Yahoo Sports --B-C Update--
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(BC-Prison-Assault-Pickton-Custody)
A former British Columbia prison judge and speaker of the B-C legislature says he thinks he knows why serial killer Robert Pickton was transferred from Kent Institution to a Quebec maximum security prison about six years ago.
Correctional authorities gave no public explanation at the time, but Darryl Plecas says Pickton's safety was likely at risk at the institution in B-C.
Pickton is now in a Quebec City hospital after an attack on Sunday left him with what police have described as life-threatening injuries.
Plecas, a criminologist who was a prison judge at Kent Institution from 2004 to 2013, says notorious inmates like Pickton are generally put in protective and segregated custody over concerns for their own safety. (The Canadian Press)
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(BC-Wildfires)
The B-C Wildfire Service says conditions remain favourable for firefighting in the Fort Nelson area, where officials are working on plans for the return of about 47-hundred residents to the town that's been evacuated for nearly two weeks.
An update from the service says the area saw three to five millimetres of rain yesterday. but "hot spots continue to burn deep" in the Parker Lake fire as well as a larger blaze burning about 25 kilometres north of Fort Nelson.
It says recent rains haven't been enough to ease the persistent drought gripping northeastern B-C, and a warming trend is expected heading into the weekend.
The wildfire service dashboard shows more than 100 active wildfires across the province with nine classified as burning out of control. (The Canadian Press)
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(BC-International-Students)
Statistics Canada says more than 60 per cent of international students in Surrey, B-C, as well as Brampton, Ontario, were living in unsuitable housing in 2021.
A new report from the agency found international students, especially those from India, were more likely to live in unsuitable housing than Canadian-born students.
One of the requirements for suitable housing is that adults should have their own bedroom, if they are not part of a couple.
The report comes as a sharp rise in international students in Canada raises concerns about added pressure on the housing market. (The Canadian Press)
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(BC-Kayaker-Dies)
Mounties in Prince George say a kayaker reported missing on Monday is dead.
They say the man's body was found yesterday after a search involving police officers, local search and rescue volunteers and an R-C-M-P helicopter.
The man had launched his kayak along the Willow River.
Police say the B-C Coroners Service is now investigating. (The Canadian Press)
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(BC-Truck-Driver-Dead)
Mounties on Vancouver Island say a man is dead after experiencing a medical emergency while driving a truck on the Trans Canada highway.
A statement from West Shore R-C-M-P say officers responded to a report of a flat-deck tow truck driving off the roadway and stopping in the median yesterday.
Police say they determined the 49-year-old driver had experienced a medical emergency while driving.
They say first responders tried to save the man's life, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. (The Canadian Press)
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(YUKON-Salmon-Suspended)
Fisheries and Oceans Canada says it has signed an agreement with the Alaska government to address declining numbers of Yukon River chinook salmon.
The department says Canada and the United States are suspending all commercial, recreational and domestic fisheries for chinook of Canadian origin for seven years.
It says the deal was negotiated in close collaboration with Yukon First Nation governments and the ban will remain in effect regardless of population fluctuations.
It also commits the parties to examining the reasons for declining numbers and develop a long-term rebuilding plan for the chinook run. (The Canadian Press)
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(B-C Update by The Canadian Press)
The Canadian Press
