Victoria Viewpoints: Thursday/Friday, July 1 and 2, 2021

Our compilation of some of the stories of note from the day, reviewing the political developments from the Provincial scene for  Thursday/Friday, July 1 & 2, 2021
   

Western Canada Heatwave

'The embers were coming down like fireballs': Residents of Lytton recall harrowing escape

Record heat fuels unprecedented amounts of lightning in Western Canada

Western Canada's deadly heat wave is driven by a climate change. Will it be a wake-up call?

Enough with the cognitive dissonance. The wildfire that destroyed Lytton could happen anywhere

Evacuation orders issued as dozens of wildfires burn across BC

'In the first 14 hours, we were alone': First Nations leader blasts BC government over wildfire response

BC Coroner says 719 deaths in a week during heat wave, but number could jump

Here's what the devastating Lytton blaze says about the future of fire in Western Canada

Evacuee fled barefoot from wildfire that destroyed most homes in Lytton

Cause of Lytton wildfire not yet known, resident saw train brake then smoke rise

Military ready to fight BC wildfire as feds promise further response

Lytton wildfire: Preliminary reports of at least 2 deaths, coroner says

BC heat wave saw 719 die in one week, says BC coroner

'It brings tears to my eyes': Fate of missing residents weighs heavily on Lytton Mayor

'He chose to stay to fight the fire' Lytton resident says her dad saved homes

Twenty fires in Shuswap, Okanagan, Similkameen and West Kootenay regions

Conservative MP Brad Vis says 90 precent of Lytton burned in fire

Expect more heat waves like the one that's occurring this week in British Columbia, Washington and Oregon

Lytton holds a scorched earth place in my heart

Feds vows military support as BC continues to battle more than 100 active fires

BC man says he watched in horror as Lytton wildfire claimed the lives of his parents

Wildfire forces evacuation alerts and orders for parts of Castlegar

'Most homes' in Lytton destroyed by catastrophic fire, minister says

BC residents forced to flee from wildfires 

Overnight fires at 2 Anglican churches in BC deemed suspicious  

BC's heat wave likely contributed to 719 sudden deaths this week, coroner reports

What the premier meant to say was ...

Sudden and unexpected deaths jumped three-fold during heat wave

Toxic smoke prevents search for missing residents in Lytton

BC heat wave possible harbinger of long, smoky wlidfire season

'High danger' of wildfires on Island after heat blast

Lightning, heat ignite wildfire season in BC; 119 blazes burning

BC deaths triple over the last week to 719, as a result of heat wave

BC saw 70 new wildfires Thursday, more lightning starts expected today

Coronavirus response in BC

BC COVID hospitalizations fall below 100 as province reports  84 new cases, 2 deaths

BC Cases continue to decrease

BC health authority offering COVID vaccines on the beach; 84 new cases reported

BC records 49 new COCID cases Thursday, 35 more Friday

Globe and Mail

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CBC

Protesters toss statue of explorer James Cook into Victoria harbour; totem pole later burned

Pump prices expected to continue climb as oil[patch eyes better days ahead

WestJet sparks customer fury after refusing refunds for cancelled flights - again

The high, human cost of global shipping in the pandemic: Sailors stuck at sea for months

Vancouver Sun

Sky high housing prices causing psychological harm

Victoria Times-Colonist 

Captain Cook statue in downtown Victoria pulled down, tossed into harbour

Totem pole set alight on Malahat likely retaliation for tearing down of Cook statue: RCMP

Victoria's hot housing market expected to continue to sizzle

RCMP investigating after Tofino church charred by flames

Hundreds gather on Canada Day to honour residential school victims

Victoria News

Garbage piles at Mount Doug in Saanich not just a result of heat-related slowdowns

Many Victoria business patrons still making up despite lift of provincial mandate

Fire set to Malahat totem

BC city defends Canada Day fireworks as province sees moderate-extreme  fire danger

BC farms, industry risk losing water rights as licence deadline nears

Global

Calls to remove 'settler' statues in Victoria after protestors destroy James Cook statue

Northern BC First Nation's Church destroyed by 2nd fire in one week

Pregnant patients to be diverted from Peace Arch Hospital due to 'gap' in paediatrician coverage

'We knew it was there': Former BC Chief says unmarked graves near Cranbrook need more context

BC Premier won't discourage travel to BC Interior despite deteriorating wildfire situation

Georgia Straight

East Vancouver Church vandalized on Canada Day

Fire destroys BC Anglican Church, as 'suspicious' church fires reported in Tofino, Yellowknife and more

BC Chief Coroner Lisa LaPointe revised death numbers upward in current heat wave

Are world leaders waking up to the urgency of the climate crisis?

TransLink reminds transit riders that masks are still recommended

Prosecuting crimes at Indian Residential Schools in Canada poses monumental legal challenges

Unprecedented heat wave demands unprecedented action

Statue of Captain Cook dumped in Victoria's  Inner Harbour

RCMP's BC boss Dwayne McDonald confirms that staff lost homes and detachments was destroyed in Lytton fire

Japanese Canadian community leaders organize support for Indigenous survivors of residential schools

An Open Letter to Canadians on Canada's residential schools shame

The Tyee

Fairy Creek protesters Warn of Dangerous Police tactics

Informed Pharmacists are key for Drug users. A new program will train them

This was always bigger than old growth forests

Reducing, Reusing and Recycling is easy - Except in Rural BC

When Chinese in Canada were numbered, interrogated, Excluded

Erin O'Toole's Dead End

Canada's coming crisis with Indigenous Peoples 

Miscellaneous