B.C. to end state of emergency as wildfire risk winds down
Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 14 Sep, 2023 05:12 PM
The British Columbia government says it is ending the state of emergency imposed last month when thousands of residents were chased out of their homes by wildfires.
The government says in a statement the wildfire risk is diminishing in much of the province as temperatures cool, allowing most residents to return home.
The government's use of the emergency powers in February included allowing financial institutions to freeze the accounts of those involved in the protests that occupied streets in downtown Ottawa and blocked key border crossings.
On Monday, federal Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair finished a tour of B.C. communities that experienced devastating floods last November, including Abbotsford and Merritt, where some people still have not been able to move home.
There are 298 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19 and 49 are in intensive care. In the past 24 hours, seven new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,960.
Several cabinet ministers gathered for a news conference to share details of $633 million first announced in Budget 2022 for supports over three years for people experiencing homelessness.
An investigation was launched in 2019 after a victim reported to police that she was sexually assaulted during treatment at a business operating as Fab Skin Care at 5481 Kingsway in Burnaby.
Evidence gathered indicated that the Vancouver residence was being rented for the purpose of setting up and operating an alleged illegal gaming establishment.