British Columbia’s worker protection agency says a planned burn by the province’s wildfire service during the devastating 2023 fire season could have killed or injured multiple firefighters who became “trapped by extreme fire behaviour” that cut off their escape. Inspection reports by WorkSafeBC say the BC Wildfire Service didn’t adequately ensure safety during the burn […]

Canada’s largest school board says it has received a ransom demand over student data that was stolen last December, even though the company behind the affected software paid ransom in hopes of securing that information.  The Toronto District School Board said in a letter to parents and caregivers on Wednesday that it recently learned the […]

A federal judge expressed sympathy on Tuesday for thousands of federal employees who were suddenly fired by the Trump administration earlier this year, but he also voiced skepticism about whether reinstating them to their jobs was a proper remedy and questioned what the courts could ultimately do. Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson made the comments during […]

Senior federal officials have been looking quietly for ways to bring together Canadians who don’t see eye to eye on the economy, immigration and social issues. With a general election looming, officials prepared to meet last November to brainstorm solutions to the problem of social fragmentation, according to an internal presentation drafted by the Department […]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A former Nashville police lieutenant was arrested Tuesday on charges of theft, burglary and official misconduct after he was accused of taking case files, including records from a school shooting where three 9-year-olds and three adult staff were killed. In announcing the arrest of Garet Davidson, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Wall Street veteran Frank Bisignano was confirmed by the Senate on Tuesday to lead the Social Security Administration, taking over at a turbulent time for the agency that provides benefits to more than 70 million Americans. The Senate confirmed Bisignano in a 53-47 vote. Bisignano’s confirmation comes after a months-long series of […]

Alberta’s government says three children are in intensive care in hospital after contracting measles. A health ministry spokesperson declined to disclose their ages, citing privacy concerns. At a news conference Monday, Dr. Sunil Sookram, Alberta’s interim chief medical officer of health, said there have been no deaths. Sookram said the risk of getting the highly […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — A prominent Washington attorney sued the Trump administration Monday over the revocation of his security clearance, calling it an act of “improper political retribution” that jeopardizes his ability to continue representing clients in sensitive national security cases. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, challenges a March presidential memorandum that singled […]

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Progressive advocates have filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging new restrictions on Florida’s process to get citizen-driven initiatives on the ballot before voters. Florida Decides Healthcare, the campaign to secure a measure on the 2026 ballot to expand Medicaid in the state, is bringing the legal challenge, along with the […]

THUNDER BAY — Can a text message help improve patient care? The Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre is betting that it can.The hospital is the first in Ontario to adopt a text message-based patient survey distribution.The hospital has seen a two per cent increase in people responding to surveys since switching to SMS (Short […]

The number of property tax accounts in arrears has risen sharply in St. Catharines since 2022, according to documents obtained by The Pointer through a Freedom of Information request. The disturbing increase aligns with the controversial hikes in municipal tax rates introduced by the current City Council. Residents of Niagara’s largest city were shocked in […]

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel has blocked aid from entering Gaza for two months and says it won’t allow food, fuel, water or medicine into the besieged territory until it puts in place a system giving it control over the distribution. But officials from the U.N. and aid groups say proposals Israel has floated […]