NEWS IMAGE COLLAGE / for 02-2016

Seven stranded hikers have been rescued northeast of Grouse Mountain after intentionally trekking up a closed hiking trail. According to NSR the group was not prepared for the steep terrain or winter conditions.

A woman and two young children are dead after a passenger vehicle and transport truck collided on Saskatchewan's Highway 16 between Langham and Borden.

The OPP had to rescue a dog from Cedar Creek after it feel through the ice Monday. One officer tied a rope around his body and waded out into the waters.

An ice fisherman in the Saguenay region had the catch of a lifetime on Saturday when he reeled in a 70-kilogram halibut. "I couldn't keep it. I found it beautiful," Gagnon-Brassard said. "Leaving it in the water was just normal."

A fishing vessel is en route to Nuuk, Greenland, after it struck ice Sunday night, tearing a hole into the hull. The Danish Coast Guard is en route to escort the ship to Nuuk.

The parents of a Fredericton teen who died after playing a drinking game are telling their story in the hope other such deaths can be prevented.

The Liberal government is forecasting larger-than-expected deficits for the next two years even before adding billions in promised spending in a budget to be tabled March 22. Finance Minister Bill Morneau is providing a fiscal update at a town hall in Ott

Jannik Hansen had two goals and Ryan Miller made 37 saves Sunday as the Vancouver Canucks downed the Colorado Avalanche 5-1 to snap a four-game losing streak.

Second-half goals by Lindsey Horan and Tobin Heath lifted the U.S. to a 2-0 win Sunday over Canada in the final of the CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Championship.

A Nova Scotia family is crediting their pet dog with saving their lives after it alerted them to an early-morning fire that quickly gutted their home.

An avalanche involving more than a dozen people has hit near a British Columbia community, not far from where a snowmobiler died in another slide on Saturday.

A slew of locations across southern Ontario had their warmest Feb. 20 ever, less than one week after shattering Valentine's Day cold-weather records.

A Fort Frances, Ont., farmer has been recognized for her work preserving a rare breed of wild horse that used to be plentiful in the woods of northwestern Ontario and northern Minnesota.

As Ottawa considers bailing out Quebec-based Bombardier, the premier of Alberta is asking the federal government to also help the ailing oil industry.

At least six people are dead after a series of western Michigan shootings in which authorities say they believe a gunman chose victims at random.

Federal investigators say a Buffalo woman is in custody Thursday after she threatened two FBI agents on Twitter.

Dearborn Mich. - A woman was arraigned Thursday on a felony charge of making a false report or threat of a bomb after she told police that her friend had overheard people discussing an attack a Fordson High School.

Plans are zipping along for the possible installation of a permanent zip line in a Vancouver park this summer.

A former Edmonton man and high-risk sex offender who escaped Canada in 2013 has been found guilty of raping a 69-year-old woman in Seattle.

The Afghan man, who had arrived in Britain illegally via Calais, was actually registered as a child but a dental examination later found that he had rotting wisdom teeth.

Jaclyn McLaren, 36, of Stirling, Ont., has been charged with 36 crimes involving young people between the ages of 12 and 15, police said.

TorStar is as vulnerable as any newspaper company, Postmedia included, and equally lost in the wilderness of the 21st century, Terence Corcoran writes

European diplomats have warned the Turkish government that it cannot count on NATO support should the conflict with Russia escalate into an armed conflict, according to German media. 

A brave group of cyclists is peddalling out onto the icy surface of Manitoba's largest lake to ride the burliest bikes on the market through blistering winds and blowing snow, all in preparation for a trip across the South Pole.

An 11-year old girl escaped during an assault by a man who offered her a ride home on Wednesday night in St. Theresa Point. When she declined, the driver exited the vehicle and assaulted her.

Pilots and airplane owners are urging the federal government to make sure a security mistake that prevented private Canadian aircraft from entering U.S. airspace never happens again.

Two Stanley Cup rioters have been have been handed lengthy jail terms for assaulting assaulting a Good Samaritan in Vancouver in June 2011. A total of 300 people were charged. Nearly all of them pleaded guilty.

A municipal tractor with a snow plow is believed to have been shot at by a pellet gun early Friday morning, Halifax police say. The driver was clearing sidewalks on Primrose Street in Dartmouth when he noticed small indents on his window.

Det. Const. Robert Hansen has pled not guilty to a police act charge alleging that he contacted Craig Ruthowsky.

A spring bear hunt pilot project in Ontario is being expanded to all areas of the province that currently have a fall bear hunt. Officials estimate Ontario has up to 105,000 black bears, which they says is healthy and sustainable population.

Alberta RCMP are trying to reunite a mysterious bundle of handwritten, wartime letters with their rightful owner after they were found in a stolen vehicle two weeks ago. Friday afternoon, it appeared the mystery had been solved.

The study found hatchery-raised salmon are genetically different from the populations they are introduced into, which can cause problems when wild and hatchery populations interbreed in the wild.

Calgary defenceman TJ Brodie continued his red-hot play of late with three assists on Friday night to lead the Flames to a 5-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks.

Four Ontario residents, including an 18-month-old boy, are dead following a three-vehicle crash in Texas. Police say the driver of a Honda Civic was heading the wrong way in the northbound lane of Interstate 35 around 1 a.m. when it collided with a pickup

Quest rookie Gaetan Pierrard, the final 2016 Yukon Quest musher on the trail, arrived at Takhini Hot Springs at around 9 a.m. Friday. Pierrard was the 19th musher to complete this year's race.

American warplanes struck an Islamic State training camp in Libya near the Tunisian border Friday, and a Tunisian described as a key extremist operative probably was killed, the Pentagon announced. In Libya, local officials estimated that more than 40 peo

A newly established herd of elk east of Jordan River is in trouble after two pregnant females were illegally killed by poachers. Provincial conservation officer Peter Pauwels said this is a devastating blow for a herd this small.

Canada secured a spot in the Rio Olympics by defeating Costa Rica in the semifinals of the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament on Friday in Houston.

Harper Lee, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of the American literary classic To Kill a Mockingbird, has died at age 89. Lee's death on Friday was confirmed by the city clerk in her hometown of Monroeville, Ala., and by her publisher, HarperCollins.

The commander of Canadian Fleet Atlantic says HMCS Windsor has been forced to dock in the United States after the submarine had mechanical problems at sea.

British Columbia's controversial helicopter hunt for wolves meant to save endangered caribou herds has shifted from the Kootenays to the northeast.

The cost of steaks, roasts and other cuts of beef are still fetching a premium price in the meat department of grocery stores, although that should change later this year.

A British SAS sniper took an Islamic State (Isis) commander's head clean off as he taught jihadi recruits how to behead captives, according to reports. The marksman fired from over a kilometre away (1,000 metres) to land the shot.

The RCMP is scrambling to contain the fallout from bungled internal investigations into allegations of unwanted sexual touching, bullying and rampant nudity in the workplace at the explosives training unit of the Canadian Police College in Ottawa.

The jailed leader of a child sex grooming gang in Greater Manchester appeals against his deportation, citing human rights laws.

A 30-year-old teacher has been charged in connection with an investigation into several sexual assault allegations made in Burlington.

A doctor who practised at a health facility in Yorkton, Sask., has been charged with six counts of sexual assault.

Crown prosecutor Dan Rideout went into Nova Scotia Supreme Court this morning and announced he would be calling no evidence. Justice James Chipman then dismissed the case.

Nebojsa Sparavalo, 64, is accused of touching a 17-year-old boy in a sexual manner following a procedure at the Victoria General hospital last year.

The authorities who raided and shut down the website called it the largest online male-escort service and said it made millions of dollars by promoting prostitution

Michele Wilkins had her unborn child 'removed' from her womb during an attack that occurred after she responded to a Craigslist ad for free maternity clothes

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed two Tupolev Tu-160 Blackjack aircraft were spotted heading towards Britain with Typhoons sent out in response.

Visual brainteasers are driving us mad. This is partly because while some stare and stare to no avail, others solve them in seconds. Put yourself to the test with these 15 conundrums.

A Los Angeles man with an unusual passion for phone systems created a new robotic answering service that wastes telemarketers' time

Sweden's migration agency plans to convert luxury cruise ship into floating asylum centre

Who you gonna call? Countering the occult is taken seriously by the Kingdom's religious police.

In recent years, Atlantic Canada's bat population has been decimated by the fungal disease white-nose syndrome, but a study conducted by the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative says bat population numbers were up last summer on the Island.

Wolf, cougar and bear culls are needed to save dwindling elk and moose populations in the B.C.'s East Kootenay, say a growing number of hunters and biologists.

New research into wolverines in the Canadian Rockies suggests landscape development may be placing considerable stress on the animals, causing them to alter their hunting behaviour.

If you're looking to find the perfect, most unforgettable way to propose to your significant other, you would have to go to great lengths to top the naked shoveller.

The Vancouver Police Department invited local media behind the scenes to demonstrate some of the training and use-of-force options officers have at their disposal.

The federal government has again delayed a decision on Ontario Power Generation's plan to bury nuclear waste at the Bruce Nuclear site near Lake Huron. The proposed facility would store about 200-thousand cubic metres of low and intermediate level waste.

Animal advocates in B.C. and some politicians are advocating for legislation that would give the B.C. SPCA more teeth to rein in irresponsible pet breeders.

The City of Vancouver is setting up a new kind of pedestrian crossing as part of a pilot project to help residents get across busy streets in three different locations.

After 14 years of consulting with the fishing industry, Transport Canada has released new fishery safety standards. Transport Canada is now proposing new vessel safety regulations to make the fishery safer.

The Vancouver Aquarium is suing the maker of a critical documentary for alleged copyright violation. In a B.C. Supreme Court notice of civil claim, the aquarium is seeking an injunction to remove 'Vancouver Aquarium Uncovered' from YouTube and Vimeo.

A UBC Okanagan campus Masters student believes climate change is causing B.C.'s bobcats to move farther north and is also affecting the habitat of lynx, who are adept at moving through thick snow.

A Port Coquitlam man was surprised to see a bobcat in the trees around Blakeburn Lagoons last week. Nick Howorth spotted the wildcat after walking his children to school.

The Liberal government will deliver more than it pledged during last year's election campaign by expanding the Interim Federal Health Program for refugees.

Thousands of the migrants who voluntarily left Finland arrived back in the Iraqi capital today and were pictured greeting loved ones and celebrating their return home.

The perplexing origins of the grisly discoveries appear tied to the advances made in running shoe technology

A Dallas-based auction house says a rare copy of a comic book featuring the first appearance of Spider-Man has sold for $454,100 ($624,600 CAD).

The federal government has decided against pursuing an appeal of an Alberta court's decision to grant former Guantanamo Bay inmate Omar Khadr bail.

REFUGEES in Germany committed 92,000 more offences in the country last year than in 2014, according to official figures.

A Baghdad court has sentenced scores of captured "Islamic State" ("IS") fighters to death over their role in 2014 massacre in Tikrit. The mass killing of up to 1,700 Shiite soldiers became a symbol of IS brutality.

Auditors have been called in to probe the government-created agency that recycles used tires in Ontario after a Star expose detailed spending on luxury hotels, alcohol and donations to the Liberal Party of Ontario.

About 900 migrants are rescued near the Greek island of Lesbos by a patrol vessel, the EU border agency Frontex says.

Hamza Tzortzis, who has previously defended child marriage, is one of 12 speakers who will address the United Muslims of Australia Quest for Success conference in Sydney in May.

A Santeria priest has been indicted on nine charges of disinterment of a body in the theft of skeletons from Worcester's Hope Cemetery last year.

Authorities announced on Wednesday a former priest was sentenced for child sexual abuse and exploitation.

Iraq is searching for "highly dangerous" radioactive material stolen last year, according to an environment ministry document and seven security, environmental and provincial officials who fear it could be used as a weapon if acquired by Islamic State.

The Conservative opposition says the UN secretary general's flattery of Canada's new Liberal prime minister may have had a political motive -- getting more support for some UN agencies and programs that the Harper government defunded.

A drug trafficking investigation that has stretched across British Columbia since 2014 has now produced dozens more charges. The CFSEU says arms, cash and $5-million worth of illegal drugs, including potentially deadly fentanyl, has been seized in several

A B.C. man says he was 'just trying to help' when he stepped in to free a young moose tangled in his wire fence. But instead of running off, the animal returned the favour by 'circling and attacking' him.

Pope Francis said Thursday that Donald Trump is "not Christian" if he intends to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexican border. Trump immediately fired back, saying it is disgraceful for a religious leader to question a person's faith.

A federal grand jury in Nevada indicted Cliven Bundy and four others Wednesday on 16 charges related to an armed standoff near his ranch in 2014 over unpaid grazing fees.

Research showing that our species interbred with Neanderthals some 100,000 years ago is providing intriguing evidence that Homo sapiens ventured out of Africa much earlier than previously thought, although the foray appears to have fizzled.

Jaime Sharp's 71-day kayak journey in the Arctic started with a bear who came too close for comfort. Jaime Sharp will never forget the time he woke up in the middle of the Arctic, to find a polar bear sitting on his legs.

Austria will impose a daily quota on asylum claims and limit the flux of migrants travelling through the country.

A new carving at the legendary birthplace of King Arthur is drawing mixed reviews from visitors and history buffs, with some critics calling the work 'graffiti,' rather than 'art.'

Experts have confirmed the Florida Panhandle as the site of the long-lost settlement of a doomed 1559 Spanish expedition led by Tristan de Luna. The discovery bolsters Pensacola's claim as the first European settlement in the modern-day United States, six

A Calgary Zoo investigation has pinpointed what caused the death of an otter named Logan last week: a pair of pants that were not meant to be in his enclosure.

Experts are meeting in Iqaluit to try to get Inuit people speaking the same language. Although there are only about 60,000 Inuit in Canada, they are divided between nine different dialects and several wildly varying writing systems.

A Vancouver Island man is heading to jail for repeatedly flouting orders not to practise law without a degree. Ralph Goodwin was found in contempt of court in December when a judge said he "flagrantly" defied a 2013 order requiring him to stop giving lega

A Japanese space telescope with X-ray vision sharpened by Canadian technology has launched successfully into space, and will be soon offering unprecedented views of objects like supernovas and black holes.

Two Thunder Bay women are heading to Antarctica next month to run a half-marathon dressed as penguins. The women will leave Thunder Bay on March 4 to travel to King George Island, off the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, where the full and half marathons a

The white car with black stripes owned by Moira and Mark Willems has been turning heads in Saskatoon and has its own Facebook page called ZebraCar with a few hundred followers.

Commuters in Ottawa and across eastern Ontario knew a storm was coming Tuesday morning, but even so, what hit the region was more than many could handle.

B.C.'s English Bay and Chesterman Beach have made The Guardian's list of top 50 beaches in the world.

Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan has told a House of Commons debate on the future of Canada's contribution to the U.S.-led mission against ISIS that Canada's CF-18s have flown their last mission in Iraq and Syria.

A man faces a pair of assault-related charges after he allegedly struck another man in the head with a hockey stick during a weekend game, police say.

A large explosion in the Turkish capital, Ankara, has left at least 28 people dead and 61 injured, Turkish officials say.

A determined cat, who lives in Norway, has set out to prove that felines are just as accomplished as husky dogs when it comes to extreme winter sports by pulling his owner through the snow.

The owner of the Bow building says it's suing several companies to cover the cost of fixing defects in the iconic highrise in downtown Calgary. Construction substantially finished in 2012 but the company says numerous problems have cropped up since.

An astrophysicist who studies exotic "zombie stars" has become the first woman to win Canada's top science prize.

An Ottawa man who has taught Sunday school to children was charged with human trafficking after police say he sexually exploited a 15-year-old girl.

The Rebel Media has hired a lawyer to help them regain access to Alberta government news conferences after two of its reporters were denied access.

Faced with a cash shortage in its so-called caliphate, ISIS has slashed salaries, asked Raqqa, Syria, residents to pay utility bills in black market American dollars, and is now releasing detainees for a price of $500 a person.

Police are attempting to negotiate with a man who could be in a Surrey, B.C., bank that was evacuated early today, but say it's not known if he is inside.

Indonesian police have arrested dozens of people from radical Islamic groups who were plotting attacks against the airport and other targets in the near future, the national police chief said on Monday....

In video, tugboats pass a city waterfront, including one that appears to be flying a Canadian flag