Vancouver rundown for Wednesday, December 18, 2024.
BC's deficit has jumped to $9.3 billion.
That revelation comes in the provincial government's fiscal update.
The debt is expected to rise to $130 billion
by the end of the government fiscal year.
Provincial Finance Minister Brenda Bailey says
she expects modest economic growth of 0.9 percent,
but also warns there's looming uncertainty,
including Donald Trump's threatened 25 percent tariff on Canadian imports.
Other news.
Two central Saanich police officers have been charged with sexual assault.
43-year-old Matthew Ball and 40-year-old Ryan Johnson's charges
relate to an investigation into a complaint
that two cops had sexual contact with a woman they met while on duty.
Vancouver police arrested the two on Tuesday.
Ball and Ryan were not with each other
when the alleged assaults occurred.
Vancouver police, who are investigating the case,
say this involves a vulnerable woman in her 20s.
A kayaker has been rescued by crew aboard a BC ferry.
The person was clinging to the hall near the Tawason terminal
when the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Victoria was notified on Tuesday.
Paramedics rushed the kayaker to hospital in stable condition.
The 115-year-old Dunsmear Hotel could be ripped down.
The city of Vancouver believes the building is now unsafe
and is asking council to declare it a danger to the public.
It's believed the building cannot be stabilized in a safe and timely manner.
Showers on Wednesday morning, windy at times.
Clouds and showers for Thursday, cloudy again on Friday.
For all the details on these local Vancouver area stories,
along with those links, go to vancouverrundown.substack.com