Nanaimo news

• Bruce Chic

  04-11-2026 03:45 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  In Loving Memory ~
  Bruce passed away Sept. 15, 2026 in the Palliative Care Unit at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital at the age of 72. He was supported and comforted by his wife of 43 years, Brenda Jamieson, his son, Miles Chic, and Miles’ partner, Christi Rivard.
  Bruce and his family were so grateful for the compassion, warmth and care they all received from the Palliative Care staff.
  Bruce grew up in Lantzville on the family farm with his parents Margaret and Frank Chic and his brothers (now
  
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• Gauthier nets 3 as Ducks take down Vancouver Canucks 5-4

  04-11-2026 05:50 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Cutter Gauthier scored three times and Beckett Sennecke had four assists, leading the visiting Anaheim Ducks to a 5-4 win over the Vancouver Canucks in NHL action Tuesday at Rogers Arena.
  Mikael Granlund and Leo Carlsson also scored for Anaheim (7-7-1), with Lauren Brossoit making 19 saves for the goaltending win.
  Jake DeBrusk (2), Liam Öhgren and Linus Karlsson replied for the Canucks (3-13-1), with centre Elias Pettersson doling out two assists. Kevin Lankinen absorbed the loss for Vancouver,
  
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• UPDATE: Two dead in suspected bear attack near Bella Coola

  04-11-2026 05:37 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Update – 9:30 p.m.
  The second victim of a suspected grizzly bear attack near Bella Coola has been located dead.
  The BC Conservation Officer Service said in a post on social media that the second victim was located this afternoon during search efforts by conservation officers and the RCMP.
  “Throughout the day, our priorities were to secure the area and protect officers and first responders as they searched for the missing person, then respectfully recover the deceased so they could be brought
  
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• Harris elected as new chairperson of Nanaimo-Ladysmith school board

  04-11-2026 02:00 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Tim Harris will head the new board of Nanaimo Ladysmith Public Schools.
  Following last month’s municipal election, returning trustees Tania Brzovic, Harris, Leanne Lee, Chantelle Morvay, Leana Pellegrin, Mark Robinson and Tom Rokeby, and newly-elected Adrianne Cafariello and Zeni Maartman, met at the school district’s inaugural board meeting Monday, Nov. 2 at the auditorium at Dufferin Learning Centre.
  Trustees took an oath of office and proceeded to vote for various board positions. Harris
  
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• Union of B.C. Municipalities appoints new president after incumbent loses mayoral race

  04-11-2026 00:05 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Following her unsuccessful mayoral bid, Squamish Coun. Jenna Stoner has been replaced as Union of B.C. Municipalities president just one month after taking the position.
  Per UBCM bylaws, first vice-president Sarrah Storey replaced Stoner.
  Incumbents fared poorly in municipal races across the province in the Oct. 17 local elections, and change on town and city councils also means change in umbrella organizations made up of local officials.
  “It’s a hard thing when we lose really great elected
  
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• B.C. Conservative Party raised nearly $2.5M in the 10 days after Findlay quit

  04-11-2026 00:03 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  The B.C. Conservative Party raised nearly $2.5 million in the 10 days after former leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay’s resigned, supercharging its election war chest for the snap election called by former NDP leader David Eby.
  Between Sept. 20 and Sept. 30, the party raised $2,447,691, with roughly half of that total coming from donors who gave $1,000 or more. The contribution limit is $1,513.
  Findlay resigned on Sept. 20. Eby called the snap election on Sept. 22.
  This cash surge followed anemic fund
  
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• Comox Valley Search and Rescue helps save seagull in distress

  03-11-2026 23:45 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Comox Valley Search and Rescue (CVSAR) joined forces with MARS Wildlife Rescue to save a seagull in distress on Oct. 29.
  It was a rainy evening, and the bird was caught on a discarded nylon fishing line in the river at Puntledge Park. The line was also ensnared by a tree.
  MARS reached out to CVSAR for assistance after they realized they wouldn’t be able to safely retrieve the gull on their own.“The bird was exhausted, quite honestly,” said Bronwen Beedle CVSAR search manager. “It’d bee
  
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• Comox Valley Search & Rescue helps save seagull in distress

  03-11-2026 23:45 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Comox Valley Search & Rescue (CVSAR) joined forces with MARS Wildlife Rescue to save a seagull in distress on Oct. 29.
  It was a rainy evening, and the bird was caught on a discarded nylon fishing line in the river at Puntledge Park. The line was also ensnared by a tree.
  MARS reached out to CVSAR for assistance after they realized they wouldn’t be able to safely retrieve the gull on their own.“The bird was exhausted, quite honestly,” said Bronwen Beedle CVSAR search manager. “It’d b
  
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• ‘Time to go big’ for B.C. dance music festival, now 3 days and 80,000 projected attendance

  03-11-2026 23:00 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Next summer’s FVDED in the Park dance music festival will grow to three days at Holland Park in Surrey.
  While no DJs are announced yet, the festival website shows 2027 dates of July 9, 10 and 11.
  FVDED has always been a two-day dance party in Surrey over the past decade-plus.
  “A 15-year milestone deserves main-character energy,” fest organizers post on social media Nov. 2. “FVDED is bringing 3 days, 4 stages and over 75+ international artists to Holland Park. Time to go big.”
  Festival
  
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• Victoria runner ‘Crazy Legs’ conquers all six Marathon Majors at 76

  03-11-2026 22:37 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Joseph Camilleri has run thousands of kilometres to reach the finish line. At 76, he finally has all six medals to show for it.
  The Victoria runner completed the Abbott World Marathon Majors Six Star Challenge on Sept. 27, crossing the finish line at the Berlin Marathon in 4:51:25 to complete a journey that began in Boston in 2018.
  The challenge requires runners to complete six of the world’s major marathons: Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York City.
  Born in Malta, Camilleri fi
  
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• Nanaimo RCMP asking for help from public in locating missing youth

  03-11-2026 22:16 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Nanaimo RCMP is asking for the public’s assistance in locating 14-year-old Austin Robbiard, who was reported missing to the police last week.
  Robbiard was last seen on Oct. 26, and his family and police are concerned for his well-being.
  He is described as Indigenous, standing 6-feet tall, weighing 144 pounds with brown hair and brown eyes.
  When last seen, Robbiard was wearing a black Moose Knuckles jacket with fur-trimmed hood, a grey hoodie, black shoes and a black tuque.
  Anyone who has seen
  
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• Accused in fatal Vancouver Lapu Lapu car-ramming pleads not guilty to 42 charges

  03-11-2026 22:12 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Adam Kai-Ji Lo, the accused in the fatal car ramming at the 2025 Lapu Lapu event in Vancouver, has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
  The B.C. Prosecution Service confirmed to Today In BC that Lo pleaded not guilty to the 11 second-degree murder charges and the additional 31 attempted murder charges in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver on Monday (Nov. 2).
  Lo is in the midst of a 22-day voir dire, a mini hearing to determine whether evidence can be admitted at trial.
  A provincial court judge, Regi
  
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• RCMP searching for possible drowning victim at Cowichan Lake

  03-11-2026 22:07 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  RCMP are searching for a possible drowning victim at Cowichan Lake.
  On Nov. 1 Cowichan Search and Rescue headed to Lake Cowichan for a report of a person struggling in the water near the weir between Lake Cowichan and the Cowichan River.
  “Water and ground teams thoroughly searched the area and surrounding shorelines before suspending the efforts late that night without finding anything,” SAR said on Facebook.
  RCMP said the search is ongoing.So far the RCMP Underwater Recovery Team has comple
  
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• RCMP investigating 2 vehicle fires at Lake Cowichan on Halloween

  03-11-2026 22:05 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Lake Cowichan RCMP are investigating two suspicious vehicle fires that took place on Halloween.
  On Oct. 31 just before 1:30 a.m. Lake Cowichan RCMP responded to assist the Lake Cowichan Fire Department at a vehicle fire on Johnson Place in Lake Cowichan.
  A Ford F350 was damaged in the fire.
  While RCMP were investigating this incident they were called to another vehicle on fire in the 140 block of Berar Road. This time a Toyota Tacoma was the damaged vehicle.
  The incidents occurred about 2.5 kilo
  
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• Mercer International files for bankruptcy, says B.C. operations will continue as usual

  03-11-2026 22:02 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Mercer International, which employs over 1,000 people in British Columbia, has filed for bankruptcy in the United States.
  Mercer employs about 400 people at the Celgar pulp mill in Castlegar as well as 360 people at Mercer Peace River, 70 at Mercer Forestry Services in Lumby, 95 at Mercer Okanagan in Penticton/Okanagan Falls and 80 at Mercer International in Vancouver. The company also has operations in Germany and the U.S.
  Indications of financial difficulties have been surfacing for several mo
  
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• 3 sought by RCMP in West Kelowna kidnapping investigation

  03-11-2026 22:01 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  The West Kelowna RCMP are searching for three people who are wanted in connection to an alleged kidnapping and aggravated assault investigation.The police are asking the public to keep an eye out for Crystal Richard, Briaden Rosch and Scott Chambers, who have warrants stemming from an incident that occurred in the late hours of Aug. 26 where a victim was allegedly assaulted and taken from a business located on West Kelowna’s Industrial Road.“This investigation remains active and investigator
  
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• 1 dead, 1 missing after suspected bear attack near Bella Coola

  03-11-2026 20:59 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  One person has been found dead following a suspected grizzly bear attack near Bella Coola, as search efforts continue for a second missing individual.
  According to a social media post by the BC Conservation Officer Service (BCCOS), officers are in Bella Coola investigating a suspected fatal bear attack in the Snooka West Trail area.
  BCCOS said the individual was located deceased in the Snooka West Trail area on Monday, Nov. 2, in the afternoon after search efforts involving the RCMP and Bella Co
  
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• Water level low in Okanagan Lake

  03-11-2026 20:18 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  The water level in Okanagan Lake is considerably lower than normal this fall.
  “We’re significantly down,” said Nelson Jatel, water stewardship director with the Okanagan Basin Water Board. “We need to be talking about how we will approach 2027.”
  This year, the peak level at the lake was 341.41 metres, which is 1,066 millimetres below full pool.
  Since that time, the lake level has fallen by 76 millimetres and as of Nov. 1, was at 1,147 millimetres below full pool, according to water boa
  
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• Chihuahua with something to prove? Grizzlies want your dog in Colwood

  03-11-2026 20:00 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  The Victoria Grizzlies are preparing to unleash complete canine chaos on the ice.
  The BCHL club is searching for 10 four-legged speedsters to compete in a Pup Race during their Nov. 20 home game against the Cowichan Valley Capitals.
  While Victoria usually relies on crisp passes and structured breakouts, the team is fully expecting this intermission event to go entirely off the rails.
  “Whether you’ve got a lightning-fast lab, a speedy sausage dog, or a Chihuahua with something to prove, WE WA
  
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• ‘Heated Rivalry’ star faces questions from B.C. interviewers in The Assembly’s 2nd season

  03-11-2026 19:30 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Season 2 of unscripted series The Assembly launched Sunday, Nov. 1, with several Surrey/White Rock interviewers asking questions of celebrities and public figures from across Canada and the world.
  An expanded cast of more than 30 neurodivergent and autistic adults is featured on the award-winning series, an adaptation of a French show.
  Each episode sees a different high-profile person take part in an ask-anything interview with unpredictable and direct questions.First up this fall is Heated Riva
  
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• Guardian angels serve home-cooked meals to Campbell River’s less fortunate

  03-11-2026 19:04 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Barb Lippke knows struggle.“I grew up witnessing, and around, a lot of people who struggled with addiction and I have someone that I love that’s really close to me that struggles with addiction,” said the former support worker, who has worked in emergency shelters, transitional housing, and supportive living housing.
  Now four years sober herself, Lippke is finding healing in helping Campbell River’s less fortunate.
  “I like being able to create a safe space and a non-judgmental space. I
  
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• Nanaimo’s Poetry Trail to be launched this fall

  03-11-2026 18:55 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Poetic prompts have been added along city trails this fall, as part of a collaboration between Nanaimo’s poet laureate Neil Surkan and the city.
  Designed to spark reflection and creativity outdoors, the ‘Poetry Trail’ project places poetic prompts along city trails, inviting residents to engage with poetry in everyday life.
  According to the city’s website, each prompt is featured on a custom “viewfinder” that frames the surrounding landscape, encouraging visitors to pause, reflect an
  
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• Cobble Hill ceremony honours Canadian soldiers who lost their lives on home soil

  03-11-2026 18:54 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Agentle morning chill, and the crisp sound of the bagpipes filled the air on Oct. 22 as community members gathered around the Cobble Hill Cenotaph for the 12th consecutive year to participate in a vigil honouring Canadian soldiers who have lost their lives on Canadian soil in non-combat situations.Hearts were extra heavy this year, as those in attendance remembered the four young men from the 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry who lost their lives earlier this month dur
  
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• Busy Halloween weekend for Cowichan SAR

  03-11-2026 18:51 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  With four calls in four days, Cowichan Search and Rescue had a busy Halloween weekend.
  SAR posted to their Facebook page that they were called out to a case of lost hikers, a rescue from an off-road vehicle crash, a missing teen, and a report of a person in the water near the Cowichan Lake weir.
  It started on Oct. 29 when SAR got a call about three lost hikers near the summit of Mount Tzouhalem. The hikers had gone off the trail and were cold, wet, and unsure of their location. Members drove to
  
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• 4.2 magnitude quake rattles Juan de Fuca plate northwest of Port Hardy

  03-11-2026 18:17 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  A 4.2 magnitude earthquake struck 193 kilometres off the northwest of Port Hardy at 1:10 p.m. on Nov. 2.
  According to Earthquakes Canada, the seismic activity occurred at an underground depth of 10 kilometres along the Juan de Fuca plate, a tectonic subduction plate that moves under the North American plate. So far, there have been no reports of people feeling the shaking, and the US Tsunami Warning System did not list the event on their alert map or tracking dashboard.
  
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• Feds ‘all in’ on new Fraser River crossing, whether bridge or tunnel

  03-11-2026 18:14 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Ottawa will stand behind its $3-billion commitment towards replacing the George Massey Tunnel, whatever form that project ultimately takes.
  Federal Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon confirmed his government’s position during a press conference in Delta on Friday, Oct. 30 to announce listing the Roberts Bank Terminal 2 (RPT2) port expansion as a project of national interest, a designation that will allow the government to streamline permitting and approvals, and accelerate the new facility’
  
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• An abandoned apartment building is burning in Port Alberni

  03-11-2026 18:02 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Multiple fire departments in Port Alberni responded to a fire in an abandoned apartment building on Tuesday morning.
  Just before 8 a.m. multiple calls were made to 911 about the building in the 3600-block of Fourth Avenue. Flames could be seen coming from the second floor of the former Wintergreen Apartments.
  Fourth Avenue between Burde and Bute Streets remains closed as firefighters continue to attack the fire. An excavator will be on scene to take down parts of the building and allow firefight
  
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• ‘A labour of love’: Foundation plans memorial for B.C. hockey player

  03-11-2026 17:30 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Former teammates, coaches and friends of Grant Gilbertson are being asked to donate their old hockey sticks to help create a memorial honouring the late Sooke player.
  The Grant Gilbertson Memorial Foundation (GGMF) is seeking 30 to 45 used sticks to build a Christmas tree-shaped sculpture. The memorial is planned for display at SEAPARC Recreation Complex during its Festival of Trees from Nov. 24 to Dec. 27, before heading to the annual memorial game honouring Gilbertson on Jan. 3 in North Saanic
  
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• Man handed 7.5 year sentence for 2017 Oak Bay machete attack

  03-11-2026 16:11 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  A man who pled guilty to aggravated assault and break and enter has been handed a 7.5-year sentence for breaking into an Oak Bay home and attacking a house-sitter with a machete in 2017.
  On Sept. 28, Justice Gareth Morley handed the sentence to Kaspar Handspiker, who attacked Nermeen Alireza in the Esplanade Road home she was watching. The sentence was a joint submission from the defence and the Crown lawyers.
  “She noticed he was holding her handbag. She screamed at him to get out, and grabbed
  
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• Author digs into scandalous royal connection kept secret by Shuswap grandmother

  03-11-2026 15:36 via Nanaimo News Bulletin
  
  Sometimes attics reveal family “treasures,” but few are as intriguing as the secrets hidden by the late Evelyn Codd, her daughter Joyce Hearn and their predecessors.
  They were the keepers of the family’s stunning secret that, if revealed, would have rocked the Government of England in the 19th century.
  According to family lore passed down through generations, Ann Thomas was the hidden sister of Queen Victoria. Her existence, and the scandal surrounding her, was said to have been deliberate
  
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