PARKSVILLE - The only non-profit long-term care and assisted living campus in Parksville is raising money to help their residents make the most of the outdoors. The Arrowsmith Health Care Society (AHCS), made up of the Arrowsmith Lodge and Cokely Manor at 266 Moilliet St., recently launched the inaugural 'Walk Your Way...

NANAIMO - New technology atop Mount Benson is keeping a 24/7 watch out for wildfires.Mosaic Forest Management has installed two 360-degree cameras on top of Mount Benson, which use artificial intelligence to detect wildfire smoke around the clock, sending notifications to staff who can then alert the Coastal Fire Centr...

NANAIMO - A vital community gathering place south of the city is officially open to the public once again, now being run by those who live nearby. The South Wellington Community Centre, at 2195 South Wellington Rd., officially reopened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday, Aug. 19, signalling the end of a multi-...

PARKSVILLE - An Oceanside resident found out the hard way someone had borrowed thousands of dollars in their name. Last month, the victim was applying for a new credit card when they learned they had an outstanding debt with a moneylender, which was news to them. Sgt. Shane Worth with the Oceanside RCMP said the victim...

NANAIMO - A local woman's months of planning and training have paid off, swimming the Strait of Georgia in record time. Melanie Buggey arrived at Schooner Cove in Nanoose Bay at around 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 18, some eight hours and 42 minutes after stepping into the water at Reception Point, near Sechelt, on the S...

NANAIMO - One person was taken to hospital after a multi-vehicle crash along the Island Hwy.Emergency crews were called to the highway's intersection with Highland Blvd., near the Nanaimo Golf Club, just before 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 19, involving an SUV which had rolled onto its side after colliding with at least o...

NANAIMO - Pending renovations to an extremely well-used community play space require some financial help. The Nanaimo Child Development Centre (CDC) is launching a new fundraising campaign to collect $25,000 in donations for a total revamp of their outdoor play space, used by over 150 families every week as part of the...

NANAIMO - Fewer drivers were removed from B.C. roadways for impaired driving this summer compared to last, but the numbers are still too high. During the BC Highway Patrol's summer impaired driving campaign, 229 driving prohibitions were handed out province-wide from June 15 to July 31, with 32 occurring on Vancouver I...

Editor's note: This story contains graphic sexual details related to the publication of intimate content. Reader discretion is advised. NANAIMO - A Port Alberni man has been given jail time for posting multiple intimate videos online of a former partner after the relationship ended and she refused to speak with him. Co...

NANAIMO - Two motorcycle riders were fortunate to escape more serious injuries after crashing into the back of a southbound SUV.The incident happened along the Island Hwy. by Long Lake around 7:45 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 16, and saw a pair of motorcycles crashing into the back of another vehicle.Reserve Cst. Gary O'Brien ...

PARKSVILLE - A slight increase in visitors year-over-year has organizers of the Parksville Beach Festival optimistic about what's next. Volunteers representing a number of local community groups counted 119,480 visitors through the gates of this year's sand sculpting exhibition, a central part of the festival, a margin...

NANAIMO - A tip to Fisheries and Oceans Canada may have prevented widespread illnesses. Travis Wade Seward and Joanna Samantha Harris each pleaded guilty to a pair of fisheries offences related to illegally collecting a large haul of clams from Gabriola Island's Degnen Bay on Feb. 3, 2024. Closed since 1993 due to risk...

NANAIMO - One man has died, while police have a person in custody after an early morning crash. Emergency services were called to Cavan St., near Albert St. around 1:50 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 16, after a pedestrian was hit by a vehicle. Police say the victim did not survive. Investigators were able to identify and arrest...

NANAIMO - Local Mounties made multiple arrests following a two-day enforcement blitz downtown.From July 29-30, the Nanaimo RCMP Bike Unit, along with their Specialized Enforcement Team (SITE), patrolled and surveilled the area around Diana Krall Plaza on Commercial St, arresting ten people and seizing a number of drugs...

NANAIMO - Vacationers from Portland, Oregon were strolling through Woodgrove Centre when an ominous message from mall's intercom system was made about a Nissan Leaf. In the back of Reid Kells' mind, he suspected his car could be in trouble. It was being charged in the parking lot near the Sport Chek department store on...

PARKSVILLE - A dazzling light display will cap off the popular Parksville Beach Festival event. The Quality Foods Festival of Lights involves fireworks launched from a barge placed in Parksville Bay on the evening of Saturday, Aug. 15. at around dusk (9:30 to 9:45 p.m.) Saturday night's fireworks display at Community P...

NANAIMO - A Thursday night stabbing in Nanaimo's downtown sent one man to hospital with a serious injury.Emergency crews were called to 55 Victoria Rd. on Thursday, Aug 13 at about 9:20 p.m. to reports of a stabbing.Nanaimo RCMP operations officer Insp. Donovan Tait told NanaimoNewsNOW no arrests have been made as the ...

NANAIMO - Final preparations are being put on dozens of entries ahead of this year's Hub City Soapbox Derby. The annual race will take place down Wall St. in Nanaimo, beginning around 10 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 15, and see nearly 40 kids and several other "kids at heart" compete in two divisions, all in suppor...

NANAIMO - The first major test for this year's Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock riders is set to come Saturday. Dubbed 'Mock Tour', 23 riders along with support staff will complete a round trip beginning in Lantzville and going through Nanaimo, Ladysmith, Chemainus, and Duncan on Saturday, Aug. 15. It's the first group rid...

NANAIMO - In celebrating 10 years of NanaimoNewsNOW, our team didn't want to just focus on the past but instead take a look ahead to the future. Over recent weeks, we've taken a look back at 10 ways Nanaimo has changed in the last decade, starting from our launch in July 2016 through to now, with topics ranging from do...

NANAIMO - After largely avoiding any wildfire-related impacts so far this summer, skies are set to be smoky locally over the coming days.Air quality forecasts for the Nanaimo region, along with projections from Environment Canada, call for smoke moving across the Nanaimo and Oceanside areas beginning Friday, Aug. 14, a...

NANAIMO - A newly formed local chapter of a global movement is trying to make a splash against beach trash.Surfrider Foundation Mid Island has completed half a dozen cleanups of beachfront areas and rivers, amounting to over 3,200 pounds of items collected between Ladysmith and Deep Bay over recent months.Sean Gilchris...

NANAIMO - A local Mountie has pleaded guilty to breach of trust after engaging in sexual activity with a vulnerable woman.Cst. Mark Tyler Hilland, 47, of the Nanaimo RCMP will be sentenced at a later date after entering the plea in B.C. provincial court in Nanaimo on Thursday, Aug. 13, following an incident in July 202...

NANAIMO - A 13-year-old local youth is facing possible criminal charges after stealing their parent's vehicle and speeding through the community.At around 2 a.m. on July 25, an RCMP officer driving northbound on Terminal Ave., by Terminal Park Mall, spotted a speeding southbound vehicle, found to be travelling 118 kilo...

NANAIMO - Clipper fans will get a new, high-definition look at their team this season while sitting in the stands at Frank Crane Arena. The BC Hockey League team has entered into a four-year agreement with Chris Jaycox Productions to install and operate a 20' by 10' LED video wall in their home rink, being installed th...

LADYSMITH - Former École Davis Road Elementary is being torn down, which will be the future site of new nearly 400-seat school. Demolition crews arrived this week on Parkhill Terrace to begin the tear-down process of the the old school site, which is expected to be completed this fall. School District 68 expects...

NANAIMO - An annual bike ride across Canada raising funds for those living with Parkinson's disease is criss-crossing Vancouver Island this week.Parkinson Canada's Spinning Wheels Tour involves teams riding across all ten provinces this summer, with a fundraising goal of $200,000 for B.C., and close to a million dollar...

NANAIMO - A man well-known to police is once more accused of exposing himself to women in public.Mark Nieuwejaar, 65, faces two counts of committing an indecent act in a public place after allegedly exposing himself to a pair of women across two separate incidents earlier this month.Reserve Cst. Gary O'Brien told Nanai...