Good morning, British Columbia. Welcome to your edition of Sunrise.

METRO

(Arlen Redekop / PNG)

Six Vancouver-area beaches closed for swimming due to E. coli

Health officials have issued no-swim advisories for six Vancouver-area beaches due to high levels of E. coli in the water.

Driving the news: Vancouver Coastal Health warned beachgoers and swimmers to stay away from the waters of English Bay, Kitsilano, Second, Sunset, and Third beaches in Vancouver as well as Dundarave Beach in West Vancouver due to unacceptably high E. coli levels.

• Signs have been posted at the beaches, although the beaches and facilities are safe to use.

You should know: The health authority collects water samples from beaches in the region weekly from May to September and tests them for bacteria. It issues not-suitable-for-swimming advisories if bacteria levels exceed 400 E. coli per 100 millilitres.

READ THE FULL STORY

HEALTH CARE

(Handout)

B.C. backtracks and restores drug coverage for 10-year-old girl with rare disease

In a reversal of its controversial decision made last month, the B.C. Ministry of Health confirmed Thursday that it would reinstate the drug coverage for Charleigh Pollock, the 10-year-old girl on Vancouver Island who suffers from a rare neurodegenerative condition called Batten disease.

Context: Pressure mounted on the provincial government when it came to light that the Langford native was the lone child in Canada to be denied coverage for the drug, Brineura. A dozen experts signed a letter to Premier David Eby and Health Minister Josie Osborne on the benefits of continued drug therapy.

• The government had previously argued that the decision was guided by an expert-driven process “that is essential to providing fair treatment to all patients.”

What they're saying: “The letter I received today from Batten disease experts confirms there is significant disagreement between health experts on Brineura, and it is not acceptable that Charleigh and her family suffer as a result of that disagreement about the use of Brineura for Batten Disease,” Osborne said.

READ THE FULL STORY

Elsewhere:
• B.C. restricts sales of two more diabetes drugs amid weight-loss demand

IN BRIEF

• Canadian border officials are touting the seizure of 70 kilograms of cocaine in Osoyoos last month as the largest ever at the crossing in the B.C. Interior. In an announcement Thursday, Canada Border Services Agency said officers searched a pickup truck driven by a Canadian citizen returning from the U.S. on June 11. When the truck bed was examined, several bricks of suspected cocaine were found.

• Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke has written to B.C.’s public safety ministry to express her dismay that she wasn’t consulted about the province’s apparent desire to extend the RCMP’s presence in Surrey by an extra year. Late last year, the Surrey Police Service officially became the police of jurisdiction in the city. Locke said the city was always told the transition away from the RCMP would be complete within two years, by November 2026. But Locke said city staff recently learned the province had asked the federal government to extend the RCMP’s stay in Surrey to a third year until the end of 2027.

ADVERTISEMENT

MISCELLANEOUS

• U.S.-Canada trade talks back underway as Trump’s wish list, from oil to DEI, keeps growing

• Carney pitches major project powers to skeptical First Nations as advancing 'Indigenous economic growth'

• New report says Ottawa to blame for higher consumer prices after spending splurge

• Indian refugee claimant's story 'strikingly similar' to nearly 200 others who used same consultant

• Danielle Smith says pulling Alberta out of supply management is worth considering

• Calgary woman awaits emergency surgery in Japan, facing mounting hospital bills

• Ontario cops identify elderly victim in fatal unprovoked plaza stabbing

• Here's why half of the requests for complex dental work were reportedly denied by Canada's care plan

• Air India plane crash: Junior pilot asked captain why he turned off fuel switches

• Did Chris Martin catch a cheating couple at a Coldplay show? The Internet thinks so

WORD FOR WORD

(Darren Stone / Times Colonist)

“It seems to me that the epicentre of the public disorder story has shifted to Victoria, and that’s an NDP town, and so maybe the only qualification the new solicitor general has is that she’s from Victoria and maybe the government is sending a signal to Victoria voters that they’re really taking that issue seriously.”

— University of the Fraser Valley political scientist Hamish Telford on rookie MLA Nina Krieger replacing Public Safety Minister and Solicitor General Garry Begg in a significant cabinet shuffle

READ THE FULL STORY

OPINION

Vaughn Palmer: Major makeover of B.C. NDP cabinet says more about picks in the first go-round

VICTORIA — Premier David Eby performed major surgery Thursday on a cabinet he appointed a mere eight months ago, mirroring the uncertainties that have marked his government since his narrow re-election win.

Eby moved six ministers, dumped two others, and elevated two backbenchers, making 10 changes in all with his 24-member cabinet.

The premier said the revised lineup was about “ensuring that I’ve got the right person in the right place,” which probably says more than he intended about his picks in the first go-round.

READ MORE

CRIME

(Special to Vancouver Sun)

Ex-pilot called himself Messiah on climate-change mission, day before alleged Victoria hijacking

The day before the suspected hijacking of a light aircraft triggered a security scare at Vancouver’s airport this week, former commercial pilot Shaheer Cassim posted on social media that he was a “messenger of Allah” sent to save humanity from climate change.

Why it matters: A 39-year-old man with the same name has now been charged with hijacking, constituting terrorism, over the incident on Tuesday that saw Norad scramble F-15 fighter jets before the Cessna safely landed.

• A doctor registered in B.C. with the same surname as Cassim said the hijacking suspect had struggled with mental health issues for many years and had been “failed” by the mental health system.

You should know: Images posted on social media of the arrest of the Cessna’s pilot on the airport’s north runway show a bearded man who resembles Cassim, whose online posts include musings on religion, climate science, and advocacy for tolerance and peace.

READ THE FULL STORY

ADVERTISEMENT

THE NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD

8 Down. Twill suit material

MORE GAMES

Sudoku

KenKen

Universal crossword

WHAT'S FOR DINNER?