** BC mayor calls for more government funding after ambulance station shooting

CANADA NEWS

** The BC mayor of Trail is crying foul over inadequate government funding after a Tuesday shooting outside an area ambulance station. MSN (Darrian Matassa-Fung/Catherine Urquhart/October 28) quoted Lisa Passin as saying the province needs to stump up more money to put towards health, mental health, the RCMP and substance abuse programs. Passin said the shooting, which did not result in any injuries, should be a wake-up call because the situation escalated so rapidly. According to the news site, suspect Francis Paradis, 29, opened fire on two cops and three medics while police were trying to de-escalate their interaction with him. Paradis was arrested at the scene and tagged with weapons charges. Further tags, including potentially attempted murder, could be forthcoming.

** Quebec man in BC tased, arrested after firing on paramedic, police

CANADA NEWS

** November 2^nd has been set as the first court date for a Quebec man, 39,  accused of firing on Trail, BC paramedics and police Tuesday. That is the word from the Rossland Telegraph (October 26) which said the 11:48 pm incident played out outside the ambulance station while police were trying to calm the man down. According to the newspaper, matters escalated and the man fired at two police officers and three paramedics. He was then tased and taken into custody on several firearms related charges. Additional tags could include attempted murder. No one was injured in the incident.

** BC seeking to boost rural/remote EMS staffing through temporary pay bumps

CANADA NEWS

** To boost rural and remote ambulance staffing, the BC government has apparently reached an accord with on-call paramedics that will see their pay jump from $2 to $12 per hour. Global News (Simon Little/October 24) said the deal, which is apparently temporary, will also see overtime/recall shifts paid on evenings and weekends at double the overtime rate. According to the news site, the initiative went into effect October 22^nd and will run at least until New Year’s Eve. Successful contract negotiations, which began earlier this month, could, however, impact the agreement. The new approach replaces a June project that saw medics offered $100 per shift for taking regular on-call and for those willing to work for two to four week placements in remote communities.