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Kamloops
Teachers vote yes, school back in session next week
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The teachers vote is in and school will be back in session next week. A total of 75 per cent of teachers cast ballots Thursday with more than 27,000 voting to accept the agreement. The number of teachers voting was up significantly from ratification votes in 2006 and 2012 and on par with...
Districts planning for back to school
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - As teachers make their decision today whether to ratify a contract agreement with the province, school boards are busy making plans in the hopes that students will be back in school next week. Several districts have already reached out to parents to let them know the plan for next week and most are...
Kamloops teachers, protesters welcome Clark and cabinet with loud rally
KAMLOOPS - The atmosphere was one of celebration as Premier Christy Clark and her cabinet sat in on a luncheon in Kamloops Wednesday, though outside teachers gathered to continue the rally for a better education system. “A lot of the issues around public education still remain,” David Komljenovic, president of the local teachers’ union and...
UPDATE: Historic 6-year term, more teachers part of new agreement
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - A tentative deal has been reached between teachers and the province and that means students could be back in school as early as Monday. Kamloops-Thompson Teachers Association President David Komljenovic sits on the bargaining committee for the B.C. Teachers’ Federation. He confirmed following a marathon bargaining session ending early Tuesday morning that Monday...
Teacher strike 2014: The timeline
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - A lot has happened since negotiations began on the latest contract for B.C. teachers and it’s easy to lose track of how we got to where we are today. Here we take a look back at the basics, where we are and what steps the B.C. Teachers’ Federation and the B.C. Public School...
Stronger showing of northern lights expected tonight
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - We’re getting a second chance at the northern lights tonight thanks to a second blow from the sun, and this one could be even stronger thanks to the storms combining as they hit the Earth. The National Space Weather Prediction Center says a ‘moderate’ storm hit Earth late Thursday night (in the Pacific...
How to make your night sky photography stand out
5 TIPS FOR BETTER PHOTOS THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – If you’re like many people out there you’d…
Keep your eyes to the sky Thursday night
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If the skies stay clear, and they are supposed to, we could be in a for a great northern lights show Thursday night. The National Space Weather Prediction Center says a ‘moderate’ storm is expected to hit Earth late Thursday night (in the Pacific time zone) before downgrading to a ‘minor’ storm in...
Can Kamloops beat Kelowna?
KAMLOOPS - What better way to increase voter turnout than by placing a wager on it? Coun. Arjun Singh is a supporter of the Kamloops 50 initiative, a group looking to increase voter turnout in the November election to 50 per cent from just under 30 per cent as happened in 2011, and he's extending...
JAIL SEX TRIAL UPDATE: Court examines video evidence
KAMLOOPS – A now-retired RCMP corporal took the stand in Kamloops Supreme Court Tuesday afternoon to describe one of his last investigations—of his friends and co-workers accused of breaching trust as a police officer. Several officers chose to watch two drunk female prisoners have sex rather than intervene in the early morning hours of August...
UPDATE: Broken valve leaks slurry at New Gold
KAMLOOPS - Management at the New Gold mine west of Kamloops are looking at how they can prevent a similar type of leak from happening in the future after 16-20 cubic metres of slurry leaked into a secondary dry ditch on site last night. Environment and Social Responsibility Manager Scott Davidson says the small leak...
Fassbender: ‘It’s driving me crazy’
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The Education Minister kicked off a press conference Monday afternoon with not one, but two movie references (Groundhog Day and Back to the Future if you were wondering), following them with a counter proposal to the teachers’ union second request to enter binding arbitration. Since talks broke down just before school was set to...
UPDATE: General strike in support of teachers put on hold
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Plans to call for a general strike beginning Wednesday have been put on hold while B.C. residents wait for the results of a teachers' union vote on suspending the strike and whether the government will agree to binding arbitration. A group of concerned citizens originally planned a three-day general strike to begin Wednesday...
Teachers’ union continues push for binding arbitration
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Even after the B.C. government said no to binding arbitration this weekend, the teachers’ union won't give up hope. The union feels arbitration could end the strike and get its members a fair settlement. “Binding arbitration is a fair, practical and pragmatic approach,” B.C. Teachers’ Federation President Jim Iker said Monday morning at...
Accused’s bail release reversed after judge’s error
KAMLOOPS – On Friday afternoon, a man previously released on bail was put back behind bars before his trial due to a provincial court judge’s error. Jeremy Allen, 34, faces domestic violence related charges both in Kamloops and Kelowna courts. On July 24, Judge Len Marchand released him on bail for both files. As the...
Enjoy warm weather while it lasts
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Enjoy the weekend while it lasts — another blast of heat is coming our way this weekend but there'll be a significant drop in temperatures Monday. Temperatures will reach as much as 30 Celsius in the region and the sun in expected to shine throughout the weekend. Kamloops will see the warmest temperatures...
Teachers’ union has plan to get school back in session
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Just two days after saying the union would not consider a vote to suspend the current strike Jim Iker, the teachers’ union president, says they would recommend members vote to suspend the strike if the government is willing to agree to binding arbitration. The B.C. Teachers’ Federation president says this is another option...
TEACHERS’ STRIKE: How much money the Terry Fox Foundation stands to lose
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The kids, the teachers, the government, the parents. We’ve heard over and over again how the current labour dispute is affecting them, but what about the organizations that also rely on schools to help with fundraising? Every year during September, students raise money for the Terry Fox Run but this year, unless teachers and...
“We’re not suspending any strike:” Iker
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Teachers’ union president Jim Iker has declined the Premier's request to suspend the strike while bargaining continues. Earlier today, Christy Clark urged him, before a packed news conference, to allow teachers to vote to end the strike or suspend it. Two hours later, Iker held is own conference and stood his ground. “We’re...
Parents taking control during teacher strike
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - With no end to the current labour dispute in sight many parents are wondering how they can make sure their kids do not fall behind in their education — book sections in many stores are picked over, only a few workbooks remaining, and many school-age programs filled up before the summer was even...
Endless summer in B.C…. snow in Alberta?
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Mother Nature is welcoming some Alberta kids back to school in Canadian style today — with a snow storm. The southeast corner of Alberta, from Brooks to the B.C. border, is currently under a heavy rainfall warning but combined with temperatures hovering not much above zero some areas are instead seeing wet snow....
What you can do to prevent bear conflicts this fall
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Hide your picnic baskets and tuck away your garbage cans, it’s high season for bears as they look to take in about 20,000 calories per day before settling in to hibernate for the winter. WildSafeBC Provincial Coordinator Frank Ritcey says bear sightings in the month of August were more than the four previous...
Victim’s name from fatal crash near Merritt released
MERRITT - The coroner's office has released the name of the Coquitlam passenger who died in a fatal car accident near Merritt on Sunday. She was Elizabeth Joan Savoie, 27. The driver of the vehicle, a Mazda 3 rolled the car several times before it rested in a ditch. The accident took place around 7...
At least someone’s getting a laugh over the teachers’ strike
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - It appears someone working for the provincial government's web department has added a little ironic wit—if not annoying editorial—to the rhetoric on the teachers strike. When all hope of ending the teachers strike before Sept. 2 was lost on the weekend, the B.C. government opened up its website so parents can register to...