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Highway 97
Man injured in Vernon highway crash ticketed for bad driving
VERNON - A driver involved in an ugly highway accident in Vernon over the weekend was seen speeding and driving erratically leading up to the crash, police say. The 28-year-old Kelowna man was headed northbound on Highway 97 in a Honda Civic when witnesses saw him strike the median, drive through a red light, hit...
Pedestrian suffers extensive injuries jaywalking across Kelowna highway
KELOWNA - A senior remains in hospital with multiple injuries after he was struck by a vehicle while crossing the highway outside of a crosswalk or intersection Saturday night. The 65-year-old man was trying to cross Highway 97 near Leathead Road when he was struck by a green Jeep Cherokee in the northbound lane. The...
Serious Vernon car crash sends one to hospital
VERNON – A serious two-car crash just south of Vernon Saturday afternoon at the intersection of Highway 97 and College Way sent one person to hospital. Coldstream firefighters, RCMP and B.C. Ambulance responded to the crash at about 12:40 p.m., Nov. 7. Coldstream deputy chief Bryce Green says one of the vehicles jumped a median...
Liquor store faces little opposition in UBCO neighbourhood
KELOWNA - Imagine, if you will, an application to open a liquor store in Kelowna that faced little opposition from local neighbours and in fact, will likely be warmly embraced when it finally does open. That’s because the neighbours in the building on Academy Way where the liquor store will be located are by and...
City of Kelowna changes plan of attack for ‘extraordinary snow events’
KELOWNA - With last January’s near-record snow storm on their minds, the city is going to institute something that’s been the norm on the Prairies for decades — snow routes. “One of the biggest challenges staff face during snow cleaning efforts is vehicles on local residential streets,” public works manager Darryl Astofooroff says in a...
Kalamalka Lake lookout gets much-needed facelift
VERNON – The iconic lookout just off Highway 97 on Vernon’s south end with the spectacular view of the city, Coldstream and Kalamalka Lake is now looking pretty good thanks to an upgrade funded by provincial tax dollars. What was once a big parking lot with some garbage cans is now a full-fledged rest area...
Accident south of Vernon sends four to hospital
VERNON - Police say a car crash just south of Vernon today was caused when a driver failed to yield while merging onto the highway. RCMP Cpl. Spencer Hornoi says a truck was making a left hand turn off Birnie Road onto Highway 97 and collided with a southbound car shortly before noon, Oct. 19....
UPDATE: Highway 97 in West Kelowna reopens following head-on collision
WEST KELOWNA - A head-on collision on Highway 97 near Grizzly Drive backed up traffic in both directions this morning, Oct. 1, closing the highway and sending a 76-year-old woman to hospital in serious condition. Kelowna RCMP spokesman Const. Steve Holmes, says in a meida release, the collision between a Toyota sedan and a Jeep...
Two Vernon dogs escaped car crash, one still missing
VERNON - A Vernon woman is pleading with the public to keep an eye out for her dog after it jumped from a car following a crash and hasn’t been seen since. Tonya Olson says her boyfriend was driving with their two dogs, Rizza and Diego, on Sept. 21 when the vehicle spun out of...
Power back on for almost 3,000 in West Kelowna
WEST KELOWNA – An almost two hour power outage in West Kelowna this morning left thousands in the dark. The power went out at around 6:40 a.m. and came back on at about 8:18 a.m., Sept. 20, according to B.C. Hydro. The outage affected 2,827 customers in an area east of Highway 97, north of...
Serious West Kelowna car crash
WEST KELOWNA – Emergency crews are on the scene of a serious car crash in West Kelowna this afternoon. The three vehicle crash happened at about 2 p.m., Sept. 5 on Highway 97 at Boucherie Road near Friend's Pub. Three people were taken to hospital but no word on how badly they were hurt, according...
Two people in hospital after motorcycle accident on Highway 97 in Kaleden
KALEDEN – Two people were transported to hospital following a motor vehicle accident on Highway 97 near Kaleden this afternoon, Sept. 3. Kaleden Fire Chief Darlene Bailey says a man driving a Harley Davidson motorcycle was heading northbound on Highway 97 when a woman driving a Honda sedan pulled out of the Petro Can gas...
Night construction could cause traffic delays in Kelowna next week
KELOWNA - A pair of roadwork projects on the city’s major highways will cause some delays next week. On both Highway 97 and Highway 33 road construction will reduce traffic to single-lane alternating traffic, according to information posted to the province’s Drive B.C. website. Work will take place east of Hollywood Road on Highway 33...
Vernon cadets show bravery in moments after head-on collision
VERNON - A group of staff cadets and instructors celebrating at a recent graduation parade in Vernon didn’t hesitate to drop what they were doing and run to help those involved in a serious car crash. “The flags were just being marched on and we heard a loud bang,” Major Keri Winkelaar says. “We turned...
Crash on Highway 97 just south of Vernon
VERNON - A head-on collision near the Vernon Army Camp has sent two people to hospital with serious injuries. The accident happened around 9 a.m., Aug. 13, on Highway 97 near the Army Camp when two vehicles struck head-on. The drivers of both vehicles, a man and a woman, had to be removed with the...
Grass fire sparked north of Vernon
SPALLUMCHEEN - Emergency crews weren’t taking any chances with a small grass fire just north of Vernon beside Highway 97. Fire information officer Kelsey Winter says B.C. Wildfire crews were on the ground alongside firefighters from the Armstrong Spallumcheen Fire Department in an area roughly 15 kilometres north of Vernon near Gurney Creek. The fire,...
UPDATE: Two dead in crash in Vernon; police looking for witnesses
VERNON - Two young women from Kelowna were found dead in a head-on collision with another vehicle on Highway 97 in Vernon, early Sunday morning, and another two people from Armstrong are in hospital, police say. The two vehicles collided near the 27 Street overpass just after midnight Sunday morning, July 12. Cpl. Joseph Leeson...
UPDATE: Highway between Merritt and Spences Bridge reopens following rock slide
MERRITT - The highway between Spences Bridge and Merritt has reopened completely following a rock slide yesterday afternoon. According to Drive B.C., the slide took place around 12 p.m. June 26 on Highway 8, at Voght Street, about 45 kilometres west of Merritt. It originially blocked traffic in both directions about 45 kilometres west of...
Kaleden car crash sends one to hospital
KALEDEN – A two-car crash on Highway 97 in Kaleden this afternoon has sent one person to hospital. The Dodge Intrepid turning onto the highway from Lakehill Road was hit by a northbound BMW SUV, according to emergency officials at the scene. The SUV ended up in the ditch. Traffic is getting past the wreckage...
Serious motorcycle crash in Kaleden
KALEDEN – Two people were taken to hospital in serious condition, one was airlifted to Kelowna, following a crash between a motorcycle and a car on Highway 97 south of Penticton this afternoon. Emergency crews were called to the crash at about noon, May 24, when a motorcycle hit a vehicle which was turning left...
Dozens of vehicles impounded due to excessive speeding
KELOWNA – In the last two months, more than 50 vehicles were ticketed and impounded for excessive speeding between Kelowna and Vernon. Since March 1, the Kelowna RCMP Integrated Road Safety Unity conducted speed enforcement along the Hwy 97 corridor targeting aggressive drivers travelling more than 40 km/h over the posted speed limit. “Aggressive driving...
UPDATE: Legion president injured in Highway 97 crash
KELOWNA – A car crash on Highway 97 near Old Vernon Road in Kelowna this morning seriously injured three people, including two members of the Royal Canadian Legion. Branch 26 president Syd Pratt and member Frank Truman were on their way to a Flag Day event at the Lakeview Memorial Cemetery, Lynda Wachter the Legion's manager...
Median barriers will be installed on dangerous stretch of Highway 97
KELOWNA – A stretch of Hwy 97, notorious for crashes caused when a driver crosses the centre line, will receive nine kilometers of concrete median barriers this summer. The announcement was made Friday, May 8 with plans for phase one to begin this month. The $2.5-million project will start with work between University Way and...
Paving work will impact traffic on Highway 97
VERNON - There will be delays on Highway 97 over the next month as repaving work gets underway. The project is for roughly 30 km of highway resurfacing between Old Vernon Road and Bailey Road. A five kilometer section on Highway 33 from Beaverdell Dump Road to Beaverdell will also be included The $3.8 million...