Nanaimo, Parksville and Area

to the house
Free sessions in Parksville helping curb sharp curling learning curve
PARKSVILLE - If you've ever wanted to use the hammer to push past a guard and draw to the button, now is your opportunity. The Parksville Curling Club are hosting free sessions Friday, Jan. 24 and Saturday, Jan. 25 at their facility on Corfield St., where those who have never, or barely, curled can come out and give th...
10h ago
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fare hikes
RDN transit committee recommends bus fare increases
NANAIMO - Riding most Regional District of Nanaimo (RDN) buses is anticipated to more expensive following a review process. The RDN Transit Committee meeting on Thursday, Jan. 23 resulted in a recommendation for the RDN board to endorse price fare changes effective April 1, 2025, and would see the cost of a single ride...
22h ago
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drug and weapons bust
Loaded gun, suspected drugs & body armour seized during Parksville bust
PARKSVILLE - Oceanside RCMP officers executing a warrant on a man who missed a recent court appearance turned into a significant drug and weapons bust.A 55-year-old Parksville man missed a Jan. 9 court appearance for driving while prohibited and a warrant issued for his arrest, with an officer tracking down the man dow...
23h ago
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League Recognition
VIDEO: Clippers Lonsdale, Hull feature at BCHL All Star weekend
NANAIMO - Clippers forwards Chase Hull and Cole Lonsdale spent a weekend in Salmon Arm at the BCHL All-Star weekend.Hull was a part of the Top Prospects Game on Jan. 17 while Lonsdale participated in the three on three All-Star tournament and also the faster skater competition.Clippers coach Colin Birkas was at the eve...
Jan 23, 2025
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dark coloured suv
Driver flees after hitting pedestrian in Departure Bay Rd. crosswalk
NANAIMO - A 65-year-old man remains in hospital after being hit by a vehicle while crossing the street near Departure Bay Beach. The incident occurred on Wednesday, Jan. 22 at around 6 p.m. at the Departure Bay Rd. crosswalk near Wingrove St. involving a southbound SUV failing to stop for the crossing pedestrian in the...
Jan 23, 2025
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light it up
PHOTOS: Luminous Paths lights up Nanaimo's Maffeo Sutton Park
NANAIMO - Live entertainment and numerous light displays have turned one of the city's favourite spots into an illuminated wonderland for the next few weeks. Marking 150 years of incorporation as a municipality in British Columbia, the City of Nanaimo began hosting a month-long event on Thursday, Jan. 22 featuring ligh...
Jan 23, 2025
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British Columbia

B.C. chief wants Oscar-nominated residential school film to be part of curriculum
WILLIAMS LAKE, B.C. - An Oscar-nominated documentary about deaths, abuse and missing children at a former British Columbia residential school should be shown in schools across Canada, says a First Nations leader. The film "Sugarcane," directed by Secwépemc artist Julian Brave NoiseCat from Williams Lak...
3h ago
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TSB investigators deployed after boat crash and sinking near Squamish, B.C.
SQUAMISH, B.C. - The Transportation Safety Board of Canada says it has deployed a team of investigators after a collision and sinking of a workboat near Squamish, B.C., last month. It says the incident happened on Dec. 18. Liam MacDonald, a spokesman for the agency, says a tug boat called the Haisla Northwind, which wa...
3h ago
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B.C. climate activist couple to live in Pakistan if deportation proceeds
VANCOUVER - British Columbia climate activist Zain Haq and his wife Sophia Papp are planning to live together in Pakistan if his threatened deportation proceeds on Saturday, and blame his imminent expulsion on bureaucratic failings by immigration officials. Haq, a Pakistani citizen who co-founded activist group Save Ol...
3h ago
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Critics denounce Vancouver mayor's 'Trumpian' plan to 'integrate' Downtown Eastside
VANCOUVER - Critics are denouncing Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim's plan for revitalizing the Downtown Eastside neighbourhood, with former councillor Jean Swanson saying his proposal to pause supportive housing construction is "Trumpian." Swanson, an anti-poverty activist, says Sim's plans to pause net new supportiv...
4h ago
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Vancouver aritst Casey Wei wins Philip B. Lind Emerging Artist Prize
NORTH VANCOUVER, B.C. - Vancouver artist Casey Wei has won this year's $25,000 Philip B. Lind Emerging Artist Prize. She was among five contenders who displayed their work at The Polygon Gallery in North Vancouver in the Lind Biennial exhibition. Wei's video installation, titled The Zhang Clan, spans three screens as i...
8h ago
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U.S. tariff threat adds urgency for B.C.'s energy independence: minister
VANCOUVER - British Columbia Energy Minister Adrian Dix says the looming threat of American tariffs raises the stakes for boosting the province's energy independence. Dix says there was urgency before the U.S. election last November, but "there's more now" as American President Donald Trump threatens to impos...
Jan 23, 2025
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Canada

Canada Post gets $1-billion loan from federal government amid financial struggles
OTTAWA - The federal government is providing a $1-billion loan to Canada Post to help the Crown corporation continue operating amid "significant financial challenges." Canada Post says it was notified it will receive the $1.034 billion in repayable funding through the 2025-26 fiscal year. Canada Post says tha...
3h ago
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B.C. climate activist couple to live in Pakistan if deportation proceeds
VANCOUVER - British Columbia climate activist Zain Haq and his wife Sophia Papp are planning to live together in Pakistan if his threatened deportation proceeds on Saturday, and blame his imminent expulsion on bureaucratic failings by immigration officials. Haq, a Pakistani citizen who co-founded activist group Save Ol...
3h ago
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Bill Blair says Canada could hit NATO target in 2 years, but doesn't commit
OTTAWA - Defence Minister Bill Blair says Canada could hit its NATO defence spending target within just a few years if need be but didn't commit to doing so. NATO members have all committed to spend the equivalent of two per cent of its GDP on defence but Canada has consistently failed to reach that target. Last summer...
3h ago
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Critics denounce Vancouver mayor's 'Trumpian' plan to 'integrate' Downtown Eastside
VANCOUVER - Critics are denouncing Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim's plan for revitalizing the Downtown Eastside neighbourhood, with former councillor Jean Swanson saying his proposal to pause supportive housing construction is "Trumpian." Swanson, an anti-poverty activist, says Sim's plans to pause net new supportiv...
3h ago
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RCMP union says Manitoba, Saskatchewan face severe staffing stresses
WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, CANADA - The union representing front-line Mounties says it has not seen an internal RCMP memo calling for short-term staff transfers to Manitoba and Saskatchewan, but says those provinces are under severe workload stress. Bobby Baker, the National Police Federation's director for the Prairies, says...
4h ago
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'You better pray we get elected': Doug Ford says he will call snap Ontario election
Ontario Premier Doug Ford plans to call a snap election Wednesday, seeking an even larger majority than his current government holds and using the threat of 25 per cent tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump as a justification. That election call would send Ontarians to the polls on Feb. 27, more than a year before t...
5h ago
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