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Kamloops
Kamloops RCMP searching for owner of tin with sentimental jewelry
KAMLOOPS - Police are looking for the owner of a unique tin containing what appears to be sentimental jewelry after recovering the items following an arrest at the end of December. Two men were taken into custody on Dec. 28 for a break and enter at a compound on Cariboo Place, Cpl. Cheryl Bush, a...
Buffalo hide produced by B.C. rancher featured in latest Leonardo DiCaprio film
70 MILE HOUSE - A buffalo farmer in the B.C. Interior has become famous in his own right after Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio showcased one of the hides made by at his ranch in the recently released film The Revenant. “It’s just great. I put so much work and labour and love into this stuff,”...
Snowfall warning for Coquihalla Highway
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - While temperatures continue to warm up in town, a system is expected to drop enough snow on area highways today to prompt a snowfall warning for at least one section of highway. Environment Canada has issued a snowfall warning for the Coquihalla Highway from Hope to Merritt, where up to 25 centimetres of...
Crown appealing judge’s decision to toss evidence from Kamloops gun-bust case
KAMLOOPS - The criminal justice branch is appealing a recent decision from a Kamloops Supreme Court justice after all the evidence collected against a man was tossed from trial due to Charter violations. Justice Hope Hyslop tossed the case against accused Charles Patrick in December, 2015 after determining Kamloops RCMP made mistakes while arresting the...
Kamloops teen helps ‘frozen puddle goalie’ achieve dream
KAMLOOPS – When Bailey Monteith heard the story about an Abbotsford boy’s dream of playing hockey he stepped up to help. The 14-year-old goalie from Kamloops created a fundraising campaign online to help Markus Stewart’s family pay for goalie equipment and the hockey fees so he could play. Stewart’s plight grabbed the Internet’s attention when...
Early season numbers show decent snowpack in the Thompson-Okanagan
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Several snow systems pommelled the region at the end of 2015, leaving the snowpack levels at a good level to start 2016. At 143 per cent, Similkameen is most above normal for this time of year, but with the lowest in the region sitting at 92 per cent of normal snowpack levels, low...
Teen appealing to public as she searches for mother in Kamloops
KAMLOOPS - A teenaged girl has turned to social media in hopes of gaining more details about her biological mother as she plans to travel to Kamloops in search of her. Katrina Ladouceur, 17, says she only has sparse knowledge of who her mother is and says she’s been searching for clues since she was...
Did you buy a winning 6/49 ticket in the Shuswap or Surrey?
SHUSWAP - The latest Lotto 6/49 draw is over and while the grand prize wasn't won, a trio of tickets are splitting a $172,000 pot for matching most of the numbers and another won $1 million in the guaranteed prize draw. Someone who bought their ticket in the Shuswap is $86,000 richer while another bought...
Taxpayers heap abuse on snow removal staff
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Few things, it seems, can bring out the ugly in a person more than a snow covered street. A story posted yesterday with a photo from the perspective of a West Kelowna snowplow driver showed cars parked willy-nilly on a local road, making it virtually impossible to plow. The story touched a nerve and...
Deceased’s name withheld as authorities continue investigation of suspicious death in the Shuswap
LEE CREEK – Investigators are still examining the events which led to a suspicious death…
Coroners wanted: Eight vacancies including Kamloops and Vernon
VICTORIA - The hunt is on for people to fill vacancies at the B.C. Coroners Service. The government has job postings up for eight community coroners in communities throughout B.C. including Kamloops and Vernon. The $25 an hour job isn’t for the faint of heart as coroners are responsible for determining the circumstances of sudden,...
2015 TOP STORIES: Politics divided our ridings like never before as Liberals take office
THOMSON-OKANAGAN - Big changes in the political map across Canada translated this year into upheaval for local politicians. Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, seeking a fourth term after nearly ten years in power, dropped the writ on the longest federal election campaign in history, an eleven week marathon largely seen to benefit the incumbents. It...
2015 TOP STORIES: Marijuana goes mainstream as legalization looms
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Marijuana made the news so much in 2015 you could almost smell it wafting across Canada. Supporters could definitely smell change in the air as outright legalization of the drug became part of Justin Trudeau's winning campaign in the 2015 federal election. No sooner was he elected that unions started proposing responsible ways...
2015 TOP STORIES: 17 of the oddest crime stories this year
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – Crime remains a regular topic and source of news and it's tough to…
2015 TOP STORIES: Lottery winners from the Southern Interior
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Millions of people play the lottery but only a handful of people win millions — and a half dozen of those who won this year live in the Southern Interior. First up was Albert and Margaret Greening of Vernon, who won $5.8 million in the April Fool’s Day Lotto 6/49 draw. Their ticket...
2015 TOP STORIES: Major crimes across the B.C. Interior
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - This year had no shortage of crime stories, with the RCMP launching several major investigations and the courts wrapping up cases from previous years. Here is a summary of some of the top crime stories of 2015. In August, a man was found dead in Vernon’s Polson Park. Police have kept mum on...
VIDEO: Player steps up to the mic to sing Hungarian Anthem at Kamloops hockey tournament
KAMLOOPS - In the true spirit of sport, Kamloops fans rallied to sing the American national anthem when the PA system failed during a tournament this week, but it was one Hungarian player who really saved the day by representing his home country. It wasn’t a great start to the annual Kamloops International Bantam Ice...
Kamloops plan to help youth homeless goes national
KAMLOOPS - Several agencies in town do their best to help curb homelessness in Kamloops, but one is being recognized nationally for assisting homeless youth. Katherine McParland, youth homelessness manager with Interior Community Services, has joined forces with 15 agencies in town to help teens who are homeless or could be soon. McParland and other...
UPDATE: Snowfall warning ended for Okanagan and South Thompson
ROADS AND HIGHWAYS IN WINTER DRIVING CONDITION THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – A dump of snow overnight and this morning is making the busiest travel day of the year a challenge for drivers. The snowfall warning issued by Environment Canada for the Thompson-Okanagan earlier this morning was ended at about 10:15 a.m., Dec. 27. Forecasters say significant snowfall...
Some quirks of the calendar will bring you a lot more fun next year
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Before you book your vacation next year, you might find some surprises you haven’t seen on the calendar — like an extra four long weekends next year. Thanks to a few quirks of the calendar, all four date-based holidays fall on or near weekends this year. Canada Day, Remembrance Day and New Years...
Christmas in Kamloops: How to one-up your overachieving neighbours
KAMLOOPS - What do you do when your neighbours could challenge Clark Griswold in a Christmas lights contest and you don’t have the time or inclination to plan ahead for something that big? You do the only thing possible — embrace it and ‘ditto’ it. The Fords moved in next to Grant and Jacki Andersen...
Locally-made spirits to get you through the holiday
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - There’s no faster way to get into the spirit of Christmas than with Christmas spirits, and the Thompson-Okanagan has two award-winning local craft distilleries to help with last minute gifts or to keep guests from noticing that overcooked turkey. Urban Distilleries in Kelowna’s north end focuses on vodka, gin and whiskey, and they...
Sample local authors for last minute gifts
KELOWNA - Books make a great last minute gift and the latest from a local author is the perfect touch. Here’s the latest from some local talent. All True Not A Lie In It This novel by Okanagan College professor Alix Hawley made the Giller long list and won amazon.ca First Novel Award in 2015. All-day...
Why pets don’t make the best presents
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - While it might seem like the perfect present on Christmas morning, the B.C. SPCA would rather you didn’t give pets as gifts. People put a lot of value in their gifts but the society generally discourages the giving of animals, Valerie Wilson of the Kamloops SPCA says. “Do your research. Know that that...