute of Canada in Vancouver. Crabbe may have been born to it, having started working at his family's restaurant in Ucluelet by the time he was 13."I started off standing behind, just barely looking over the till to take orders and as soon as I could I was running the oven. At one point, you know, everybody wants to be a cowboy or an astronaut or a soldier, but I always just wanted to be a cook."—Otis Crabbe.Crabbe and the team will represent Canada at the oldest culinary competition in the world, which takes place in Stuttgart Germany in 2024.

New in this update:Friday COVID-19 updateVancouver Island is ending the week with COVID-19 case counts in the double digits. Today, there are 27 new cases confirmed, for a total of 134 new cases in the past seven days. The chief medical officer for Island Health, Dr. Richard Stanwick, says he expected to see a spike in cases this week, the result of Christmas and New Year's gatherings. Province, wide there are 617 new cases and 18 deaths in the past 24 hours.Clarifications made to essential visitors policyThe Minister of Health has announced changes to the province's essential visitor policy at long term care and assisted living facilities. Essential visitors are people who help residents with tasks ranging from hygiene or eating to mental wellness. They are supposed to be allowed to visit daily, but many have complained visits are denied arbitrarily. Some care homes have been accused of never telling families that an essential visitor designation was available to them. Adrian Dix says the amended policy is intended to more clearly outline what is expected of care homes when it comes to essential visitors."This will provide more consistency across care homes because there has been justifiable concern about that and not just from families and residents but also from workers and providers themselves, so this provides more consistency. And it also provides a clear pathway when a family or a person disagrees with a decision not to allow an essential visit."—Minister of Health Adrian Dix.Dix says there has been no change to social visitor policies, which usually take place once every two weeks for about an hour. He says that is unlikely to change for months until workers and residents in all homes in B.C. have been vaccinated against COVID-19.COVID-19 vaccine queue calculatorAre you curious about when you might receive the COVID-19 vaccine? There's a new online site that can give you a rough idea. It's called the Vaccine Queue Calculator for Canada It takes into account the federal guidelines for who gets the vaccine across the country, which is in line with the plan in B.C., however, every province has its own schedule so the results are only an estimate. The calculator's developers say as more data and more vaccines are approved, the calculator will become more predictable and accurate. B.C. ahead of national average for employmentEmployment figures for November show B.C. is doing better than the national average. While the national unemployment rate fell less than half a percentage point to 8 and a half per cent, the unemployment rate in B.C. fell almost a full point to 7.1 per cent. Despite new COVID-19 restrictions on events and gatherings, B.C. gained 24,000 jobs in November. Most of those gains were in construction. However, about 20,000 part-time jobs were lost, most of which were in sectors like tourism and hospitality. B.C.'s total employment has now bounced back to 98.7% of pre-pandemic levels.