The family of a man who was killed in Whistler over the weekend is describing his killing as a senseless act of violence and his loss as “the most painful thing that any parent has to go through.” Henry Stanley Garcia Molina, 26, has been identified by homicide investigators as the victim of a stabbing outside of a pub in the Whistler village in the early hours of Saturday morning. Garcia Molina’s family is pleading for anyone who has information about the attack to come forward, saying he was trying to get a taxi back to his hotel when he was killed. The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says it has identified “several persons of interest,” and that there were likely “multiple individuals involved in the murder.” Anyone who was near the Bearfoot Bistor between 1:45 and 2 a.m. on Aug. 14 is being urged to contact IHIT Meantime, a GoFundMe for the family has raised more than $25,000, to help with funeral costs & any additional costs while the family mourns
The B-C government has extended its state of emergency to at least the end of this month as it responds to more than 260 wildfires burning across the province. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth says in a statement the province is taking every step possible to ensure everyone’s safety in communities affected by wildfire, while travellers are urged to stay away until the situation stabilizes. The manager of fire operations for the B-C Wildfire Service says rain and cooler temperatures have taken an edge off some of the most aggressive blazes, with rain falling on some crucial hot spots that have been experiencing prolonged drought. But Todd Nessman says the rain isn’t enough to reverse the impacts of the very hot, dry summer and the landscape will dry out through the week.
Two people who were reportedly “having a picnic” in the early hours of Monday were bitten by a coyote at Stanley Park, and conservation officers are continuing to urge people to avoid the area amid a rash of these attacks. The pair was in the south end of the park around 1:30 a.m. when they encountered the animal. “A coyote approached and bit the woman on the leg. The friend was then also bitten on the leg,” says a Facebook post from the BC Conservation Officer Service, noting they did not receive a report of the incident right away. This incident comes after a number of others this summer, including several in which young children were bitten. The BC Conservation Officer Service says there have been more than 30 attacks at Stanley Park in the past several months. Concerns forced the Vancouver Park Board to close trails along the west side of the park in July and again earlier this month. Conservation officers urge people to report aggressive coyote encounters to 1-877-952-7277 as soon as possible. Tips on how to handle a coyote encounter include shouting, waving one’s arms, and throwing things at the animal. Running, or turning one’s back on a coyote is never a good idea.
The Regional District of Central Okanagan says crews have made substantial progress battling the Mount Law fire outside West Kelowna, where one structure was significantly damaged along with one previously damaged outbuilding. It says areas under evacuation order due to the eight-square kilometer fire have been reduced and most residents may return home, with the exception of 17 properties on the outskirts of the Glenrosa neighborhood. The same regional district says an evacuation order issued last Thursday for hundreds of properties on the west side of Okanagan Lake has been downgraded to an alert due to reduced activity at the south end of the White Rock Lake fire. Elsewhere, the Thompson-Nicola Regional District says residents of 166 properties east of Ashcroft have been allowed to return home, though they must still be ready to leave on short notice due to the Tremont Creek wildfire.
Live Nation Canada says it will soon require ticket holders to show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test before they’re granted entry to its concerts. The company says it will enforce those rules at “as many shows as possible” in Canada. Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment also announced that it will require staff and patrons to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test result before gaining access to its venues and restaurants.
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau is promising creation of a community-based force to fight wildfires — if his government is re-elected in the September 20th federal election. Trudeau made the pledge this morning during a campaign stop in downtown Vancouver — saying a Liberal government would fund training for one-thousand new firefighters and pay for the equipment needed to fight the impacts of climate change. Trudeau says it is time to act because the country is in a climate emergency and the safety and security of Canadians is at stake. Climate action organization 350 Canada calls Trudeau’s promise “ridiculous,” saying he is promising money to fight wildfires “while stoking those same fires with fossil fuel expansion.”
Wildlife experts say several huge wildfires in the Kamloops area could be the reason so many black bears have been spotted in the city. About a dozen bear sighting have been reported since August 10th in the downtown core near Kamloops City Hall. Sightings have also been reported in other neighbourhoods as the Tremont Creek, White Rock Lake and Sparks Lake fires burn nearby. Mackenzie Irwin with WildSafe B-C says flames could be pushing bears out of their natural habitat or the bruins could be searching for food because drought conditions mean berries are in short supply.
The R-C-M-P says a pedestrian was killed this morning while trying to cross Highway 1 in Burnaby. They say the person was hit by a vehicle at about 8:10 a-m at the Grandview H-O-V exit. The Mounties say a second vehicle left the scene after rear-ending the vehicle that hit the pedestrian. Anyone with information about the crash or the other vehicle is asked to contact police.
BC health officials announced 553 new test-positive COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, bringing the total number of recorded cases in the province to 157,567. In a written statement, Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix said that there are 5,580 active cases of COVID-19 in the province. Of the active cases, 107 individuals are currently hospitalized, 53 of whom are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation. New and total active cases, broken down by health region, are as follows:
- Fraser Health: 152 new cases, 990 total active cases
- Vancouver Coastal Health: 97 new cases, 811 total active cases
- Interior Health: 230 new cases, 3,203 total active cases
- Northern Health: 36 new cases, 230 total active cases
- Island Health: 38 new cases, 337 total active cases
- Outside of Canada: No new cases, nine total active cases
There has been one new COVID-19-related death over the past 24 hours in Fraser Health, for a total of 1,782 deaths in British Columbia. To date, 82.8% of all eligible people 12 and over have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. In total, 7,257,778 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in BC. 150,102 people who tested positive have now recovered.