B.C. tenants evicted for landlord's use after refusing large rent increase to take over neighbouring suite
Ashley Dickey and her mother rented part of the same Coquitlam duplex in three different decades under three different landlords.
South Korea will expand rapid testing and shorten quarantines as it reshapes its pandemic response to deal with a faster-than-expected surge in COVID-19 infections driven by the highly contagious Omicron variant.
The plans were announced as the country reported 7,513 new cases of infection on Monday, the third straight day exceeding 7,000 and nearing a one-day high of 7,848 reported in December, when a devastating delta-driven spread spiked hospitalizations and deaths.
Omicron has now replaced delta as South Korea's most dominant variant after accounting for more than 50% of the infections reported last week, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.
Some experts say the country could be seeing daily jumps of over 10,000 later this week. Transmissions could further accelerate over the Lunar New Year's holiday break from this weekend through Tuesday, a period when millions of people usually travel around the country to meet relatives.
Starting Wednesday, the quarantine for people who test positive after being fully vaccinated will be reduced from the current 10 days to seven days, KDCA Commissioner Jeong Eun-kyeong said during a briefing.
Fully vaccinated people who come in close contact with virus carriers will no longer be placed under quarantine, but they will be required to report their daily health conditions to officials before receiving a test within six or seven days.
Officials say the easing of quarantine restrictions is inevitable as they try to prevent an explosion in Omicron cases from causing major disruption at workplaces and public services by putting huge numbers of people under quarantine.
The new rules will require people who aren't fully vaccinated to quarantine for seven days if they come in close contact with a virus carrier and 10 days if they test positive themselves. As of Monday, more than 85% of a population of more than 51 million were fully vaccinated and around 49% have gotten booster shots.
Officials also plan to rewire the country's testing regime that's currently centred around PCR tests and expand the use of rapid antigen tests to detect a larger number of infections sooner.
According to the plans, PCR tests will be mostly saved for high-risk groups, including people in their 60s and older or those with pre-existing medical conditions. Most people will be asked to first use rapid test kits available at public health offices and pharmacies and receive PCR when those tests are positive.
While PCR tests have been described by medical experts as the "gold standard" for their accuracy and reliability, such tests require large numbers of health professionals administrating nasal and throat swabs and high-tech laboratory machines analyzing samples.
The new testing process will be enforced from Wednesday at three cities near capital Seoul and the southern South Jeolla province -- regions where the levels of Omicron infections have been highest -- before being expanded nationwide at the end of this month or early February, Jeong said.
"While the Omicron variant leads to less serious cases (compared to delta), it's highly contagious and could cause a huge strain on our epidemiological and medical response if it leads to huge number of infections over a short period of time," she said.
Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum repeated a plea for people to stay home during the Lunar New Year's holidays, especially not to visit aging relatives who aren't fully vaccinated or haven't received their booster shots. Visits to nursing homes will be banned during the period and officials will also limit the capacity on trains and ferries to discourage travel.
Ashley Dickey and her mother rented part of the same Coquitlam duplex in three different decades under three different landlords.
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
A new survey by Dalhousie University's Agri-Food Analytics Lab asked Canadians about their food consumption habits amid rising prices.
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
As Donald Trump was running for president in 2016, his old friend at the National Enquirer was scooping up potentially damaging stories about the candidate and paying out tens of thousands of dollars to keep them from the public eye.
After Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government would still send Canada Carbon Rebate cheques to Saskatchewan residents, despite Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe's decision to stop collecting the carbon tax on natural gas or home heating, questions were raised about whether other provinces would follow suit. CTV News reached out across the country and here's what we found out.
A Montreal actress, who has previously detailed incidents she had with disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, says a New York Court of Appeals decision overturning his 2020 rape conviction is 'discouraging' but not surprising.
Caleb Williams is heading to the Windy City, aiming to become the franchise quarterback Chicago has sought for decades.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.