Williams Lake and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at Cariboo Memorial Hospital.  Emergency services will be unavailable from 11 p.m. on Wednesday, July 24 to 6 a.m. on Thursday, July 25, 2024. Patients can access care at 100 Mile District General Hospital in 100 Mile House, GR Baker Memorial Hospital in Quesnel, or Bella Coola General Hospital in Bella Coola during this time. All other inpatient services will continue as normal at Cariboo Memorial Hospital. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 9-1-1 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.   Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1 or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week.  The emergency department in Cariboo Memorial Hospital is normally open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Williams Lake and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at Cariboo Memorial Hospital.   Emergency services will be unavailable from 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 23 to 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, July 24, 2024. Patients can access care at 100 Mile District General Hospital in 100 Mile House, GR Baker Memorial Hospital in Quesnel, or Bella Coola General Hospital in Bella Coola during this time.  All other inpatient services will continue as normal at Cariboo Memorial Hospital.  People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 9-1-1 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.    Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1 or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week.   The emergency department in Cariboo Memorial Hospital is normally open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. 

As a precautionary measure, Interior Health (IH) supported the relocation of 21 residents from Cariboo Place long-term care home to alternate locations away from wildfire risk last night. Interior Health is aware of information circulating in the community and would like to confirm that planning work was undertaken to ensure the ability to respond in the event of a risk to the life and safety of residents in care. At this time, there will be no further evacuations of residents. Anyone wishing to confirm their loved one’s current location can call 1-833-469-9800. Hours of operation are Monday to Friday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. As the fire situation in Williams Lake has stabilized, a dedicated team will lead the planning work of repatriating residents home. Repatriation will occur gradually and carefully to ensure appropriate staffing and resources are in place when residents return to home. Interior Health continues to support the wildfire response in our region, and our heartfelt thanks goes out to our care partners, first responders, community volunteers and local and provincial governments. Those requiring support are encouraged to call the BC Crisis Line at 310-6789, KUU-US Indigenous Crisis Services at 1-800-588-8717, or MNBC Métis Crisis Line at 1-833-638-4722. Everyone is reminded to make preparations for wildfires, and smoky skies as air quality deteriorates by visiting: Wildfires | Natural Disasters & Emergencies | IH (interiorhealth.ca) Install the BC Wildfire Service mobile app (Android or iOS) or visit the BC Wildfire Service Dashboard to find information on current wildfire activity: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/wildfire-status The FireWork Forecast shows maps of predicted smoke impacts over the next 48 hours: https://weather.gc.ca/firework/

Interior Health (IH) is responding to the potential for fire-related impacts to health facilities and clients in the community of Williams Lake due to the River Valley wildfire. As a precautionary measure, IH is relocating 21 residents from Cariboo Place long-term care home to alternate locations away from the impacted area. Staff from Cariboo Place have been contacting families directly and providing updates on the location of their loved ones. For any families looking for further information on their loved ones, they may call 778-417-0275 or 780-399-6570. The Cariboo Memorial Hospital is not impacted at this time - anyone requiring care should proceed to the hospital as needed. Regular hours for the hospital are 24 hours, seven days a week. Interior Health is also working with all community clients to make plans for them to have access to the services they need should they need to evacuate. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility. This is an evolving situation and we are working closely with municipalities, regional districts, and the BC Wildfire Service to ensure precautions are underway to protect patients, clients, and individuals in long-term care. Those requiring support during this crisis are encouraged to call the BC Crisis Line at 310-6789,  KUU-US Indigenous Crisis Services at 1-800-588-8717, or MNBC Métis Crisis Line at 1-833-638-4722. Interior Health also continues to monitor wildfire activity across the region. Everyone is reminded to make preparations for wildfires, and smoky skies as air quality deteriorates by visiting: https://www.interiorhealth.ca/health-and-wellness/natural-disasters-and-emergencies/wildfires Install the BC Wildfire Service mobile app (Android or iOS) or visit the BC Wildfire Service Dashboard to find information on current wildfire activity: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/wildfire-status The FireWork Forecast shows maps of predicted smoke impacts over the next 48 hours: https://weather.gc.ca/firework We will provide updates as new information is available.

Merritt and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at the Nicola Valley Hospital and Health Centre due to limited physician availability.  Emergency services will be unavailable from 6 a.m. on Sunday, July 21 to 8 a.m. on Monday, July 22, 2024. Patients can access care at Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops during this time. All other inpatient services will continue as normal at Nicola Valley Hospital. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 9-1-1 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.  Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1 or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week.  The emergency department in Merritt is normally open 24/7.

Creston and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at Creston Valley Hospital due to limited nursing availability. Emergency services will be unavailable from 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 20 to 7 a.m. on Sunday, July 21. Patients can access care at East Kootenay Regional Hospital located at 13-24 Ave N., Cranbrook. All other inpatient services will continue as normal at Creston Valley Hospital. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.  Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1, or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week.  The emergency department in Creston is normally open 24/7.

Interior Health (IH) is responding to the potential for fire-related impacts to health facilities and clients in the community of Ashcroft due to the Shetland Creek wildfire. As a precautionary measure, IH is relocating 21 residents from Jackson House long-term care home and five clients from Thompson View Lodge assisted living facility to alternate locations away from the impacted area. Interior Health is contacting families directly and providing updates on the location of their loved ones. The Ashcroft Urgent and Primary Care Centre (UPCC) is not impacted at this time - anyone requiring care should proceed to the UPCC as needed. Regular hours for the UPCC are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week. Interior Health is also working with all community clients to make plans for them to have access to the services they need should they need to evacuate. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 9-1-1 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility. Emergency department services are available 24/7 at Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops. This is an evolving situation and we are working closely with municipalities, regional districts, and the BC Wildfire Service to ensure precautions are underway to protect patients, clients, and individuals in long-term care. Those requiring support during this crisis are encouraged to call the BC Crisis Line at 310-6789. Interior Health also continues to monitor wildfire activity across the region. Everyone is reminded to make preparations for wildfires, and smoky skies as air quality deteriorates by visiting: https://www.interiorhealth.ca/YourEnvironment/Emergency/Wildfires/Pages/default.aspx Install the BC Wildfire Service mobile app (Android or iOS) or visit the BC Wildfire Service Dashboard to find information on current wildfire activity: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/wildfire-status The FireWork Forecast shows maps of predicted smoke impacts over the next 48 hours: https://weather.gc.ca/firework/ We will provide updates as new information is available.

Oliver and area residents are advised of temporary changes to emergency department hours at South Okanagan General Hospital due to limited physician and nursing availability. Emergency services will be unavailable from 7 p.m. on Friday, July 19 to 7 a.m. on Saturday, July 20.  Patients can access care at Penticton Regional Hospital during this time.  All other inpatient services will continue as normal at South Okanagan General Hospital. People in the community who need life-threatening emergency care (i.e., chest pains, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding) should always call 911 for transport to the nearest available and appropriate facility.  Anyone unsure whether an emergency room visit is warranted can call HealthLink BC at 8-1-1, or visit www.HealthLinkBC.ca for non-emergency health information from nurses, dietitians and pharmacists 24 hours a day, seven days per week.  The emergency department in Oliver is normally open 24/7.

Adrian Dix, Minister of Health, has released the following statement in response to the global system disruption that is affecting many health-authority-owned facilities:  “Over the night of Thursday, July 18, 2024, B.C. was made aware of a global system disruption that is affecting many health-authority-owned facilities, including hospitals. Emergency services, including 911 and ambulances, are not impacted by this disruption and are operating as usual. “We know that this disruption is impacting some patients and their families, and health authorities are working to get their systems back up as soon as possible. “Our primary concern is the continuity and quality of patient care. We have implemented contingency plans to ensure that our health-care services remain operational and that patient care is not disrupted to the best of our ability. “Staff at the Provincial Health Services Authority remain in contact with Crowdstrike, a global cybersecurity firm used by organizations around the world that generated this outage, to discuss solutions. Further investigations are underway to assess the extent of the disruption and a provincial emergency operations centre was activated to assess and mitigate impacts. “I would like to thank the health-care workers and everyone who has been working on this disruption overnight. An initial group of IT staff were deployed in the early hours of Friday, July 19, 2024, to health-authority-owned facilities to provide IT support and more are on the way. “During this period, there may be some impacts to our staffing systems, and we apologize in advance for any inconvenience caused by unplanned service interruptions that may occur.”