Officials are urging residents to evacuate the areas surrounding two out-of-control wildfires in northeastern British Columbia after reports emerged that some have stayed behind or even ventured toward the blazes. Peace River Regional District board chair Leonard Hiebert says such actions are impeding the response to the Boundary Lake and Red Creek wildfires while also putting lives at risk. On Sunday, the Boundary Lake wildfire near Goodlow, BC, grew from one-thousand-900 to three-thousand hectares, while the Red Creek blaze encompassed one-thousand-550 hectares near Fort St. John. The fires, located one-thousand-300 kilometres northeast of Vancouver, have placed 164 properties under mandatory evacuation alert.
Water levels at one of the BC communities hardest hit by last week’s flooding appear to be receding. Cache Creek, a village about 350 kilometres northeast of Vancouver, remains under a state of local emergency, which was expanded to May 13th at midnight. Village officials say 21 properties remain on evacuation order while 12 others are still on alert, but river waters have fallen to the point where there is no longer flooding in key buildings such as the local fire hall. In the meantime, about half of BC remains under flood watch, warning or advisory.
Police have released information about a vehicle involved in a fatal targeted shooting in Surrey, BC, earlier this month in hopes of resolving the case. Surrey RCMP say the shooting happened on May 2nd at 8 pm in a parking lot on 108 Avenue, where officers found two victims who had been shot. One victim, 20-year-old Jayden Prasad, died of his injuries while the other victim recovered. Police say they have since recovered in Langley the vehicle seen leaving the shooting scene — a 2020 blue Hyundai Elantra sedan — and are asking anyone with information to contact police.
Police in Burnaby, BC are seeking witnesses and video footage after a car hit a pedestrian on Saturday afternoon, sending a man to hospital in critical condition. Burnaby RCMP say the crash happened at 1:50 p-m near Imperial Street and Patterson Avenue, when an eastbound car veered onto the sidewalk and hit the 19-year-old victim. The victim remains in hospital in serious condition, and police have ruled out impaired driving as a factor. The driver of the vehicle stayed at the scene and spoke with police, who are now asking anyone who may have witnessed the crash or with dash-cam footage to contact investigators.
A Surrey, BC man is in hospital after suffering a medical emergency while driving Sunday, hitting another vehicle before crashing into a nearby river. Police say the incident happened at around 1:30 p-m, when a black SUV driving southbound near the 3600 block of 152 Street struck another southbound car, left the road, and went into the Nicomeki River. The female passenger of the SUV, along with a bystander and an on-duty RCMP officer, provided emergency aid to the male driver at the scene after pulling him from the vehicle. Police say 152 street was closed after the crash while they investigated the scene, while the male driver was described as “conscious and breathing” when he was taken to hospital.