Mon. May 8 - Paramedic shortages still plague rural Island communities

TOGETHER WITH

Good morning !

Last year we covered ambulance response times in the South Island, which did not meet the national response standard in most municipalities (particularly the more rural ones). In Island communities further from large centres, the response times were even longer.

Those issues are further amplified for smaller islands, where limited ferry service becomes another barrier. Today’s lead story examines that problem.

Today’s newsletter also features another History Mystery, footage of an Island avalanche, and updates on disputes with a local mortgage company and a sort-of-local MLA.

NEWS

Paramedic shortages still plague rural Island communities, but remedies may be coming

Quadra Island resident Carol Woolsey had the misfortune to experience a medical emergency in her rural community last month after the last ferry had sailed for the night.

After developing searing pain in her lower abdomen, the 77-year-old and her cousin called 911 around 10pm on April 2.

Disoriented by pain and vomiting constantly into her kitchen sink, it seemed to Woolsey it was taking forever for paramedics to arrive. She was relieved to see two people come through the door around 20 minutes later.

However, relief turned to alarm when she learned the two were local volunteer firefighters responding because there were no paramedics available on the island. Woolsey had to wait for a crew to come by water taxi from Campbell River.

It took at least an hour before paramedics came to provide medical care, and the trip to the hospital in Campbell River—just three kilometres across the water on Vancouver Island—took about another half-hour, Woolsey said.

Capital Bulletin

🌦️Today’s weather: Sun, cloud, and possibly rain. 30% chance in the afternoon (with thunderstorm risk), in evening, and overnight. Some wind. High 16C / low 9C.

🌤️ This week’s weather: Some rain to start, and then hot again—up to 25C by weekend.

NEWS

Drone video captures Island avalanche

Drone operator Mactac was just wrapping up a day of “mountain surfing” with his self-built long-range drones when an avalanche began in the distance. He scrambled to get a drone back into the air, and caught this footage.

“What looks like water in this video is actually a huge amount of snow,” he wrote in the description, “with some chu[n]ks as big as my truck.” With the drone’s-eye-view goggles on, he was worried that the snow would come across the valley and reach where he was sitting or the road he needed to take to get out of the backcountry. But “luckily, it wasn’t even close.”

The BC Search & Rescue Association reposted the video on Friday, saying it “highlights the dangers of spring mountain conditions.” A five-day Special Public Avalanche Warning for the Island and other BC areas ended last Monday, but much of the region remains at Level 3 (of 5)—”considerable risk.”

NEWS

History Mystery: A drugstore, a ferris wheel, and a new challenge

Dedicated History Mystery detective Doug Irving caught that the pictured intersection was Quadra and McKenzie, with the building originally the home of a florist and then a drug store before being redeveloped into the Saanich Centre.

The reader who submitted the original photo was in fact the daughter of the drug store operators. “My mother and father took it over in 1956,” Gillian Carrigan wrote to us, “and ran Carrigan Lake Hill Drugs until 1979.”

She included an image from inside the pharmacy, and said a few different tenants occupied the smaller left-hand side of the building. One of them, a carpet store, “would from time to time hire a good-sized ferris wheel to be placed and operated on the McKenzie Avenue boulevard as a way to get people to come and buy carpets”—but she didn’t have any photos of the wheel.

For this week, we have two photos from the City of Victoria Archives. Send us an email submission with your guess for either one (or even both!). Put History Mystery #13 in the subject line along with the location and your current-day photo. You can also always send in old photos of your own as potential History Mysteries.

SPONSORED BY THE ROOT CELLAR

Locally grown goodness from your locally owned green grocer...

Time spent gathered around the table is what connects us as people, families, and communities. Step into one of the two Root Cellar markets here in Victoria to experience it, including their newly opened second location in Cook Street Village.

Both markets offer Vancouver Island’s largest selection of locally grown, organic, and conventional produce as well as full-service butchers, delis, artisanal grocery, and more. Poised at the intersection of Victoria’s urban and agricultural regions, their McKenzie Corner flagship, founded in 2008, is also home to the Potting Shed, a boutique florist and beloved garden centre.

Cultivating a strong appreciation of fresh local food and sustainable food systems in the community is a responsibility the award winning Root Cellar takes seriously.

Discover it for yourself at TheRootCellar.ca.

Capital Picks

🛝 Fundraiser for Crystal View playground: This month’s 50/50 raffle will fundraise for new swings and new inclusive playground equipment at the elementary school. [Details / tickets]

💧 Talk to Waterworks Irrigation for custom irrigation systems, water features or landscape lighting to enhance your outside living space. Waterworks is offering 20% off new installs this summer. Pre-book today!*

🎨 Paint Nite at Ross Bay Pub: Bring out your inner Bob Ross while having a drink with friends. Wear clothing that you don’t mind getting paint on. [Tickets]

🎬 Short Circuit Film Festival continues next weekend at The Vic Theatre with four more screenings of short films from Victoria, Alaska, Malaysia, Australia, Colombia, Fiji, and more. ShortCircuitFilmFestival.com.*

*Sponsored Listing

In Other News

⚖️ Local mortgage company, hit with multiple lawsuits, goes into receivership
Greg Martel’s Shop Your Own Mortgage is the subject of 11 civil lawsuits and $28M in claims. Last month Martel told lenders that the company will pay them but was overwhelmed with the volume and not meeting its timelines. On Thursday the BC Supreme Court appointed a firm to take control of its assets and property, but tomorrow morning that receivership will be reconsidered. [CHEK]

🧳 Vancouver-West End MLA cites son’s rare disease for time in Colwood and travel expenses
Last week the opposition criticized Spencer ­Chandra Herbert’s $70,000 in claims since 2019 and expensive here-and-back flights on non-legislature days. He argued he spends less than 61 other MLAs, including his critics, and is here more often due to his son’s treatment at Victoria General. He said he still lives in Vancouver with his mother-in-law, but has a home on the Island where his husband lives. [Global]

❤️ Red Dress Day marches honour missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and 2 Spirit people
Friday events were held in Esquimalt, the Westshore, Duncan, Nanaimo, Port Alberni, and elsewhere in BC and Canada. Detailed official data is limited, despite BC having the most disappearances in Canada, but the Nuu-chah-nuth Tribal Council tallies 53 of its members murdered and two missing including Lisa Marie Young. Young, whose birthday is also May 5, disappeared from Nanaimo 21 years ago at age 21.

In Case You Missed It

🦴 A whale of a tale: This feature on the significance of Muir Creek whale fossils was just nominated for a Digital Publishing Award.

👑 Also in Sunday’s newsletter: Locals attend coronation in London. Garden clubs of Victoria.

🐦 Blue Bridge Theatre presents Miss Julie by August Strindberg. A devastating examination of gender politics and class struggle. May 30-June 11, 2023 | The Roxy Theatre | 250-382-3370.*

🏒 Alberni Valley Bulldogs in BCHL final: The Island team begins the Fred Page Cup championship this Friday in Penticton.

🏡 Saturday stories: Point Ellice House to reopen with interim operator. Langford football star drafted #1. Island Health and LifeLabs face criticism. [May 6 newsletter]

📩 Go beyond the headlines for an in-depth understanding of the stories that affect the Westshore, from View Royal to Sooke. Subscribe for free to The Westshore for the latest news and stories, in your inbox every Tuesday and Thursday.

*Sponsored Listing

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