COLORADO — A pilot from Sooke on Vancouver Island was killed after the helicopter he was flying while battling wildfires in Colorado crashed into a reservoir. The aircraft reportedly went down in the Silver Jack Reservoir, shortly after 5 p.m. Sunday. The Gunnison County Sheriff’s Office says a dive team recovered the body of 56-year-old Nicholas Dale of Sooke, BC, from the submerged helicopter. The sheriff’s office says the helicopter was battling the 148-square-kilometre Gold Mountain wildfire when the crash occurred. It said the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration are still investigating the incident. …The Associated Press reported that a procession of law enforcement vehicles carried Dale’s body to the city of Grand Junction, as residents turned out to express their gratitude to the fallen pilot and the thousands of firefighters still battling the blaze. …Dale was the fourth person killed in recent weeks while battling Colorado wildfires.
It will soon be mandatory for commercial trucks in B.C. to have dash cameras. B.C. Conservative MLA Ward Stamer introduced a bill after a string of deadly collisions on Highway 5, which goes through his riding of Kamloops-North Thompson. British Columbia is the first Canadian jurisdiction to require commercial dash cameras. Stamer says cameras will help keep drivers accountable and ensure there will be enough evidence in the event of a crash. The bill requires outward-facing dash cameras on commercial trucks travelling B.C. highways and will come into force six months after receiving royal assent. “This bill started with families along Highway 5 who have buried loved ones after preventable crashes. It finishes with B.C. leading the country on commercial vehicle safety,” said Stamer in a release.
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Join industry leaders, safety professionals and regulators at the 2026 Wood Pellet and Bioenergy Safety Summit, taking place June 9-10, 2026, in Prince George, BC. Hosted by the Wood Pellet Association of Canada’s Safety Committee, in collaboration with the BC Forest Safety Council, WorkSafe BC and media partner Canadian Biomass, the Summit focuses on practical, real-world safety challenges facing the sector today. Sessions will cover rotary drum dryer safety, process safety management (PSM) and emerging safety initiatives. Worker well-being is a key focus with a hands-on musculoskeletal injury (MSI) workshop on day one and a full-day mental health workshop on day two—reinforcing the importance of both physical and psychological well-being. Designed for those responsible for safety, operations, and workforce health, this event offers valuable opportunities to learn, share and strengthen safety practices across the industry.
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Smoke from two major wildfires burning in British Columbia’s Fraser Canyon is leading to air quality warnings across parts of the province, with an emergency physician warning the health effects extend far beyond watery eyes and a scratchy throat. “It is considered to be one of the biggest public health threats that we face,” said Dr. Courtney Howard, who is also the president-elect of the Canadian Medical Association. … “The particulate matter in smoke that’s less than 2.5 microns can go all the way down into our lungs, and the ultrafine particles can actually cross over into our bloodstream,” she said. …Howard said scientists are only beginning to understand the long-term health effects of repeated wildfire smoke exposure because the research is still limited. “We don’t have good evidence on the long-term outcomes yet,” she said. But a small number of studies, according to Howard, have suggested possible links with high rates of brain cancer and lung cancer.
Across BC, significant wildfires have become an annual occurrence, underscoring the need for forest management practices to reduce long-term wildfire risk. While activities such as prescribed burning are beneficial for fuel management, both wildfire and prescribed fires produce smoke that can pose significant risks to human health. Notably, the impacts of smoke often extend beyond areas directly affected by fire, as smoke can travel significant distances, exposing communities both near and far from the fires. While the health risks specific to prescribed fire smoke remain understudied, the impacts of wildfire smoke on human health are becoming more widely understood. Substantial 
As summer temperatures rise across British Columbia, WorkSafeBC is urging employers to take proactive steps to protect workers from heat stress. Simple measures such as providing shade, cool-down areas, drinking water, and adjusting work schedules can significantly reduce the risk of heat-related illness. WorkSafeBC has also updated its Preventing Heat Stress at Work guide and released a new incident investigation video examining an explosion caused by a key fob left in a service vehicle. WorkSafeBC is drawing attention to another serious hazard: contact with power lines. New data shows that 74% of power-line-related injuries involve non-electrical workers, particularly those in construction, painting, and heavy equipment operations. Additional updates include consultations on proposed safety rule changes for shotcrete work, upcoming 2027 assessment rate information sessions, and a free June 24 webinar on road safety for small businesses. New incident investigation report summaries are available to help employers and workers understand the factors that contribute to workplace incidents so similar incidents can be prevented from happening in the future. 
As British Columbia enters another summer that could be hotter and drier than usual, the Province is urging people and communities to prepare for potential impacts of wildfire, drought and water scarcity. “Climate change is rewriting what we consider normal in British Columbia, with warmer, drier conditions increasing the risk of wildfire and drought,” said Kelly Greene, Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness. …The Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness (EMCR) is working closely with local governments and First Nations to prepare for the summer hazards, including hosting preparedness sessions throughout the province. EMCR is available 24/7 to support communities before, during and after emergencies. …Temperatures are increasing throughout B.C., and with that comes an elevated risk of wildfire. …Regardless of where people live or travel in B.C., it’s critical that everyone does their part to reduce the risk of wildfire. 
Classification change policy in the Assessment Manual lists the possible reasons for changing a firm’s classification. Under this policy, a firm’s failure to provide timely, complete, and accurate information to WorkSafeBC, and to respond promptly to information requests or information provided by WorkSafeBC (the positive duties), is addressed under the heading of fraud or misrepresentation. This creates confusion when the contravention is inadvertent. Our Policy, Regulation and Research Department is releasing a discussion paper with proposed amendments to policy in the Assessment Manual to clarify how a contravention of the positive duties is interpreted in the context of classification change. The discussion paper and information on how to provide feedback can be found here: 
Residents and long-weekend travellers are encouraged to plan, be prepared and stay safe this Victoria Day long weekend as fire prohibitions take effect in parts of B.C. Most new wildfires at this time of year are preventable. People are asked to take precautions with any fire use, stay up to date on current wildfire activity, check for road closures, evacuation alerts and orders, and pay attention to weather conditions. Know the campfire restrictions wherever you are: Category 2 and 3 open fire prohibitions are in place throughout the Cariboo Fire Centre, Coastal Fire Centre, Kamloops Fire Centre and parts of the Prince George Fire Centre and Northwest Fire Centre. Effective Friday, May 15, 2026, noon, the Category 1 campfire prohibition will be rescinded throughout the Coastal Fire Centre. 
Safety Starts Here: June 9-10, 2026, Prince George, BC | The Wood Pellet Association of Canada’s (WPAC’s) 2026 Wood Pellet and Bioenergy Safety Summit is rapidly approaching. The Summit offers valuable opportunities to learn, share and strengthen safety practices across the industry. Join industry leaders, safety professionals and regulators to discuss rotary drum dryer safety, process safety management (PSM) and emerging safety initiatives. Participate in a hands-on musculoskeletal injury (MSI) workshop and a full-day mental health workshop, giving you tools to support the physical and psychological well-being of yourself and your colleagues. Hosted by WPAC’s Safety Committee, in collaboration with the BC Forest Safety Council, WorkSafe BC and media partner Canadian Biomass, the Summit focuses on practical, real-world safety challenges facing the sector today. Whether your role is in safety leadership, operations, maintenance, or workforce health, the WPAC Safety Summit provides valuable opportunities to learn, connect, and contribute to safer workplaces across the sector.
Vancouver and Victoria are the worst places to live in Canada for those with tree pollen allergies, according to a new report. The report from Aerobiology Research Laboratories shows the two B.C. cities are home to some of the most allergenic trees in the country, like birch and maple, and have a longer pollen season. The Ontario-based lab, which monitors airborne pollen with a network of 30 stations across the country, says conditions in the region create what it calls a “perfect storm” for allergy sufferers. “[The two cities] are so close to the coast and you get very mild temperature,” said laboratory director Daniel Coates. “Pollen loves warm weather.” He says allergy season in Vancouver and Victoria has already been intense this year and is expected to worsen in the coming weeks. The West Coast has been facing elevated pollen levels since January, much earlier than the rest of the country…
NEW BRUNSWICK — On the morning of May 26, a provincial air quality monitoring station on the west side of Saint John began registering unusual readings. …There was no special public notification about the west side spike, even though the environment department watched it develop and was concerned enough to launch an immediate investigation to determine the cause. …The department, in emails, said it believes operations and maintenance work at the Irving Pulp & Paper mill could have been a contributing factor. …“The cause appears to be a combination of unusual weather, which trapped pollutants at ground level rather than dispersing them upward, combined with higher than ordinary emissions during a cleaning/maintenance cycle at the mill.” J.D. Irving said there is “no concrete way to confirm” it caused the poor air quality readings but said adjustments in mill operations were made at the time to be on the safe side.
LONGVIEW, Washington — Recovery crews on Friday located the ninth and final person missing at the site of the Nippon Dynawave industrial incident, bringing the death toll from the tragedy to 11. …The ruptured tank spilled up to 570,000 gallons of white liquor, a strong alkaline liquid made mostly of sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide used in the papermaking process to dissolve wood chips. Officials said the liquid made it into the nearby Columbia River and several nearby ditches, sloughs, and dikes. …Longview city officials reassured residents on Thursday that the city’s water was safe, and the Washington State Department of Ecology stated that the water treatment plant would shut down automatically before contaminated water could enter the public water system. …Response crews have documented some impacts to fish and wildlife in drainage systems adjacent to the incident area. Officials said approximately 200 dead fish have been collected.
This week’s chemical blast that killed at least eight workers at Longview’s Nippon Dynawave Packaging highlights the potential dangers in the timber and paper manufacturing industries. …“We work in a highly hazardous atmosphere, in a highly hazardous industry,” Brian Wood, director of support services for Nippon Dynawave, said. …The industries involved in the range of economic activities from cutting timber to manufacturing paper have shed jobs in recent decades, yet this sector continues to have some of the deadliest occupations. The disaster in Longview highlights the dangerous chemicals used in paper making. In 2024, 13 people were killed while working at their paper manufacturing job, according to the US Bureau of Labor and Statistics. Across the country jobs in the sector have plummeted. In the last quarter century, BLS figures show paper manufacturing employment fell by 230,000 jobs to sit around 355,000 across the country. Industry researchers estimate as many as 45 mills closed last year.
LONGVIEW, Wash. — A massive chemical tank holding nearly a million gallons of a highly corrosive liquid imploded and collapsed Tuesday at a Washington paper mill, killing at least one worker and leaving nine others unaccounted for with no hope for rescue, authorities said. Another nine people were injured, some severely, in the spill at Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. in Longview. The cause remained unclear. “At the moment we are not aware of any rescues that are yet to be made,” Cowlitz Fire and Rescue Chief Scott Goldstein said during a Tuesday evening news conference in which officials repeatedly referred to the situation as a recovery effort. That effort would not resume until Wednesday morning, when emergency responders planned to work on stabilizing the collapsed tank, which still had about 90,000 gallons (more than 340,000 liters) of a chemical brew known as “white liquor” inside, and then search for the missing, Goldstein said.
MAINE — The fire and subsequent explosion at a Maine lumber mill that killed a firefighter and injured a dozen other people was accidental and originated at the base of a silo, authorities said Tuesday. …Rapid ignition of particulate material resulted in an explosion in the silo that caused it to lift from its concrete base and release large amounts of sawdust and other materials, the Maine State Fire Marshal’s Office said. The silo then toppled and the surrounding area became engulfed in fire, the office said. Investigators will return to the facility in the coming months to conduct a more detailed examination, the fire marshal’s office said. “Investigators also determined the facility’s fire suppression system, which was located near the top of the silo, did not activate because temperatures at that elevation did not reach the activation threshold after the fire originated at the base of the silo,” the office’s statement said.
MAINE — According to the Fire Marshal’s Office, multiple departments sustained damage to their fire trucks and equipment during the Searsmont incident, impacting departments that are already limited on resources. “Seeing the ploom of black smoke, it immediately puts a lump in your throat,” said Belmont Fire Chief Ron Harford, as he reflected on Friday’s fire and explosion at Robbins Lumber. In the aftermath of the Searsmont fire, the Belmont Fire Department is supporting injured firefighter Katherine Paige and navigating the loss of a critical tank truck. …”Searsmont’s going to be hugely affected because they’ve lost two of their immediate mutual aid town’s trucks, plus their tank truck,” said Harford. On top of that, Chief Harford says the department lost between $50 to $60 thousand worth of equipment that was on the truck. …”Mr. Cross [Fallen Firefighter Andrew Cross] is our biggest loss. He was a tremendous firefighter a tremendous person,” said Harford.
GEORGIA — Residents of a Port Wentworth neighborhood believe chemical dust from a nearby International Paper mill is causing health concerns and property damage. Many residents reported shared health symptoms, including sinus issues, burning eyes and coughing. Despite resident complaints and visible white powder on cars and homes, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division has not found the mill in violation of its permits. …The Savannah Morning News collected dust scraped off of one resident’s car about 700 feet from the mill and sent it to third-party lab Eurofins for testing. Eurofins stated that most of the sample was likely calcium carbonate, a white to tan odorless powder, a major component of lime mud. The International Paper mill generates lime mud, according to its operating permit. …The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) confirmed that the dust contained calcium, and narrowed down the likely culprit to the mill’s lime kiln.
Western Europe is enduring a ferocious heatwave forecast to break temperature records, with half of France on red alert, rail services in Belgium disrupted and sports events in Spain and Germany cancelled or postponed. French authorities on Monday placed 49 of the country’s 96 mainland departments on a level 1 danger-to-life warning, urging 35 million people to exercise “absolute vigilance”, drink water often, avoid all strenuous exertion and stay out of direct sun. Another 40 departments were on a level 2 orange alert. “Very high temperatures are setting in for the long term across the country,” said the national meteorological service, Météo-France. “Day and night-time temperatures will be exceptional.” It said temperatures throughout western and central France were likely to exceed 40C from Monday afternoon, hitting 43C in Bordeaux, 41C in Limoges, 40C in Toulouse and Tours and 39C in Paris, and would continue rising until the end of the week.
FRANCE — Wood pellets, commonly used in stoves and boilers in homes across France, can release carbon monoxide (CO) during storage even without being burned, reports the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES). Natural chemical reactions inside the pellets, particularly the oxidation of fatty acids in the wood, can cause them to heat up slightly and release gases without any combustion. In addition to carbon monoxide, stored pellets can emit other gases such as carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These processes can also reduce the amount of oxygen in the surrounding air. ANSES says these emissions are usually low and gradual – but tend to increase at higher temperatures. They decrease over time. The type of wood is a factor with, for example, pine pellets likely to emit more gases than spruce. Although the overall risk is limited.