The Independent Investigations Office has released the details of a fatal shooting in Opitsaht, when RCMP responded to a call from a female alleging sexual assault and being held against her will.
The incident resulted in the death of Julian Jones, and amid these new details, leaders among Nuu-chah-nulth remain concerned with de-escalation tactics of the police force.
Police are thanking Kyuquot residents for their quick response to a boat crash that could have resulted in more serious injuries without the prompt attention it received in the remote community.
The crash occurred on the evening of July 13, when a commercial sports fishing boat ran aground on rocks near Kyuquot. The boat is registered to one of the area’s charter fishing resorts, but no guests were aboard, said the Port McNeill RCMP.
Three people were treated for minor injuries at a medical facility in the area.
The Regional District that encompasses Campbell River, the Homalco First Nation, Ka:'yu:'k't'h'/Che:k'tles7et'h' First Nations, K’ómoks First Nation, Nuchatlaht First Nation, Gold River, and Sayward received over $1.1 million from the Community Emergency Preparedness Fund to strengthen its resilience against climate-related disasters.
Through the CEPF, the province is providing over $44 million in funding to be allocated among 70 projects in 63 communities throughout British Columbia under the Disaster Risk Reduction-Climate Adaptation program, reads a provincial press release.
For one day this month three young Huu-ay-aht women held the highest position in their nation, the latest effort in a cultural revival movement to restore the respected roles females traditionally held in Indigenous communities.
Tourism at Nitinaht Lake is doing well this season with little to no disruptions caused by the Highway 4 road closure.
Nitinaht Lake is on the traditional territories of the Ditidaht First Nation and is about 60-kilometres southwest of the town of Lake Cowichan.
Bryan Cofsky, executive director of the Ditidaht Development Corporation, said so far this season the Nitinaht Windsurf Park and Caycuse campgrounds, which are the main source of tourism in the region, are “doing well.”
Offshore of Vancouver Island, in Nuu-chah-nulth waters 65 kilometers west of Hesquiat Harbour, lives a nursery of deep-sea octopuses brooding their eggs. This is one of four known octopus nurseries in the world, said DFO researcher Cherisse Du Preez.
In late May Du Preez and her colleague Heidi Gartner set out to sea on a deep sea expedition, in partnership with the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, Council of Haida Nation, Quatsino and Pacheedaht First Nation, Ocean Networks Canada and Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
Over the Canada day weekend, Malinski Painting, a company owned by a Ditidaht member based in the Cowichan Valley, was hard at work volunteering their time to lay down a coat of primer for a mural project organized by the Cowichan Intercultural Society.
For four days, the team donated six to seven hours of their time to have the wall ready for Cowichan mural artist Charlene Johnny. Braiden Malinski, owner of the company, said it was really important for him to be involved in the project.
The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure has called the Horne Lake connector unsafe for regular traffic, but calls for an alternate highway out of Port Alberni are intensifying as the normal route continues to be compromised by wildfire.
The federal government has announced funding in the amount of $525,000 coming to Vancouver Island, as a contribution to the Indigenous-led Westcoast Stewardship Corridor. The corridor will aim to increase “ecological and cultural connectivity” along the west coast of the island.
A master plan is in the works that will see new development at Clutesi Haven Marina in Port Alberni.
The Tseshaht and Hupacasath First Nations are working together with the City of Port Alberni on the initial planning phase for the marina, situated on the tidal fresh waters of the Somass River, and along Highway 4.