Weekly wrap: Fentanyl, creep catchers and a shaker

News stories involving animals always seem to be popular and this week, many readers were drawn to the story of ahumpback rescued from fish farm ropes the whale thrashed in distressfor 12 hours before rescuers were able to set it free.

The story was one of our most popular in the British Columbia section of the CBC Newswebsite this week, and for good reason: the 10-metre-longjuvenile humpback suffered deep cuts but rescuers are hopeful it will recover.

Meanwhile, ourreaders alsocareabout hard-hitting journalism that delves deep into issues that touchthe lives of ordinary Canadians.

Facing fentanyl head on

This week our investigative team took an in-depth approach tothe multiple facets of the fentanylcrisis hitting families across the country.

Thepowerful painkiller is said to be up to100 times more potentthan morphine or heroin.A dose the size of a grain of salt has killed hundreds across Canada, and forced B.C. todeclare a public health emergency in April.

The series started last weekend, and one of the stories our readers read the most was about what happened when our reporters phonedevery drug rehab facility in British Columbiaabout finding treatment care.

This story about a fentanyladdict trying to find a treatment bed also seemed to hit a nerve with our audience. Bryson Diaz has overdosed 11 times in his 23 years but hasn't been able to access publicly funded treatment.

Vancouver firefighters have been racing to revive fentanyl addictswith doseof the opioid antidote naloxone they're usually first on the scene responding to medical calls after someone passes out on the street in the city's Downtown Eastside.

Vigilante justice

Meanwhile, another set of stories captured our audience after avigilante pedophile-hunting group claimed to have caught a RCMP officer meetingwith one of the group's decoys, who hadposedas a 14-year-old girl online.

RCMP later arrested one of their ownon allegations including child luring and sexual exploitation, but not until after Creep Catchers publicly named the wrong officer.

Shortly afterwards, a deputy sheriff in Kamloopswas facing four child-sex charges after a similar group there caught him in a sting.

If you have the time today, do read Jason Proctor's analysis on why 'justice as entertainment' means never having to say you're sorry. Jason makes the case for why our boring, old justice system pales in comparison to the exciting world of vigilantism.

Lastly, it wouldn't be B.C. without an earthquake reminding all of us that we should all be prepared for The Big One. Itcould be decades before it hits but the threat looms large in the minds of West Coast residents.

This week's shake happened inOliver, B.C., where an earthquake with amagnitude of 4.0 to 4.2 shook people out of their beds for up to 25 seconds.

If anything, it's a good reminder for all of us to get our earthquake kits ready and possiblyincludea bike in those kits.

Each week weputtogether a list of some of the stories you might have missed: those which dominated the news agenda; those which passed it by; and some we just can't resist retelling.