Today members of the Tseshaht First Nation got their first chance to be vaccinated for COVID-19.

This morning hundreds of doses of the Moderna vaccine arrived at the First Nation’s reserve next to Port Alberni. A clinic of was set up at Maht Mahs gym, where at 8:30 a.m. Tseshaht Chief Councillor Ken Watts and a group of volunteers led by Holly Mclaughlin welcomed the inoculation process with an outdoor ceremony. After the welcoming Watts thanked all the volunteers and said that this vaccine will ease the anxieties with in their nation.

Parks Canada is continuing to make progress on building ʔapsčiik t̓ašii (pronounced ups-cheek ta-shee), the 25-kilometer multi-use pathway that extends along Long Beach, in the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. 

Although around 95 per cent of the pathway has been paved, it remains an active construction zone and is not yet officially open. 

Robert Stanley was in Tofino when he heard about the house fire that claimed the life of an Ahousaht First Nation member last week. He had traveled from his home on Flores Island to attend a nine-day Captain’s Boat Camp. 

The loss weighed on him heavily and his first impulse was to drop-out of the course and return home. It didn’t feel right for Stanley to be so far away from his grieving community.

Before he could follow through, members from his nation encouraged him to stay, saying, “there was nothing he could do.”

A young man was fatally shot during an altercation with police Saturday night in the Tla-o-qui-aht village of Opitsaht, while another remains in custody.

At approximately 9:30 p.m. two officers from Tofino came to a home in the First Nation’s village on Meares Island to “locate a woman in distress,” according to an RCMP press release. An altercation occurred, resulting in one man being shot, while another was taken into police custody.

It has been seven months since James Williams, 52, was found deceased in his unit at a Duncan shelter and the family is still waiting for answers about how their loved one died.

James Williams was a Tla-o-qui-aht father of five. His mother was a member of Yucluthaht First Nation, so he had many close relatives there, including his cousin Jennifer Touchie.

Motor coach officials throughout the province are anxiously anticipating a provincial government announcement which is expected in the next few days.

This includes representatives from the Wilson’s Group of Companies, which operates the Tofino Bus.

Vancouver Island’s lone intercity bus service has not operated since this past December. It was forced to shut down to follow B.C. health regulations that were put in place to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

In recent years the number of youngsters being removed from their parents to live in foster care has dramatically declined – but this has not been the trend for Indigenous children.

Ten years after the Maa-nulth Treaty took effect, Ka:'yu:'k't'h'/Che:k'tles7et'h' First Nations (KCFN) are ready to take a seat with regional government.

KCFN becomes a full voting member of the Strathcona Regional District board April 1 in keeping with a treaty commitment made by the five Maa-nulth signatory nations, four of which already occupy seats on the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District executive.

The people of Ehattesaht are breathing a sigh of relief after wrapping up their second COVID-19 immunization clinic that saw a majority of their adults receiving their second and final shot of vaccine.

Darlene Smith of Ehattesaht said that their small community of 100 saw 28 cases of COVID-19, beginning in November. The outbreak caused concern for the ones that became very ill, but none required hospitalization and all eventually recovered.

Increasing rental and house prices in Port Alberni continue to create an affordability gap for low to moderate-income households, but less expensive housing units and multi-family dwaellings are on the way for the Valley.

A Housing Needs Report presented to Port Alberni city council on Feb. 22 showed that between 2006 and 2016 the average rent in Port Alberni increased by 37 per cent, but the median income for renters fell by 0.9 per cent. The report also indicated that since 2015 housing prices have increased by about 53 per cent.