QUALICUM BEACH - A community-led effort is underway to dispose of an unusual and unwelcome addition to the pristine shoreline of Qualicum Beach. Qualicum Beach Streamkeepers president David James said for over a year a large 1,200 pound styrofoam-filled concrete dock structure has been on the beach near Grandon Creek. ...

NANAIMO - An Alberta man accused of multiple sexual offences in Alberta, may be residing in the Harbour City. Warrants have been issued for 33-year-old Kyle Soloway stemming from alleged incidents in Red Deer, Alberta, in 2023. Court records show Soloway is charged with sexual assault, sexual contact with a child and f...

NANAIMO - Marred by an extensive criminal history tied to life-long struggles, a local drug trafficker has been sentenced for a second time this year. Peter Anthony Alexander, 41, was handed two-and-a-half years of new jail time on Thursday, Dec 11, in connection to a 2022 police raid in Nanaimo involving various drugs...

PARKSVILLE - Scammers and fraudsters have stolen millions of dollars from mid-Island residents this year, and it might only be the tip of the iceberg.According to Oceanside RCMP, over $6.2 million was swindled from residents in Parksville, Qualicum, Nanoose Bay and surrounding communities this year, with potentially hu...

NANAIMO - Thieves looking for a quick buck from high-value copper wiring are striking faster and more often across the Island. BC Hydro is reporting a 380 per cent increase in the number of thefts of wiring from their electrical infrastructure, with 11 reported incidents on Vancouver Island alone since January 2024. Ut...

NANAIMO - More people than ever are saying they need a little help this holiday season.Over 850 families and more than 1,700 children are registered to date to receive gifts from the Great Nanaimo Toy Drive, representing record numbers for the annual winter holiday campaign. Toy Drive board chair Janet Mirau told Nanai...

NANAIMO - A large fire inside a parked RV in the city's north end has claimed the life of a man. Emergency first responders were called to the vehicle, parked in trees on a property in the 6600 block of Dover Rd., near Dickinson Rd. on Wednesday, Dec. 10 just after 5 p.m. with a loud explosion was reported by witnesses...

NANAIMO - Frustrated with delays in specialty health care advancements at Nanaimo hospital, local governors are willing to fully fund a priority capital project. Establishing a much-discussed cardiac catheterization lab as part of future envisioned upgrades at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital spawned impassioned discu...

NANAIMO - Fire has completely destroyed an RV in the city's north end.Flames broke out just after 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 10 from a motor home parked in the 6600 block of Dover Rd., near Dickinson Rd., with Nanaimo Fire Rescue, BC Emergency Health Services and RCMP responding.Jake Herold was early on scene, as he was...

NANAIMO - An annual campaign to keep people warm is back this weekend, thanks to the hard work and dedication of local volunteers. Donations for Coats for Christmas will be accepted on Saturday, Dec. 13, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church at 4235 Departure Bay Rd. Put on by the Youth Network o...

NANAIMO - Jurors found a man guilty of both counts related to an overnight head-on crash on Hwy. 19 several years ago. Maverick John Millen was on trial at BC Supreme Court in Nanaimo in relation to the Jan 11. 2019 wreck just after midnight when the offender drove north in the southbound lanes when he collided with an...

QUALICUM BEACH - For over 70 years, Gord Leverington has rolled up his sleeve to give.As he's done dozens of times since moving to Qualicum Beach six years ago, Leverington strolled into the Qualicum Beach Civic Centre on Tuesday, Dec. 9, wearing his Canadian Blood Services cap dotted with milestone pins marking previo...

NANAIMO - A brazen break-in captured on in-store surveillance video depicts the callous actions of thieves targeting a downtown business. Primary Skateboards at 60 Commercial St., which had moved to the location near Terminal Ave. just three months ago, was the site of a highly damaging early morning break-and-enter th...

NANAIMO - One person was airlifted to hospital with serious burns after a motor home ignited along a rural road.Emergency responders from Nanaimo Fire Rescue, BC Emergency Health Services and RCMP were called out to South Forks Rd., south of the intersection with Nanaimo Lakes Rd. around 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 9, a...

NANAIMO - Local Mounties are investigating the apparent murder of a Nanaimo woman. Sherry Shelley, 65, was reported missing on Nov. 14, with Nanaimo RCMP now stating her remains were found inside a burned vehicle in a wooded area on College Drive the same day. Cst. Sherri Wade said the investigation is being led by the...

NANAIMO - Work by a local filmmaker and his wife over the last decade could have them standing on the Academy Awards stage in Los Angeles. Jeremy Regimbal's feature film Between the Mountain and the Sky profiles his wife Maggie Doyne, her non-profit BlinkNow, and a community of orphaned children who live together and a...

NANAIMO - Local Mounties are satisfied with results of an annual 'Light up the Province' campaign on Saturday to get impaired drivers off the road.Around 500 drivers of all ages were stopped in Nanaimo from the evening of Saturday, Dec. 6, until early Sunday morning, with only a handful found to be impaired.RCMP Reserv...

NANAIMO - Amid a slumping economy and the high cost of living, stark findings in a newly released Food Banks BC report aren't overly surprising to Peter Sinclair. The executive director of Nanaimo Loaves and Fishes Community Food Bank reacted with concern to the report stating 1.3 million (24.4 per cent) of British Col...

QUALICUM BEACH - A longtime volunteer has been honoured for a lifetime of work within the community. Pat Jacobson was presented with the 2025 Above & Beyond Award recently from the Town of Qualicum Beach, recognizing the numerous places she has dedicated her time over the years. A statement from the Town said Jacob...

NANAIMO - Newly installed lights are projecting artwork onto the revamped Commercial St. The City unveiled "Sensing Nanaimo" on Thursday, Dec. 4, featuring a series of black and white projected artworks along Commercial St. A total of 10 circular designs are scattered along the downtown corridor, with artist ...

QUALICUM BEACH - Mobile breast cancer screen is set to be available in Oceanside over the next two weeks. BC Cancer's mobile screening mammogram vehicle will be stationed in Qualicum Beach, at the Civic Centre, between Monday, Dec. 8 to Friday, Dec. 12, then again the following week from Dec. 15 to 18. The initiative i...

PARKSVILLE - Another mixed-use multi-storey building is being envisioned heading into Parksville off the Inland Island Hwy. A zoning and development bylaw amendment application for the lot at 423 Alberni Hwy. was presented to Council on Monday, Dec. 1, to eventually build a four-storey building with commercial space on...

NANAIMO - Local Mounties are putting their cruisers to a different use over the next week. Instead of being used to respond to calls or apprehending those falling foul of the law, Nanaimo RCMP will park one of their vehicles outside the Save-on-Foods location in north Nanaimo on Saturday, Dec. 6, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m....

NANAIMO - Before his big trip around the world later this month, Santa is set to make his annual stop in the Harbour City. The annual Harbour Air Fly-In happens Saturday, Dec. 6, at the Nanaimo waterfront, with Santa sharing a seaplane ride with a number of children registered through the Make-A-Wish foundation, before...

NANAIMO - Peace officers of all stripes will be out on B.C. highways this weekend in full force to crack down on impaired drivers. National Impaired Driving Enforcement Day is Saturday, Dec. 6, with the BC Highway Patrol and RCMP launching the Light Up the Province enforcement campaign, looking for impaired and dangero...

NANAIMO - A Chase River affordable housing project is advancing after City Council approved a development permit for a 42-unit complex. The unanimous endorsement from Council was made during the Monday, Dec. 1, meeting, for a project in the conceptual stage for several years. To be located at 1435 Cranberry Ave., the s...

NANAIMO - Mounties across Vancouver Island are on the lookout for a local man, wanted for a series of crimes over the last year. Jamie Charles Routley, 36, is wanted on numerous Criminal Code charges, including assault, theft and indecent communications stemming from incidents in Nanaimo between September 2024 and Octo...

NANAIMO - A private member's bill authored by a former Nanaimo City councillor is at odds with the local municipal government. Nanaimo City Council unanimously endorsed forwarding a report by City staff to the B.C. government outlining several concerns regarding Nanaimo-Lantzville NDP MLA George Anderson's proposed Pro...