• VIDEO: A birthday memorial for Carson Crimeni

    VIDEO: A birthday memorial for Carson Crimeni
    B.C. teen who was killed would have been 18 on Sunday, July 2
  • Lumby murder trial: Stefanski denies inflicting stab wounds, but can’t account for them

    Lumby murder trial: Stefanski denies inflicting stab wounds, but can’t account for them
    WARNING: this article contains content related to a domestic violence murder trial which may be distressing to some readers. Reader discretion is advised. If you or someone you know has been harmed by domestic violence (gender-based violence), contact Archway Society for Domestic Peace at 250-542-1122 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week).
    Vitali Stefanski appeared unable to explain the various stab wounds identified on his ex-wife’s body as his second-degree murder trial saw the end of a length
  • Impaired driving believed to have caused Nanaimo head-on collision

    Impaired driving believed to have caused Nanaimo head-on collision
    Nanaimo RCMP responded to a two-vehicle head-on collision believed to be the result of impaired driving.
    The incident was reported just before 5 a.m. on Thursday, June 11 in the 5100 block of Hammond Bay Road.
    Three individuals, the two drivers and one passenger, were assessed by emergency services and treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
    As a result of the collision, a portion of Hammond Bay Road between Dunn Place and Entwhistle was closed to allow investigators to safely examine the sce
  • High-speed internet coming to 4,000 rural homes in B.C.

    High-speed internet coming to 4,000 rural homes in B.C.
    High-speed internet is coming to 50 rural and Indigenous communities in the Thompson Okanagan region.
    Soon.
    B.C. Minister of Citizens’ Services, Diana Gibson, was in Vernon Wednesday, June 10, at Civic Memorial Park to announce the provincial and federal governments will invest $63 million as part of a larger investment to extend fibre-optic internet to as many as 4,000 households in the region.
    The new fibre will connect communities like Falkland, Kingfisher, Silver Creek, Rock Creek, Oka
  • Advertisement

  • Grant to Nanaimo school to be spent on restocking library shelves with books

    Grant to Nanaimo school to be spent on restocking library shelves with books
    A newly-opened school in Nanaimo now has $25,000 with which to restock its library shelves.
    Rutherford Elementary School re-opened in 2025 after being shuttering in 2018 and has been granted $25,000 from non-profit Indigo Love of Reading Foundation Literacy Fund Grant, which will be used to rebuild the book collection.
    According to Lene Rounis, school librarian, work has been ongoing.
    “We started last spring,” said Rounis. “One of our local teacher-librarians curated our collec
  • Road resurfacing projects underway in Nanaimo

    Road resurfacing projects underway in Nanaimo
    Road resurfacing projects are getting underway in Nanaimo.
    Highway 1 to the Duke Point Ferry Terminal as well as 33 kilometres of side roads in the Nanaimo area are being resurfaced, according to a press release by the province.
    The work, which is part of a $56.5 million investment across Vancouver Island to improve driving surfaces, will repair surfaces worn by traffic and weather, giving people smoother rides and safer driving conditions on key routes being relied on every day, according to th
  • Firearms seized in Northern B.C. as part of Ontario murder investigation

    Firearms seized in Northern B.C. as part of Ontario murder investigation
    The Terrace area continues to play a role in the ongoing investigation into the April 12, 2026 murder of a man in Ontario.
    Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) investigators had at first identified the Terrace area as one place where one of the two men wanted for the second degree murder of Ontario’s Christo Allison Richards could be found.
    Now, OPP indicated in a June 10 press release that officers from the OPP and RCMP have seized two firearms following a search of a rural Terrace property.
    &
  • WORLD CUP DAILY, June 11: Game #1 today in Mexico, another tonight

    WORLD CUP DAILY, June 11: Game #1 today in Mexico, another tonight
    Daily soccer match updates and more as the 2026 FIFA World Cup continues until July 19.
    Game on.
    The 2026 FIFA World Cup begins today (Thursday, June 11) in Mexico City at noon Pacific time, when Mexico takes on South Africa in the tournament-opening game, first of two today.
    It’s the first of 104 World Cup matches over the next 39 days, in June and July.
    “Almost eight years to the day that Canada, Mexico and USA were appointed co-hosts of the FIFA World Cup 2026, this record-breakin
  • Advertisement

  • Flow reductions begin as Cowichan River braces for dry summer

    Flow reductions begin as Cowichan River braces for dry summer
    Pumps will likely be required to sustain the river if dry conditions continue through the summer, according to Brian Houle, environment manager for Domtar Crofton Mill.
    Though the mill has shut down, Domtar remains the licenced operator.
    As of a June 4 report issued by Houle, Cowichan Lake has dropped to 80 per cent capacity and the below-average snowpack has already fully melted.
    Updated modelling for the remainder of the year was analysed at a meeting of regulators and Cowichan Tribes on June
  • Your dog is not broken; it’s a teenager

    Your dog is not broken; it’s a teenager
    Many guardians breathe a sigh of relief when they make it through puppyhood. House training is progressing, basic manners are developing, and life seems to be settling into a comfortable routine. Then, seemingly overnight, their sweet, attentive puppy transforms into a distracted, impulsive teenager.
    Welcome to canine adolescence.
    Most dogs enter adolescence between six and twelve months of age, depending on their breed and size. This stage can last up to eighteen months of age, or even longer i
  • Nanaimo community association wants to see supportive-housing projects dispersed

    The chair of Nanaimo’s South End Community Association would like to see supportive housing and related services dispersed through all the neighbourhoods in the city.
    With her neighbourhood hosting a large proportion of the city’s social housing and services, Sydney Robertson said, at the city’s special governance and priorities committee meeting on June 8, that the association’s theme for many years has been that supportive housing needs to be distributed throughout the
  • B.C.’s Jenn Gardiner re-signs with Vancouver Goldeneyes

    B.C.’s Jenn Gardiner re-signs with Vancouver Goldeneyes
    Surrey’s Jenn Gardiner is staying in Vancouver for the next couple of seasons.
    The team annouced Wednesday (June 19) that Gardiner signed a three-year contract through the 2028-29 season.
    She turned down an offer from a PWHL expansion team during phase two of the league’s expansion distribution process. Since it was a foundational player offer, that means she was required to sign with any of the league’s 12 teams during Phase 3, which began at 9 a.m. PT on Wednesday (June 10).
  • BC Prosecution Service approves driving charge for Interior Mountie

    BC Prosecution Service approves driving charge for Interior Mountie
    A Revelstoke Mountie is facing a careless driving charge for an incident that happened last year in Sicamous.
    The BC Prosecution Service (BCPS) shared on Wednesday, June 10, that it’s charging Cst. Rachel Mandel of Revelstoke RCMP with one count of driving without due care and attention on June 15, 2025.
    This would contravene Section 144.1 of B.C.’s Motor Vehicle Act, with supporting information sworn on Wednesday through Salmon Arm’s provincial court.
    READ: Revelstoke jail gua
  • Nanaimo District Secondary girls’ soccer achieves B.C. soccer supremacy

    Nanaimo District Secondary girls’ soccer achieves B.C. soccer supremacy
    Nanaimo District Secondary School’s girls’ soccer team has achieved provincial soccer supremacy for the first time ever.
    The NDSS Islanders won the B.C. School Sports AAA provincial soccer championship in Kamloops, defeating École Argyle Secondary School 2-1 in the title game on May 30 at McArthur Island Park in Kamloops, the first time an NDSS girls’ team has taken a B.C. title, according to a Nanaimo Ladysmith Public Schools’ social media post.
    Darby Moen was nam
  • 1 person taken to hospital after vehicle crash in Nanoose Bay

    1 person taken to hospital after vehicle crash in Nanoose Bay
    One person was taken to hospital after a motor vehicle crash in the Nanoose Flats area on June 10.
    BC EHS was called to the incident in the 2800 block of the Island Highway shortly after 2:45 p.m.
    Janet Irvine was one of the first people on the scene, and had been driving northbound with her husband two cars behind the vehicle that crashed.
    They went to check on the car, which landed on its roof.
    “It was completely upside down, right in the ditch,” Irvine said. “She was stuck,
  • Forests minister talks saw mills, old-growth and caribou in B.C. Interior

    Forests minister talks saw mills, old-growth and caribou in B.C. Interior
    On his first visit to Revelstoke, B.C.’s minister of forests got comfy in the rain Tuesday afternoon while speaking about his hopes for local saw mills, old-growth and caribou protection.
    Ravi Parmar, also the province’s deputy government house leader, had just arrived to town on June 9 after a visit to the Pacific Woodtech mill in Golden and a cloudy-but-scenic drive through Rogers Pass.
    One of his first stops in Revelstoke was the Downie Street Development, where the Revelstoke Com
  • Vancouver Island resident bilked out of $40K online via AI-generated ad

    Vancouver Island resident bilked out of $40K online via AI-generated ad
    A Parksville Qualicum Beach resident was bilked out of $40,000 after falling victim to a bogus online advertisement.
    An Oceanside RCMP report indicated on May 7, the resident was scammed after following an artificial intelligence-generated politician online advertisement for an alleged crypto currency company.
    The same day, another resident was scammed out of more than $7,000 by clicking on a hyperlink in an email alleging to be
    from a government agency, allowing remote access to their computer.
  • Nanaimo RCMP make arrest in shooting incident

    Nanaimo RCMP make arrest in shooting incident
    Nanaimo RCMP investigators have arrested an individual in connection with incident involving shots being fired from a vehicle, which had several occupants, towards people in Knowles Park.On Tuesday, June 9, officers took a suspect into custody without incident, in connection to the shooting that occurred on Victoria Road on the evening of June 3.
    Investigators also located the suspect vehicle, described as a white Audi.
    At this time, no charges have been laid in relation to the shooting.
    The ind
  • B.C. man fined $6,000 for illegally transporting protected snapping turtle

    B.C. man fined $6,000 for illegally transporting protected snapping turtle
    A Surrey man has been fined $6,000 for numerous wildlife offences, including illegally transporting a protected snapping turtle between provinces.
    Thai Hoang Khoi Le pled guilty on May 21, 2026, in Surrey provincial court and was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine for interprovincial transport of animals without the proper permits and $1,000 for unlawfully possessing live wildlife.
    He was charged under the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (
  • ‘Represent Canada’: Barriere woman wins custodian rights to Swedish island

    ‘Represent Canada’: Barriere woman wins custodian rights to Swedish island
    The people of Barriere may be surprised to learn that the Sovereign of a small Swedish island is living quietly amongst them.
    Well, that’s a bit of an overstatement.
    Bronwen Bird of Barriere is not actually the queen of the island called Storberget in the Baltic Sea off the east coast of Sweden, but she is, in fact, its custodian for the next year. That’s thanks to a program from Visit Sweden, a tourism company owned by the Swedish government.
    “The title of Island Custodian has
  • B.C. government straining to show World Cup’s economic benefit

    B.C. government straining to show World Cup’s economic benefit
    As players get set to take the pitch this weekend for the first of seven World Cup matches at BC Place in Vancouver, the provincial government is continuing its effort to persuade a skeptical public of the economic benefit of being a host city.
    “It’s clear when you host major events like this, there’s an economic impact that comes from that,” said Ravi Kahlon, B.C.’s jobs minister, at a Wednesday news conference.
    Shortly after Kahlon’s remarks, the province re
  • CRPAWS volunteers conduct three-day stakeout to rescue cat family

    CRPAWS volunteers conduct three-day stakeout to rescue cat family
    A tiny tail poked out from a small hole at the bottom of a shed at Vancouver Island Air on the Tyee Spit in Campbell River on May 30.
    This tail inevitably launched a three-day campaign to rescue a mom cat and her kittens from underneath a shed at the float plane operation.
    “The shed is a permanent building, and they will be difficult to catch as we cannot get under it,” Vancouver Island Air’s Melissa Cuttler said in a message to Campbell River Partners for Animal Welfare (CRPAW
  • Nanaimo Conservatory of Music will be holding Island Notes Chamber Music Festival

    Nanaimo Conservatory of Music will be holding Island Notes Chamber Music Festival
    The Island Notes Chamber Music Festival will feature five musical acts this year, including a free concert at the Bowen Park Amphitheatre.
    Organized by the Nanaimo Chamber of Music, attends can listen to the Graham Villette Quartet, on June 11 at St. Andrew’s United Church; Cellovista, on June 12 at the Black Rabbit Kitchen Attic; Fernwood Trio, on June 13 at St. Paul’s Anglican Church; Mid-Island Chamber Music Players, on June 13 at St. Paul’s Anglican Church; then the free co
  • New bill introduces social media age restrictions for Canadians under 16

    New bill introduces social media age restrictions for Canadians under 16
    The Liberal government is introducing a new bill that aims to put age restrictions in place for social media services for Canadians.
    The federal government introduced the Safe Social Media Act, Bill C-34, in Ottawa Wednesday (June 10).
    The proposed bill includes an age restriction preventing children under the age of 16 from having accounts on social media services. It also aims to include measures to reduce children’s exposure to “certain content and high-risk interactions.”
    A
  • Kelowna absent from Indigenous-led Okanagan water alliance

    Kelowna absent from Indigenous-led Okanagan water alliance
    Nearly every municipality, regional district, and First Nation across the Okanagan and Similkameen watersheds has signed on to a syilx-led initiative to restore and protect the region’s waters for the next seven generations.
    But the multi-government effort is missing two key players: the cities of Kelowna (kiʔláwnaʔ) and West Kelowna, representing a combined population of nearly 210,000 people, according to B.C. Stats.
    Located in the Regional District of Central Okanagan,
  • 2026 FIFA World Cup: An in-depth look at Canada’s midfielders and forwards

    2026 FIFA World Cup: An in-depth look at Canada’s midfielders and forwards
    Canada’s 2026 FIFA World Cup squad includes some talented and promising midfielders and forwards. Following is a look at who they are and what they bring to the table.
    To read about the team’s goalkeepers and defenders, click here.
    Midfielders:
    Mathieu Choinière can play anywhere in the midfield. In the 15 games he’s dressed for LAFC this season, he’s played the majority of them at the centre of the pitch. He has been deployed mostly in the central midfield in his
  • 2026 FIFA World Cup: An in-depth look into Canada’s goalkeepers and defence

    2026 FIFA World Cup: An in-depth look into Canada’s goalkeepers and defence
    Canada is set to kick off the 2026 FIFA World Cup on June 12. As one of the three host nations, they will look to advance into the knockout rounds. Canada historically has yet to win a World Cup game, but with a group that includes Bosnia and Herzegovina, Qatar and Switzerland, the chances are good this time around.
    Here’s a closer look at Canada’s goalkeepers and defence:
    Goalkeepers:
    Maxime Crépeau is the team’s likely starting goalkeeper, taking the reins from Milan B
  • ‘Yes and no’: Stefanski gives evasive answers in Lumby murder trial

    ‘Yes and no’: Stefanski gives evasive answers in Lumby murder trial
    Crown prosecutors typically make sure to ask binary questions during cross examination.
    Accordingly, as Crown lawyer Laura Drake posed questions to accused North Okanagan murderer Vitali Stefanski Wednesday morning, she made an apparent effort to phrase the questions in a way that would elicit a yes or no answer.
    On multiple occasions during Vitali’s second-degree murder trial in B.C. Supreme Court trial in Kamloops June 10, Vitali attempted to sidestep these binary questions.
    “Yes a
  • PHOTOS: VIU graduates receive degrees, ready to make way in the world

    PHOTOS: VIU graduates receive degrees, ready to make way in the world
    One door closed and another opened as university students in Nanaimo turned the tassels on their grad caps and received their degrees.
    Convocation ceremonies took place at Vancouver Island University’s Nanaimo campus this week, with graduation for students in the faculty of health sciences and human services on Tuesday, June 9.
    In his speech, Dennis Johnson, VIU interim president and vice-chancellor, lauded the pupils for reaching a major milestone, through resilience and determination, ev
  • 50 B.C. groups awarded grants to fight misinformation

    50 B.C. groups awarded grants to fight misinformation
    More than 50 community projects across B.C. have received $500 grants to combat harmful misinformation as part of the B.C. Human Rights Commissioner’s Community Amplifier initiative.
    ​One of the projects, Transform the Words in Kelowna, saw more than 1,000 colourful origami cranes hanging from the roof of the downtown library.
    ​The installation created by Advocacy Canada with 13 partner groups, libraries and mental health organizations, uses personal stories to counter misinfor

Follow @news_nanaimo on Twitter!