The Canadian Press

Renowned composer Joseph Koo, whose music helped form the soundtrack for what his family called the "Golden Era" of Hong Kong culture in the 1970s and '80s, has died in a Metro Vancouver hospital.

Koo's family said in a statement that he died of natural causes on Tuesday, six days short of his 92nd birthday.

The composer is closely associated with the heyday of Cantopop, writing songs for some of the biggest names of the Cantonese music genre as well as scoring movies including Bruce Lee's "Way of the Dragon" and "Fist of Fury."

Canadian tourists were trapped inside a Mexican hotel Thursday as buses that were supposed to take them to an airport and safely home burned outside. 

"It's just chaos," said Tina Dahl of Edmonton, whose six family members stranded in the popular tourist city of Mazatlan were supposed to fly out Thursday night.

The federal government advised Canadians in Mexico to limit their movements and shelter in place due to violence in the western part of the country. 

Airline passengers leaving China, Hong Kong and Macau will have to provide evidence of a negative COVID-19 test when they enter Canada starting today.

The Canadian government announced last week that the travellers would need a negative test administered within 48 hours of their departure as cases soar in China. 

Other countries, including the United States and several European nations, imposed similar rules despite protest from China. 

Today marks Canada's first National Ribbon Skirt Day. 

Manitoba Sen. Mary Jane McCallum's bill to recognize the day every Jan. 4 passed in Parliament late last year.

It was inspired by Isabella Kulak, a member of the Cote First Nation in Saskatchewan who wore a ribbon skirt to her rural Saskatchewan school in December 2020, when she was 10 years old.

She wore the colourful garment, donned by Indigenous women at cultural events, as part of a formal day — but her family said at the time that a staff member told her the outfit wasn't considered formal enough.

Another Manitoba Progressive Conservative has announced he will not seek re-election.

Alan Lagimodiere says he will not run again in his Selkirk seat due to personal family reasons.

In a social media message, Lagimodiere says it was not an easy decision but he is putting his family first and will continue to support the Tories under the next candidate.

He was first elected in 2016 and has served in recent years as the minister for Indigenous Reconciliation and Northern Relations.

Sunwing says it has completed all of its scheduled recovery flights to bring home passengers stranded in Mexico after winter storms disrupted its operations during the holidays.

The travel company says in a statement that its teams have worked around the clock to return its affected customers home.

Some travellers from Saskatchewan say the airline has left them at airports in other provinces, while one says her flight from Mexico made it to Regina with dozens of empty seats.

The Winnipeg Police Service says the president of the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms is facing charges that include attempting to obstruct justice, following his admission in 2021 that he hired a private investigator to follow a Manitoba judge.

Winnipeg police say in a news release that John Carpay, 55, was arrested with the assistance of the Calgary Police Service based on a warrant with charges issued by Manitoba Justice.

2023 is an election year in Manitoba -- and at least one political analyst thinks the governing Progressive Conservatives will have a tough time turning their fortunes around.

Paul Thomas, at the University of Manitoba, says the public mood right now is one of frustration and disappointment.

Tory support in opinion polls dropped sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic and has stayed low as hospitals and the health-care system face ongoing strain.

Utility crews in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick are still working to restore electricity to thousands of customers who have been in the dark for days after last week's fierce winter storms knocked out their power.

As of Tuesday morning, power is still out for nearly 33,000 Hydro-Québec customers and more than 13,000 Hydro One customers.

New Brunswick Power has restored electricity to a majority of customers who were impacted by the storm, which it has said was one of the largest provincewide outage events of the last 25 years.

Canadian Blood Services says it's in need of blood and plasma donors after the winter storm disrupted donations over the holidays. 

Severe wind, snowfall and icy conditions that hit many parts of the country meant that about 10 per cent of expected blood and plasma donations did not happen. 

There's a critical need for platelets for patients undergoing cancer treatments and O-negative blood for newborns and emergencies. 

Canadian Blood Services says it has lost thousands of regular donors since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.