Nanaimo news

• Eight arms, one name, meet Sidney’s octopus, Chuck(anut)

  23-12-2025 20:00 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Visitors to the Shaw Centre for the Salish Sea in Sidney have spoken, and the centre’s newest octopus ambassador now has a name: Chuck(anut).
  The giant Pacific octopus arrived at the aquarium in October and will live at the centre for roughly six months before being released back into the Salish Sea. In total, 1,129 votes were cast, with Chuck emerging victorious.
  The name comes from Chuckanut Creek in Bellingham, Wash., known for its significant fall runs of chum salmon. It was chosen as
  
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• High school theatre students will bring Frozen Jr. to the stage in Nanaimo

  08-01-2026 04:30 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Fans of Disney’s Frozen will have an opportunity to see their favourite characters hit the stage.
  On Monday and Tuesday, Jan. 12-13, Nanaimo District Secondary School’s musical theatre program will be presenting Frozen Jr., an hour-long version of the animated movie.
  “They can expect all of the magic and joy and fun from the movie,” said Kelly Barnum, the show’s director. “There’s a couple of new songs in the show and it’s all within an hour which
  
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• 3D printed applicators highlighted at BC Cancer Kelowna for Cervical Cancer Awareness Month

  08-01-2026 02:30 via nanaimobulletin.com
  January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month.
  BC Cancer Kelowna is reminding people to get regular screenings, but also gave media an opportunity to see the technology that is changing the future of treatment.
  Medical Physicist Dr. Deidre Batchelar explained the technology is a 3D printer that uses resin to create custom applicators for brachytherapy, or internal radiation treatment.
  Brachytherapy isn’t a new treatment style, but Batchelar explain they would get a one-size-fits-all applicato
  
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• 15-year-old found dead after Aldergrove house fire

  08-01-2026 01:48 via nanaimobulletin.com
  A 15-year-old was found dead inside a home near the 6500-block of 248 Street in Aldergrove where a structure fire was reported on the morning of Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 6:57 a.m.“This is a heartbreaking tragedy, and our thoughts are with the family and friends of the deceased during this incredibly difficult time,” said Langley RCMP Sgt. Zynal Sharoom.
  Sharoom also confirmed that Township firefighters found the structure fully engulfed in flames.
  Around 9 a.m., deputy fire chief Russ Je
  
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• Diesel mistakenly pumped into water truck on wrong B.C. site leads to farm fuel spill

  08-01-2026 01:10 via nanaimobulletin.com
  The Ministry of Environment and Parks is assessing the damage of an oil spill on a horse farm north of Campbell River after a fuel company drove onto the wrong property and mistakenly pumped diesel into a water truck on Jan. 6, leaking 786 litres onto the ground.
  Dave Duck, manager of the horse farm off North Island Highway, said he saw a semi-truck carrying fuel enter the property, assuming it had taken a wrong turn, as often happens on Duncan Bay Road. He went to lunch since no delivery was ex
  
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• January brings magic, Lego and more to Victoria’s Royal BC Museum

  08-01-2026 01:00 via nanaimobulletin.com
  This January, the Royal BC Museum is hosting a lineup of events and activities that help the public explore their own minds and creativity, while engaging in fun activities.
  From mindfulness and magic, to the lost art of letter writing, the museum has something for all ages to enjoy.
  Forest Sound Experience
  Jan. 8 from 9 – 9:30 a.m.
  Forest diorama, second floor ($20)
  The museum is inviting the public to reconnect with nature in their replica of a coastal forest in B.C. All are welcome to s
  
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• Mother, daughter fight in court over man’s cremated remains

  08-01-2026 00:50 via nanaimobulletin.com
  A B.C. Supreme Court judge presided recently over an “unfortunate and sad dispute” concerning what was to be done with cremated remains of a Sikh man in the face of ongoing conflict among his survivors.
  Justice Frits Verhoeven heard the case in B.C. Supreme Court in New Westminster concerning the ashes of Dalip Singh Mangat, who died in September of 2024. The judge granted a petition from 80-year-old Gurdev Kaur Mangat, the deceased’s wife of 62 years, to scatter her husband&rs
  
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• Bernice Nugent

  08-01-2026 00:30 via nanaimobulletin.com
  The Nugent family is sad to share the news of Bernice’s peaceful passing, at 88 years of age, in Nanaimo, on December 26, 2025. Bernice is predeceased by John, her husband of 65 years, her sister Phyllis, and her brother Martin. She is survived by three sons, Barry (Cathy), Darren, and Scott, four grandchildren, Kiefer, Alexandra (Cole), DJ (Raelynn), and Jordan, and great granddaughter Khloe.
  Bernice was born and raised in Alberta. After college, she met then married John shortly after he
  
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• Kamloops RCMP warn dating app users as homicide investigation continues

  08-01-2026 00:21 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Kamloops RCMP is renewing its call for public assistance as investigators continue a homicide investigation concerning the death of a man in the city’s West End, and new information from police indicates they are looking into the victim’s potential use of dating sites.
  Muhammad “Ash” Zafar was located in the West End neighbourhood on Monday, Jan. 6. Police responded to a home on Dalgleish Drive for a well-being call and located Zafar deceased inside the residence.
  Investi
  
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• Two of ‘Canada’s most renowned waterways’ top B.C. Most Endangered Rivers list

  08-01-2026 00:00 via nanaimobulletin.com
  It’s not the first time the heart of the mighty Fraser River, “one of the most productive rivers on the planet,” makes it to the top of the BC Most Endangered Rivers list, compiled by the Outdoor Recreation Council of BC.
  The 2026 Endangered Rivers List released on Jan. 7 has two of “Canada’s most renowned waterways” tied for the title of most endangered: The Heart of the Fraser, the section of the Fraser River from Mission to Hope, and the Cowichan River on V
  
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• No relation between Nanaimo RCMP and injury man suffered in April arrest, says IIO

  08-01-2026 00:00 via nanaimobulletin.com
  B.C.’s police watchdog has found no fault with Nanaimo RCMP in an April incident where a man was hospitalized after being arrested.
  Previously, the Independent Investigations Office of B.C. stated that a man sustained, what was later confirmed as, a “self-inflicted” injury when being arrested in the Sherwood Drive area after 12:30 p.m. on April 20 – the man was taken to hospital and treated and “survived [the] injury,” it noted.
  In a press release on Wednesday
  
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• BC Lions sign White Rock kicker Sean Whyte to 1-year contract extension

  07-01-2026 23:53 via nanaimobulletin.com
  BC Lions kicker and White Rock native Sean Whyte will play for at least one more year with his hometown Canadian Football League team.
  The clutch kicker, who led the CFL with a career-high field goal percentage of 95.1 after making good on 39 of 41 attempts in 2025, was also a West Divsionn All-CFL selection for the third straight season.
  This will be Whyte’s eighth season with the BC Lions and 18th overall in the CFL, and the 40-year-old says he’s happy to play for another year with
  
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• Wayne Davidson

  07-01-2026 22:30 via nanaimobulletin.com
  It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Wayne Davidson.
  Robert Wayne McCambridge Davidson (Wayne) died peacefully in Nanaimo on December 18th 2025 surrounded by his two daughters.
  Wayne was born on August 13th 1944 in Vancouver. He joined the 15th Field Artillery regiment RCA in 1965 and retired in 1975. He graduated with a BA from UBC in 1969, which led to a successful career as a Fellow Chartered Insurance Professional. In retirement, Wayne moved to Nanaimo and travelled.
  Wayne
  
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• Kathleen Mary Williams

  07-01-2026 22:30 via nanaimobulletin.com
  APRIL 11, 1938 – DECEMBER 25, 2025
  Kathleen (nee O’Shaughnessy), a lifelong resident of Nanaimo, passed away unexpectedly on Christmas Day, at the age of 87. She was a lover of music and theatre, a singer and chorus director, a Tai Chi practitioner, a keen player of Scrabble and Upwords, enjoyed reading murder mysteries with ‘a bit of smut’ (her words), and was a dedicated Toronto Blue Jays fan.
  Kathleen was a wife, mother, and homemaker. She fulfilled these roles in ofte
  
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• Vernon Vipers forming teams for BC Spring Hockey League

  07-01-2026 22:00 via nanaimobulletin.com
  The Vernon Vipers will get a great look at the next generation of potential players for the B.C. Hockey League club.
  The Vipers are forming a spring hockey team that will compete in the 2026 BC Spring Hockey League (BCSHL) season.
  The BCSHL is a cooperative league featuring BCHL-affiliated organizations and includes divisions at the U14, U15, U17, and U18 levels.
  During the 2024 spring season, the U15 division featured teams from Chilliwack, Coquitlam, Cowichan, Langley, Surrey, and West Kelowna
  
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• What’s On, Jan 7

  07-01-2026 21:01 via nanaimobulletin.com
  MUSIC
  Glen Foster and Maggy play Royal Canadian Legion Branch 256 on Jan 8 from 6-8 p.m. No cover charge
  Zonnis and Dogwood Bloom play soulful folk-roots, healing sound and soothing rhythms at the Vault Café on Jan. 9 at 8 p.m. Admission $15.
  Mean Bikini, Quit It, Die Job, Red Lenses play an all-ages show at the Globe Live Studio on Jan. 9 at 6:30 p.m. Doors at 6 p.m. Tickets $20 at www.theglobelivestudio.com.
  Eagle Eyes Eagles tribute happening Jan. 15 at 7:30 p.m. at the Port Theatre. A
  
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• Beefs & Bouquets, Jan. 7

  07-01-2026 20:59 via nanaimobulletin.com
  BOUQUET To all readers. Happy New Year! It’s a News Bulletin tradition to publish only bouquets for the first Beefs & Bouquets of the new year. Beefs will return next week.
  BOUQUET to Craig, Kelly and John at Island Medi-quip for donating a wheelchair to our dad who was transitioning from the hospital to a care home. Their customer service was second to none and they gave our family one less thing to worry about at a very stressful time.
  BOUQUET So much gratitude to the kind man who he
  
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• Happy New Year for Coombs couple after they score $500K ‘Extra’ prize

  07-01-2026 20:35 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Happy New Year, indeed.
  Nina F. and Frederick K. are having an extraordinary start to 2026, after learning that they won a $500,000 Extra prize from the Dec. 23, 2025 Lotto Max draw.
  “Fred scanned the ticket [on the BCLC Lotto! app] and at first I thought he was teasing me,” said Nina.
  “We checked the ticket and thought it was a free play at first!” said Fred.
  The Coombs residents first shared the news with their daughter and son-in-law, who immediately called to ask if i
  
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• Single-vehicle crash on Vancouver Island highway leaves 1 man dead

  07-01-2026 20:00 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Police report a driver died following a New Year’s Day crash on Highway 4.
  Emergency crews responded to the single-vehicle crash between Little Qualicum Falls Road and Chalet Road in Whiskey Creek at approximately 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 1, according to a Jan. 7 news release by Oceanside RCMP.
  A grey Acura travelling toward Port Alberni went off the road down an embankment and collided with multiple trees. No other vehicles were involved.
  “Unfortunately, the 29-year-old driver of the Acura
  
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• Island woman seeks living liver donor after incurable disease diagnosis

  07-01-2026 19:26 via nanaimobulletin.com
  A Victoria woman diagnosed with a rare liver disease is appealing for a living liver donor after learning she is unlikely to receive a transplant from a deceased donor.
  Lori Roter was diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) back in 2017. This condition affects the bile ducts that can lead to liver failure.
  PSC affects about one in 10,000 Canadians and currently has no cure and can cause bile to back up in the blood, leading to jaundice, extreme itchiness, cognitive issues, and eventu
  
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• UPDATE: Air ambulance mobilized as explosion injures 2 in North Thompson

  07-01-2026 19:01 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Update: 11:30 a.m.
  An explosion at a Barriere property sent two to hospital, at least one of whom was taken by air ambulance Tuesday afternoon.
  Barriere RCMP responded to a request for assistance from BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) around 2 p.m. Jan. 6, following the explosion, the RCMP said in a press release Wednesday.
  Early indications are that two people were opening a sealed sea can containing a propane tank when a buildup of leaking propane gas ignited upon opening, resulting in a fl
  
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• Person airlifted in critical condition from fire in North Thompson Valley

  07-01-2026 19:01 via nanaimobulletin.com
  A fire in Barriere resulted in two serious injuries, with one person transported by air ambulance in critical condition Tuesday afternoon.
  BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) said Wednesday morning it received a call about a fire in the 400 block of McLean Road just after 2 p.m. Jan. 6.
  One ambulance with emergency medical responders, a community paramedic response unit, an ambulance with advanced care paramedics and an ambulance with critical care paramedics responded.
  Paramedics provided emer
  
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• Crashes closures Cariboo highway

  07-01-2026 17:22 via nanaimobulletin.com
  A pair of crashes has caused closures to two Cariboo highways on Wednesday morning, Jan. 7.
  Around 6:45 a.m., a multi-vehicle incident took place on Highway 5 about eight kilometres south of Clearwater. As a result, the highway is closed from between Hummingbird Road and Pumping Station Road for a 13.5 kilometres stretch.
  A detour is in effect but the next update isn’t expected until 12:30 p.m.
  It’s unclear how the incident happened or if anyone is injured.
  A multi-vehicle crash also
  
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• Crash closes Cariboo highway

  07-01-2026 17:22 via nanaimobulletin.com
  A pair of crashes has caused closures to two Cariboo highways on Wednesday morning, Jan. 7.
  Around 6:45 a.m., a multi-vehicle incident took place on Highway 5 about eight kilometres south of Clearwater. As a result, the highway is closed from between Hummingbird Road and Pumping Station Road for a 13.5 kilometres stretch.
  A detour is in effect but the next update isn’t expected until 12:30 p.m.
  It’s unclear how the incident happened or if anyone is injured.
  A multi-vehicle crash also
  
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• Bankrupt B.C. bus and truck maker’s U.S. plant sold by receiver

  07-01-2026 17:00 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Three years after Aldergrove-based Vicinity Motor Corp opened a brand-new factory in Ferndale, Washington, the facility has been sold to regain some of the money the bankrupt firm owes creditors.
  A Dec. 19 order filed in B.C. Supreme Court approves the sale of the 62,000 sq. ft. plant and 148 all-electric VMC 1200 trucks for $10.5 million U.S. to C & Y Investment LLC, a California company.
  Vicinity had opened its new “Buy America compliant” vehicle assembly facility in 2023, inte
  
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• Woman who ignored traffic controls and killed road crew worker near Nanaimo awaits fate

  07-01-2026 14:55 via nanaimobulletin.com
  A B.C. Supreme Court justice will ponder whether a non-jail sentence is viable for a woman who killed a man helping to pave the Trans-Canada Highway near Nanaimo over four years ago.
  B.C. Supreme Court justice Douglas Thompson previously found Christianne Marie Boufford, 53, guilty of dangerous driving causing death and dangerous driving causing bodily harm in the incident where Raymond Ferguson was killed. Nick Barber, Crown counsel, and Jerry Steele, defence counsel, made submissions at the Na
  
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• Snowmobiler died after collision with parked vehicle in B.C. park: RCMP

  07-01-2026 14:07 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Police have confirmed a few more details surrounding the death of a snowmobiler in Silver Star Provincial Park.
  The B.C. Coroners Service said last week it was investigating a death that occurred on Sunday Dec. 28.
  Around 12:45 p.m. that day, Vernon North Okanagan RCMP officers responded to the parking lot at Aberdeen Summit Road and Sovereign Lake Road for a report of a collision between a snowmobile and a parked vehicle, an RCMP spokesperson told The Morning Star.
  The driver and lone occupant
  
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• Vancouver Island 2026 Property Assessments show small change in property values

  07-01-2026 14:05 via nanaimobulletin.com
  B.C.’s property assessors are reporting a “fairly flat” market with the release of the 2026 property assessments.
  The assessments, released Friday, Jan. 2, reflect property market values as of July 1, and listed values for about 400,000 properties across the Vancouver Island region, and assessors are reporting little overall change in property values compared to figures from 2025.
  “It’s been a pretty flat year,” said Maurice Primeau, B.C. Assessments deputy as
  
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• Nanaimo has 12th most donors per capita in Canada for GoFundMe

  07-01-2026 05:00 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Nanaimo had the 12th most donors per capita on GoFundMe in 2025 compared with other Canadian communities.
  In a GoFundMe press release issued last month, B.C. communities held the top three spots, Victoria holding the lead, with an average of one in five Victorians contributing to a GoFundMe campaign last year, followed by North Vancouver in second and Vancouver in third. Also ranking high was New Westminster in fifth, Kamloops in sixth, Port Coquitlam in ninth and Kelowna in 10th.
  GoFundMe is a
  
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• Buffalo Sabres fend off late comeback effort, dump Canucks 5-3

  07-01-2026 03:35 via nanaimobulletin.com
  Zach Metsa’s first career goal stood up as the winner, helping the Buffalo Sabres to a 5-3 win over the visiting Vancouver Canucks in NHL action Tuesday at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y.
  Tage Thompson, Ryan McLeod, Alex Tuch and Josh Doan also scored for the Sabres (22-15-4), while Bowen Byram had a pair of assists. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 31 saves to pick up the win in goal.
  Jake DeBrusk, forward Elias Pettersson and Liam Öhgren scored for the Canucks during a furious third-period
  
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