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Kelowna news
UPDATE: Coroner identifies victim in Shuswap house boat accident
SICAMOUS - A young Alberta woman died in a house boat accident last Friday. The accident happened on Shuswap Lake near the Cinnemousun Narrows about 15 km north of Sicamous Friday, July 10. Andrea Mary Jacura, 22, of Edmonton, Alberta died Friday while swimming in Shuswap Lake in B.C.'s Southern Interior. The woman was behind...
Hey Kelowna, is this your giant ice cream cone?
KELOWNA - RCMP are looking to find the rightful owner of a giant ice cream cone and admit they are ‘licked' without further information. A Bertram Street resident woke early yesterday morning, July 12, to find a large ice cream cone sitting on his front lawn, according to police spokesman Const. Steve Holmes. “The homeowner...
Water board wants more control over what people do in watersheds
OKANAGAN - In an effort to put a stop to mud-bogging and pit toilets near reservoirs, the local water board is supporting a call for greater control over source watersheds. “The board wants our members to have more control and the province to give more support to water utilities to protect the quality of their...
West Kelowna mom raises funds to give more parents of stillborn babies a few extra days together
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – A West Kelowna woman who lost her baby shortly before giving birth to him has successfully raised enough money to bring a device to Kelowna General Hospital that will give other parents going through the same thing a little bit of comfort. Now she’s planning to do the same for Vernon, Penticton and...
No fishing in several South Okanagan rivers and streams this summer
PENTICTON – Fans of fishing across the province will be disappointed to learn that as of July 15 they will no longer be permitted to fish many rivers and streams in the South Okanagan this summer due to low flows and warming water temperatures. For the rest of the summer all streams and rivers in...
Changing demographics could force school closure in Rutland
KELOWNA - It’s been years since it last happened and there’s no guarantee yet that it will, but in the face of static enrolment and ever-tighter budgets the Central Okanagan School District is once again looking at possible school closures. “I would suggest the next possible school closure would be in the Rutland area,” school...
Suspicious salesman going door to door in Kelowna
KELOWNA - A man going door to door on MacKenzie Road has raised suspicions in the neighbourhood. Const. Steve Holmes says a man claiming to be selling furnaces and hot water tanks was going door to door but had no company identification and refused to leave a business card or brochure. It seems he is...
Police confirm identity of Black Mountain murder victim but still no arrests
KELOWNA – RCMP have confirmed the identity of the man found murdered in his home on Black Mountain earlier this week. The body of Amardeep Singh Ahluwalia, 47, was found in his home on Feedham Avenue in the early morning hours of July 7. Police have said very little about the cause of death but...
Unemployment ticks upward in Central Okanagan
KELOWNA - Unemployment in the Central Okanagan has jumped in the last six months however the number of job hunters remains well below the national average. In its latest labour force survey, Statistics Canada is reporting an unemployment rate of 4.5 per cent in the Kelowna census area, up six basis points from last month...
UPDATE: False call brings swarms of police to downtown Kelowna
KELOWNA - A downtown street was blocked off and under heavy police presence Thursday evening, but RCMP Cst. Steve Holmes says it was all because of a false call. "Investigators are relieved that no one was injured in the incident but are disturbed at the complete disregard for public safety," he says in a release....
Three local fighters take centre stage in UFC next week
KELOWNA – It’s a huge week ahead for Kelowna fans of the UFC. Three local fighters, Rory MacDonald, Matt Dwyer and Sarah Moras, will step into the octagon to represent local fight club Toshido Mixed Martial Arts. On Saturday, July 11, Rory MacDonald (18-2) squares off for the second time against legendary Pat Miletich-trained fighter...
Jury finds Okanagan women guilty of teaching fraudulent tax scheme that cost government millions
KELOWNA – Two Okanagan women who helped defraud the Canadian government of roughly $200 million in taxes have been found guilty of all charges by a jury in Kelowna Supreme Court. Donna Marie Stancer and Deanna Lynn Lavalley were both charged with making false statements in their own personal income tax returns, counselling others to commit...
Milfoil harvester vandalized and other unsolved Kelowna crimes
KELOWNA – RCMP are asking the public for help with several unsolved crimes that happened around Kelowna in the last two weeks. On Sunday, July 5, an alarm was set off at the Husky gas station on Okanagan Highway in West Kelowna shortly after 2 a.m. A security officer found holes cut into the roof...
$110,000 pontoon boat stolen from Kelowna business turns up in Alberta field
KELOWNA – Thanks to social media a luxury pontoon boat that was stolen from a Kelowna business last weekend has been recovered in Alberta. The boat, a 2015 Campion Biltmore worth more than $110,000, was taken from Banner Recreational Products some time Sunday. Amanda Jefferson, Marketing Co-ordinator at Banner Recreation and Marine, says the suspects...
Missing documents for Westbank audit mysteriously resurface
WHAT IT MEANS TO RECALL PETITION FOR CHIEF AND COUNCIL | In February, Westbank First Nation members demanded an audit of band dealings in the Lake Okanagan Wellness Centre after they found themselves on the hook for $7.9 million. When they failed to get it, they pursued the recall of Chief and council. In our ongoing...
Kelowna and Westside food banks announce merger
CENTRAL OKANAGAN - Citing cost and operational efficiencies, the Kelowna and Westside community food banks have announced they are merging to form the Central Okanagan Community Foodbank. Lenetta Parry, already the executive director of both organizations, says the move was prompted by usage rates that remain stubbornly high. “Locally foodbank usage is up 20 per...
Unique pontoon boat stolen during Kelowna robbery
KELOWNA – Employees of a Kelowna boat dealership are in shock after the brazen theft of their most expensive boat on Sunday.
No, you can’t do that in B.C. right now
‘SOMEONE IN AN INTERFACE AREA WAS USING A BLOW TORCH TO GET RID OF THEIR WEEDS’ KELOWNA – This hot, dry summer makes beach days all the more necessary, but it has taken at least some of the fun out of other favourite Thompson-Okanagan pastimes. By now we should all know that, during fire season...
Judge skeptical career criminal ready to change
"AT WHAT POINT IS THE COURT TO SAY 'TALK IS TALK?'" KELOWNA – A Supreme Court judge ignored a career criminal's assertion that he was finally ready to change. Rory Richard Francis Feeney, 31, was on parole for a prior robbery conviction and living in a Kelowna halfway house last December when he signed himself...
Water quality reminder for 400 Glenmore Ellison homes
KELOWNA - Residents in the area of east of Old Vernon Road are being reminded of the continuing water quality advisory for their area. While the entire Glenmore-Ellison Improvement District system is under a water quality advisory, the 400 homes in the affected area just came off a boil water advisory last November. “Normally, this...
Vehicle thief handed nine months jail for stolen truck, ATVs
KAMLOOPS - A 22-year-old with a taste for stolen vehicles will spend the next four-and-a-half months in jail after pleading guilty to possessing a stolen pickup truck and two all terrain vehicles last spring. Justice Gary Weatherill handed Waylon Faulhafer a nine-month sentence yesterday, July 6 for his involvement in two separate stolen property files....
The power of information during electrical failure
WHO HAS IT, WHO DOESN'T THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - When the power goes out, so do most of the things we depend on for life and business — lights, refrigerators, internet, air conditioning, point-of-sale machines, cash machines — and depending on which power company you use, so does information. The Thompson-Okanagan is divided between Fortis B.C. and...
If you missed the deadline on your favourite Okanagan produce this year, you weren’t alone
SO EARLY, IT'S UNHEARD OF OKANAGAN - Many crops in the Okanagan have come and gone much earlier than normal, and that’s leaving consumers with mixed emotions. Cheryl Rohrer with Good ’N’ Plenty Produce in Armstrong says some customers are thrilled to see their favourite foods out earlier than usual, while others are left disappointed...
Smoky skies advisory issued for entire Thompson-Okanagan region
THOMPSON OKANAGAN – If the visible smoke in the sky wasn't enough to warn you, a smoky skies advisory has now been issued for a large portion of the Southern Interior. The Ministry of Environment, in collaboration with the Interior Health Authority, has issued a smoky skies advisory for the Thompson, Shuswap, Nicola, Fraser Canyon,...