Ashley Salmen is reeling after a recent theft from her vehicle outside her Kelowna, B.C., townhouse.

“I want the uniform back. I want it off the street,” Salmen said.

Salmen is a paramedic and among the items recently stolen was her uniform and paramedic ID.

“It has the patches, the emblems and that’s my concern, is that someone is going to use this uniform for ill will,” Salmen told Global News.

The theft happened on Saturday, Jan. 31 on Kneller Road in the city’s Rutland area.

The first responder says it was just before 7 a.m. when she came home after working an overnight shift.

She says she parked her vehicle in front of her garage to run inside and grab something before leaving again. But when she got back outside, her bag was gone.

“I didn’t realize my passenger door was unlocked. I didn’t double check my vehicle because I was only going for not even two minutes,” Salmen said. “I parked at 6:50 in the morning and by 6:52 my stuff had been taken.”

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A neighbour’s security camera captured a video of a woman walking through the townhouse complex with a bicycle during that brief time Salmen was inside.

The paramedic says her bag is on the handlebars.

0:35
Firefighter uniforms stolen from North Vancouver dry cleaners

B.C. Emergency Health Services said no one was available for comment Wednesday.

RCMP confirmed they are investigating the theft and working towards identifying a suspect, including reviewing surveillance footage from the area.

“It is important to the public to know that this uniform is out there,” said Kelowna RCMP Cpl. Steven Lang.

With the uniform representing a position of authority, it raises public safety concerns if misused, something Lang said people need to be aware of.

“If they think there’s anything suspicious or the person that may be in front of them isn’t who they pretend to be or say that they are just to contact the agency that is being represented,” Lang said.

“And if their instinct is telling them something might be untoward or feels a little off, that they should believe in those signs.”

Salmen is also encouraging residents to be vigilant.

“I want the uniform back. I want it off the street,” she said.

4:03
B.C. paramedics’ union calls for mediation in contract talks

&copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Long lineups, complex voting procedures and challenges with new technology affected the voting experience for a significant number of Edmontonians during the 2025 municipal election, according to a newly-released interim post-election report.

The report, presented to the city’s audit committee Wednesday, outlines early findings from Edmonton Elections’ review of the October 2025 vote and identifies several areas for improvement ahead of the next municipal election in 2029.

While a majority of voters were able to cast ballots without major difficulty, the report suggests that changes driven by new provincial legislation — including the introduction of a permanent electors register and a shift to hand-counted ballots — contributed to delays and confusion at some voting stations.

“There were so many changes,” said Thu Parmar, one of the city councillors who reviewed the report at city hall on Wednesday.

“It wasn’t one change. It was one bill that came through, then one bill got amended, and so there were multiple changes leading up to that election day.”

About 60 per cent of voters surveyed said they completed the voting process in 30 minutes or less, and 83 per cent finished within an hour.

However, 16 per cent reported waiting longer than an hour, with longer wait times strongly linked to lower satisfaction.

Overall, 63 per cent of Edmonton voters said they were satisfied with their experience, the report said.

2:12
Some Alberta voters ‘walk away’ from municipal election lineups

Satisfaction dropped sharply amongst those who waited more than an hour: dropping to 24 per cent for waits of one to two hours and just 14 per cent for waits exceeding two hours.

“Edmontonians were very committed to voting,” said Ward Ipiihkoohkanipiaohtsi councillor Jon Morgan. “I did hear about long lines during the election, upwards of two hours… but I also heard they were committed to seeing it through.

“So I’m pretty proud of that fact — for Edmontonians to be that committed to it, but, I can understand their frustrations.”

Voters and election workers both pointed to complexity in voting process as a key source of their frustration.

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Fifteen per cent of surveyed voters reported difficulties with forms, verification steps and multi-station workflows — particularly in situations where they needed to be added to or updated on the new permanent electors register.

Those more complex transactions often slowed voting lines, the report said, contributing to bottlenecks during peak periods at some polling locations.

2:02
Slow results and long lines in 2025 Edmonton election

The changes this year prohibited the use of electronic vote tabulators and instead required all ballots to be counted by hand, increasing the number of ballots and ballot boxes used at each voting station.

“I would definitely like to see a return to our tabulators,” said Morgan, who was elected to city council back in October. “That would be a big help for our election team and for the safety and security of our elections.”

Several boxes of ballots had to be re-counted by hand during the election, delaying the release of the results. Morgan said using paper ballots and people counting introduces room for error.

“We should be using the tools that are proven to make sure that our elections are fair and free.”

The 2025 election marked the first time Edmonton was required to use a permanent electors register, following amendments to Alberta’s Local Authorities Election Act.

To support the permanent register, Edmonton Elections deployed an electronic elector register at voting stations. While the system allowed for real-time updates and added security protections, it also posed challenges for some people hired to work the polls.

Election workers were surveyed and 22 per cent said the technology was difficult to use, while nine per cent reported technical issues during their shift.

They also reported difficulty completing required paperwork, including ballot accounting forms, with 22 per cent saying those procedures were hard to complete.

“There is so much more work to this election than there has been in the past,” Parmar said.

During the election, residents voted for mayor, their city councillor, and school trustee and instead of one electronic ballot with all their names on it, the 2025 election saw it split up.

“In this sense, it was actually three separate votes. So that created more time,” Parmar said of the workers having to physically doll out the three different sheets of paper.

“That may not have been factored when you were looking at how many people you were going to hire.”

1:29
Long municipal election lines in Alberta after legislation changes

The report notes while accurate ballot accounting is essential to election integrity, some workers felt the complexity of the process limited their ability to serve voters efficiently — especially during busy periods such as the early evening when people got off work and went to vote.

Gaps in training were another contributing factor.

More than 5,400 election workers were hired to staff the election, filling more than 6,600 positions. While most workers completed mandatory online and in-person training, feedback suggested more hands-on training would have helped workers navigate the new systems and forms more confidently.

To address concerns raised during advance voting, Edmonton Elections offered additional hands-on training for supervisors.

Those who took part said it improved confidence and effectiveness, but the opportunity to take part could not be extended to all workers due to time and capacity constraints.

“I think what we heard very clearly was that it’s very difficult to train 5,000 people for one day, right? And I think to give some grace to that, what we saw was that the checks and balances did work.”

1:51
Albertans to elect municipal governments Monday in what’s been dubbed a ‘meh’ election

In a separate advisory report, the city auditor echoed many of the same concerns, noting observations on election day revealed frustrations amongst both voters and staff — largely tied to system challenges and form completion.

The auditor’s office had one main suggestion: Edmonton Elections consider a more comprehensive, hands-on training approach for future elections to reduce voter frustration and operational risk.

Parmar said she’s looking forward to seeing an action plan.

“What are they actually going to do to make sure that we can have higher voter turnout, that we can have a service level that is definitely not over one hour to be able to vote?

“That is not what Edmontonians expect, it’s not what I expect, it’s not what council expects and so we’ll be looking at that.”

Despite the challenges, the auditor reported Edmonton Elections addressed all significant findings before and during the election, and issues identified during ballot reconciliation did not affect election results.

&copy 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

The government of the Northwest Territories said some water fixtures at Paul William Kaeser High School and Joseph Burr Tyrrell Elementary School were affected.

Water fixtures with elevated lead levels now out of service

Carson Asmundson · CBC News · Posted: Feb 04, 2026 8:17 PM EST | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

Listen to this article

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The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.

The government of the Northwest Territories says it has received water testing results from two Fort Smith schools and found elevated lead levels in some water fixtures.

In a news release Wednesday afternoon, the N.W.T. government said some fixtures at Paul William Kaeser High School and Joseph Burr Tyrrell Elementary School were affected.

The results are part of the government’s promise to test drinking water in every school in the territory.

Those fixtures found to have elevated lead levels are now out of service, with an alternative water source to be provided.

The government confirmed it will be taking remediation measures and complete follow-up testing at the schools.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Carson is the social media editor for CBC North. He joined CBC in 2023.

Doctors in Prince Edward Island are continuing to voice their concerns with recent changes to their workloads.

About 100 family physicians recently signed a letter saying they’re concerned about the number of patients they see under a new agreement between the Medical Society of P.E.I., the Department of Health and Wellness and Health P.E.I.

Dr. Trina Stewart, a family doctor in Summerside and president of the P.E.I. College of Family Physicians, said most of their concern centres on how doctors will collect the data for the work they do.

“We all spend time in our offices with our patient panels, but many of us also feel very important gaps in the system at large,” Stewart said.

“It’s also work that the system has come to expect from us and they need us for and further gaps would develop if we couldn’t do them.”

Under the agreement, the workload system contains two models. One would see 1,600 patients as “the benchmark” for a doctor’s panel, while the other allows for 1,300 patients.

Stewart said many family doctors are looking to the second option because “everybody is working at full capacity right now.”

The deadline for physicians to decide on which model they want was initially Jan. 31, but Health P.E.I. later extended it to Feb. 28.

Stewart said she’s concerned doctors won’t be able to serve the health-care system in the way needed, which could be detrimental to patients. She said doctors want to have “diversity” in their work.

“We need to be attractive and competitive from a recruitment standpoint,” Stewart said.

“We feel like the negativity … we’ve had within Health P.E.I. and the communication that we’ve historically had being lost is impacting that, unfortunately.” 

‘The foundation of health care’

In a statement, the College of Family Physicians of Canada said family doctors are “the foundation of health care in Canada,” and that governments should “recognize their importance and treat family physicians’ voices and perspectives with respect as health policy is being developed.”

The national college described the concerns brought forward by its P.E.I. counterpart as “reasonable.”

“At a time when administrative burden takes time away from patient care and deteriorates the physicians’ well-being, the new agreement seems to impose excessive reporting requirements,” the statement reads.

“The current approach does not signal collaboration, but risks pushing family doctors away from choosing P.E.I. as a place to practice and sends a counter-productive message to family medicine learners.”

There’s fear. This is our livelihood. These are our patients. We really care about them– Dr. Trina Stewart

Stewart described the current level of frustration with Health P.E.I. and the provincial government as “serious.” She pointed to a January survey of doctors conducted by the P.E.I. College of Family Physicians that suggested 77 per cent of respondents believe the new agreement will drive away physicians away from the province.

“There’s fear,” Stewart said. “This is our livelihood. These are our patients. We really care about them.”

She said doctors understand the importance of performance management and that the group believes in accountability, but said family physicians are being scrutinized unfairly.

“We’ve been expecting that this would come, but we were hopeful that we would be part of the discussion. And, unfortunately, that hasn’t happened in the last year,” she said. “We just really need to be part of the conversation.”

A strained relationship

Stewart said the relationship between family doctors and Health P.E.I. has been strained as of late. To fix it, she said, family physicians need to be allowed “to come back to the table.”

“There have been a lot of sleepless nights around … what this actually is going to translate into,” she said. “We really do need to be thoughtful about this because we do not want to further harm an already strained system.”

Stewart said it’s been a difficult year, but there is still hope. She wants to stop focusing on numbers and move on to patient care and safety. 

“When they trust you and you trust them, there’s magic that can happen,” she said. “What we need to rebuild the foundation of the system is to have more family doctors coming in and carrying panels, and we need it competitive.”

Health P.E.I. CEO Melanie Fraser told CBC News on Wednesday that the health authority is hopeful that relationship will improve.

“I think any time you go through one of these negotiation processes it can create tension, for sure,” Fraser said.

“We are committed to working through that tension and working through the new parts of the agreement that have raised concern, and there are changes. There’s lots to be learned.”

Canada Computers & Electronics continues to investigate a data breach affecting hundreds of people that has left customers frustrated over how the company handled the episode and communicated about it.

“This is something that shouldn’t have happened,” said Eric Pimentel, an IT professional who cancelled a credit card after being warned by the company that he’d potentially been affected — and was later told he was not.

Toronto’s Brad Seward likewise cancelled a card after getting a notification from Canada Computers, before he was advised that he had not been affected.

“It really sounds like this company is all over the place,” Seward said via email.

Canada Computers told CBC News on Tuesday that its “current investigation indicates this incident affected 1,284 customers.”

The Richmond Hill, Ont.,-headquartered retailer previously stated that, on Jan. 22, it learned of a data breach incident involving “unauthorized access to the system supporting our retail website,” which left personal customer information — including credit card information — compromised.

Canada Computers says it took immediate steps to contain the breach. It also notified authorities and launched an investigation. Affected customers were alerted on Jan. 25.

The breach has been reported to the federal privacy watchdog as well as to police in York Region.

Pimentel and Seward are among a half-dozen customers who told CBC News they received notification from the company about the breach and were then subsequently told that was not correct.

The company confirms it sent messaging of this nature out and says it apologizes for the confusion.

“This was a miscommunication,” the company said Tuesday. “Canada Computers sent the original notice to both affected customers and to some who were not impacted. We followed up with [the latter] to confirm that their customer information was not affected.”

The company did not say how many people had received this follow-up messaging.

Breach affected ‘guests’ only, company says

According to the company, the breach affected customers who checked out their purchases as “guests” on its website, and who also entered their personal information, between Dec. 29 and Jan. 22.

Pimentel said he did not check out as a guest. But the company’s explanation has not left him feeling more secure.

“I don’t feel confident at all,” he said, adding that he expects more transparency from a retailer as big as Canada Computers. The company operates more than 30 stores across four provinces, in addition to its retail website.

“It’s not a small mom-and-pop shop in some strip mall,” said Pimentel, who lives in Hamilton, Ont., within driving distance of two of the company’s stores.

Seward similarly said he did not check out as a guest when making his recent at Canada Computers.

And although he was told by the company he was not in the group of affected customers, he said its explanation “didn’t coincide with my experience.”

WATCH | B.C. minister challenged on huge data breach:

We tried to ask this B.C. minister about a data breach

Thousands of workers’ personal information was sold through the dark web after a data breach at B.C. Interior Health. The agency denied it ever happened. The fifth estate’s Mark Kelley showed up at an industry event to ask the minister in charge about it.

Breaches can go unnoticed for months

Terry Cutler, CEO of Montreal-based Cyology Labs, said cybersecurity episodes of this nature often go unnoticed for months before they are detected.

To his point, IBM publishes an annual report on the costs associated with data breaches. In 2025, it said the global average breach life cycle — the mean time required to identify and contain a breach and then restore services — was 241 days, or roughly eight months.

John Bruggeman, a Cincinnati, Ohio,-based cybersecurity professional with OnX, said there’s been suggestion online that customers may have helped bring the problem to the attention of Canada Computers, which could explain why the window of time the company is citing is relatively short.

Bruggeman noted that the company’s description of the incident suggests its website has a branch that deals with guest checkouts that is distinct from purchases made by users with dedicated accounts.

But both he and Cutler say people making purchases as a guest are probably doing so for practical reasons. Bruggeman said he normally decides whether to check out as a guest based on whether he wants to have further communication with the company.

As for the bigger picture, Cutler said stolen data can have a long shelf life, as “cybercriminals can get to it weeks, months, years later.”

To that end, Canada Computers says it has “provided guidance” to affected customers “on protecting their personal and financial information” and offering them two years of credit monitoring and identity theft protection.

Proposed changes to leash-optional areas to Metro Vancouver’s busiest regional park are largely being put on hold after a vote from regional district directors on Wednesday.

Metro Vancouver staff had proposed a major reduction to trails where dogs could be off-leash at Pacific Spirit Regional Park, which draws four million annual visitors, a third of them bringing their dogs.

It came after multiple reports of conflicts between dog owners and park users who don’t have dogs — including runners and walkers — as well as environmental concerns like trail erosion due to off-leash dogs.

But regional district directors voted on Wednesday to receive a staff report for information and not proceed with its trail changes, and instead focus on enhanced signage and education along the existing trail network instead.

“Over-regulation actually creates less compliance. So, if we don’t get this balance correct, it’s only going to cost us more,” said Vancouver Coun. Rebecca Bligh, vice-chair of Metro Vancouver’s regional parks committee.

“I’d like us to enforce the rules we already have, lean into signage and education, and really see if we can get a better balance,” she added.

Currently, Pacific Spirit Park has 55 kilometres of trails spread across 8.6 square kilometres of land. Around two-thirds of the trail area are designated leash-optional.

Staff’s proposed changes would have reduced that leash-optional area to just over half — along with closing off the central portion of the park to dogs entirely, except for a small leash-required connecting trail.

Park user and dog owner Candy Saga spoke to the committee, and said the proposed changes to the trails would have increased conflict in the proposed leash-required zones.

“We think that that you’re not asking the right question. Is it a trail designation problem or an enforcement problem? We would very much encourage you to focus on enforcement,” she said.

Year-long study

The changes would have gone into effect May 6, and came after a year-long review of the dog management plan at the park.

Metro Vancouver said it received nearly 6,000 responses to a voluntary online questionnaire, along with more than 700 emails and letters, as part of the review.

It said 94 per cent of survey respondents with dogs reported mostly positive experiences at the park, while less than a quarter of visitors without pets did not.

A technical review of the park found nearly 400 documented “dog-related safety incidents,” over the past five years, and visitor monitoring revealed around two-thirds of dogs were unleashed on leash-required trails.

“Our review also found documented impacts of dogs on park ecology, particularly of dogs off-leash,” said park planner Teresa Maddison at the committee meeting on Wednesday.

“Impacts include things like trail erosion, vegetation trampling, soil compaction, wildlife disturbance, dog waste impacts, and water quality degradation concerns.”

While many directors praised the staff proposals regarding off-leash trail reduction, they ultimately voted to further consult with park users and instead increase enforcement.

The increased education efforts will include pop-up information stations, updated signage and website information, a media campaign and increased monitoring of the trails.

“Metro Vancouver Regional Parks will expand existing enforcement patrol to ensure the ongoing success of the dog management program,” said the report.

The regional district says it will also install fencing to prevent dogs from going off the trails in certain ecologically sensitive areas.

5 лютого за новим церковним календарем православні вшановують пам’ять святителя Феодосія, архієпископа Чернігівського. Ця дата має низку традицій, прикмет і заборон, до яких прислухалися наші предки. Про це, а також яке сьогодні церковне свято відзначають віряни за старим стилем – у матеріалі.

Православне свято сьогодні в Україні за новим стилем

5 лютого за новим церковним календарем православні згадують святителя Феодосія, архієпископа Чернігівського (згідно зі староцерковним календарем вшановуватимуть святого 18 лютого).

Феодосій жив у XVII столітті, був родом з давнього дворянського роду Полоницьких-Углицьких Подільської губернії. Освіту він здобув у Києво-Братській школі, а після цього вирішив прийняти чернечий постриг.

Першим великим послухом Феодосія стало відродження розореного Києво-Видубицького монастиря. Пізніше святителя призначили архімандритом Чернігівського Єлецького монастиря, який також перебував у запустінні. Ще через кілька років Феодосій очолив Чернігівську єпархію. У період служіння Феодосія чернече життя в регіоні пережило помітний підйом, духовні школи Чернігова користувалися особливим заступництвом святителя.

Помер Феодосій в 1696 році, був похований в Борисоглібському кафедральному соборі в Чернігові. Пізніше над його труною було зведено цегляне склепіння з написом “За чудесне зцілення від тяжкої хвороби”. Прославлення святителя відбулося в 1896 році.

***

Кого ще вшановують сьогодні згідно з новим календарем: мученицю Агафію, мученицю Феодулу і мучеників Елладія, Макарія та Євагрія, Єлецько-Чернігівську та Сицилійську ікони Богородиці.

Яке сьогодні церковне свято за старим стилем

За юліанським (старим церковним) календарем 5 лютого вшановують пам’ять священномученика Климента, єпископа Анкірського, а також мученика Агафангела – раніше ми розповідали, яке сьогодні церковне свято в Україні та які заборони пов’язані з цією датою.

З якими молитвами звертаються, що не можна робити сьогодні й звичаї дня

У цей день у молитвах до святого Феодосія просять про зцілення хвороб, особливо онкологічних, про захист від наклепу, ненависті, а також про допомогу в складних сімейних ситуаціях.

У народі свято називають Агапиним днем – на честь святої мучениці Агафії, яку також згадують сьогодні. Агафію вважали покровителькою домашньої худоби, особливо корів, тому моляться святій про здоров’я домашніх тварин.

У давнину в цей день існувала традиція освячувати хліб із сіллю є. Їх потім зберігали вдома, часто біля ікон – вважається, що вони захищають від пожежі, а також давали по шматочку освяченого хліба домашній худобі, щоб не хворіла.

У православне свято 5 лютого церква, як і завжди, засуджує лайку, брехню, плітки, жадібність, заздрість, помсту і відчай.

За народними прикметами в цей день не можна підвищувати голос на худобу або домашніх тварин – це до хвороби, а також не варто вінчатися або грати весілля – кажуть, що такий союз буде недовговічним.

Суворо забороняється відмовляти в допомозі жебракам і бездомним – на місці нужденних можна опинитися самому.

Прикмети 5 лютого

Погода цього дня може розповісти про те, якою буде весна і літо:

• снігу немає – влітку буде посуха;
• потеплішало – холодів більше не чекайте;
• вода прибуває в колодязях і річках – скоро відлига.

Найяскравіша прикмета дня: мороз на Агапу віщує ранню весну і спекотне літо.

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