Daily Digest — British Columbia, Canada — 2026-02-26

Ghosted in Puerto Vallarta: B.C. travellers like Lillian Alexus (arrived Feb. 8, due home Feb. 22) say WestJet left them without clear help after cartel violence shut the airport; many extended stays, bought meds and insurance, and some (like Jonathan MacIntyre) paid $2,200 out of pocket to return. This matters because the Air Passenger Protection Regulations require rebooking within 48 hours or buying competitor seats, and passenger-rights advocate Gábor Lukács says WestJet may be flouting the law while the Canadian Transportation Agency investigates.

Waiting for answers after Horseshoe Bay crash: Parents of four-year-old Leonardo — killed when an articulated bus jumped a curb — say eight months on they still lack a full report, driver info or training records; mother Silvana Schramm survived catastrophic injuries and may leave rehab in March. They want transparency, not money, to prevent repeats, but B.C.’s no-fault ICBC system means limited legal avenues for accountability.

Tragedy after a mental-health crisis: Vernon man Ezra Cool, 22, escaped a hospital during an involuntary psychiatric admission on Feb. 6 and was killed in a hit-and-run on Highway 6 days later; his mother says he’d spent six days in an ED hallway with inadequate 24/7 supervision. Interior Health is reviewing the case as critics point to staff and bed shortages and recent psychiatrist resignations in Vernon.

Pembina OKs two pipeline expansions, Q4 profits dip: Calgary’s Pembina Pipeline reported Q4 2025 earnings of $489 million ($0.78/share), down from $572 million ($0.92) a year earlier, and revenue fell to $1.91 billion. The company sanctioned $425 million in projects — a $310M, 95-km line in B.C. (120,000 barrels/day) and a $115M Taylor-to-Gordondale phase in Alberta — saying Indigenous and regulator engagement guided the decisions.

OpenAI says its updated safety rules would have flagged Tumbler Ridge shooter today: After meeting federal ministers, OpenAI told officials its enhanced referral criteria and repeat-violator detection would now have led to a police referral for the June 2025 account tied to 18-year-old Jesse VanRootselaar. The company pledges more improvements, direct law-enforcement contacts and transparency as B.C. Premier David Eby and ministers push for national standards following the Feb. 10 mass shooting.

Doctor testifies Myles Gray injected unprescribed testosterone: At a hearing into Gray’s 2015 police-involved death, his family doctor said Gray (who had bipolar disorder) used black‑market anabolic steroids that could raise aggression and cause heart risks; Gray later died after officers beat him and a coroner’s jury ruled the death a homicide in 2023. Seven officers deny misconduct and a separate disciplinary authority cleared them in 2024, prompting the family’s public hearing to seek more answers.

Feds weigh boosting police in small towns like Tumbler Ridge: After the Feb. 10 school shooting that killed eight people, officials are discussing more RCMP resources for remote communities; Tumbler Ridge had five officers and two on duty the day of the attack, who responded within about 120 seconds. National Police Federation reps stress long-term understaffing across B.C. and Canada and hope the discussion leads to better funding and numbers.

Extortion violence reshapes business decisions in Surrey: A wave of extortion calls, 56 reported cases (to Feb. 23), 11 shootings, two arsons and 32 victims (18 repeat victims) is scaring owners into pausing expansion, hiding advertising and limiting visible assets like nice cars. Community leaders say fear is hurting local investment and a new advisory group is working with police to coordinate a response.

Liberal MP slams official who said Indian interference stopped: Sukh Dhaliwal, MP for Surrey‑Newton, denounced a senior official’s claim that India has ceased foreign‑interference operations targeting Sikh activists, saying it contradicts local experience and national security agencies; the dispute came as Prime Minister Mark Carney prepared to visit Mumbai and New Delhi. Dhaliwal and others urge investigations and caution that security and justice must stay central amid renewed trade talks.

Return‑to‑work mandates revive demand for offices: A Royal LePage report says 2026 could see office-market recovery as big employers (RBC, Rogers, Starbucks) and federal workers return to multi‑day in‑office schedules, shifting demand toward collaborative, amenity-rich spaces. The rebound is uneven — GTA and some suburban markets picking up while downtown Vancouver and Calgary face softness — creating opportunities for tenants to find good space with incentives.

World-first cure by prime editing: B.C. teen Ty Sperle (19) was cured of chronic granulomatous disease in a trial using prime editing, a new gene-editing method reported in NEJM; Sperle can stop daily antibiotics and looks forward to normal activities like camping. Doctors call it a milestone that offers hope for many rare-disease patients, though wider access and system delivery are still work in progress.