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Penticton news
Impaired driver wreaks path of destruction in Penticton
PENTICTON - An impaired driver operating his vehicle “like he was playing bumper cars” ran amok through Penticton streets. Penticton RCMP Staff Sgt. Kurt Lozinski says police arrested the driver of a white BMW yesterday afternoon, June 11, for impaired driving on Wilson Street in the city’s south end. Lozinski says no police chase was...
Robbery at a Penticton Scotiabank branch
PENTICTON - Penticton RCMP are on the lookout for a suspect after bank robbery earlier this week. Police were called to the Scotiabank branch at 2062 Main St. at approximately 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 9 after bank employees reported a robbery. RCMP say a man entered the bank and handed a note to a...
Be prepared for emergency wildfire evacuations
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – With an unusually dry and hot summer forecast for the Thompson-Okanagan this summer, regional districts are urging residents to get prepared in case emergency evacuations become necessary. Central Okanagan Emergency Operations Centre spokesperson Bruce Smith says the best time to make an emergency plan is long before something happens. He recommends residents understand...
Here’s what a Vernon man said to Christy Clark about invasive mussels
“IS B.C. NOT WORTH IT TO YOU?” THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - A frustrated Vernon man has sent an open letter to Premier Christy Clark about invasive mussels, and he didn’t hold back. Brynne Morrice, a filmmaker who recently debuted a short documentary about the imminent threat of zebra and quagga mussels, is calling on the province to...
Murdered Penticton man remembered as a diligent worker
PENTICTON - The man murdered in Penticton last week was a father of four and worked at the Copper Mountain Mine. Frank Armitage worked with Darren Leadbeater, 36, the person police named yesterday as the man murdered at Golden Sands Resort in Penticton, and says he was shocked when he learned of his co-worker's death. “I knew...
RCMP confirm death at Penticton motel was murder
PENTICTON – Seven days after shots were fired and a man’s body was found at a home in Penticton, police have confirmed the death as a homicide today. RCMP have also confirmed the murder victim’s name. Darren Leadbeater, 36, of Penticton was originally from Fort McMurray, Alta. Police responded to a call about shots fired...
Get used to higher prices: Fruit Growers’ president
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – Fred Steele’s day starts before 5 a.m. As the president of the B.C. Fruit Growers' Association, and with 7.5 acres of apple trees to manage, he’s used to an early start, but the early spring across the province has him waking the roosters most days. “I do most of the work myself,” the...
Penticton photographer has passion for night photography
PENTICTON - A Penticton photographer uses the night sky as his subject and the great Okanagan outdoors as his studio. Stephen Hancock recently took some spectacular photographs of an aurora-filled night sky above Brunell Lake, northwest of Oliver. Over the past two years, Hancock has taken photos of the Okanagan night sky. Locally he often...
New airline promises cheap flights out of Kelowna
KELOWNA – A new airline from Manitoba is partnering with Kelowna-based Flair Airlines to bring what it calls 'basic air transportation' to the Okanagan. NewLeaf Travel Company has not released all of its destinations yet, but airline spokesperson Bob Jones confirms they will start service from Kelowna to Hamilton and Winnipeg by the end of...
Norm Macdonald bringing stand up routine to Kelowna
OKANAGAN - Canadian comic Norm Macdonald is bringing his stand-up routine to Kelowna this fall. Best known as a former Saturday Night Live cast member, Macdonald will be taking to the stage at the Kelowna Community Theatre this September. Macdonald has an impressive resume in the comedy world which includes anchoring the popular Weekend Update...
Restrictions on channel use until end of the month
PENTICTON - Those wishing to beat the heat with a trip down the channel need to be aware the channel won’t be completely open to floaters until the end of the month. Several floaters could be seen travelling south beyond Green Mountain Road in swift current on the afteroon on Monday, June 8. Penticton Indian...
VIDEO: What a drive through the Okanagan looked like in 1966
OKANAGAN – The drive from the U.S. border in the south Okanagan to Vernon is one of the most scenic in the province, but has it changed much in the last 49 years? A three part series released by the Ministry of Transportation this week shows footage taken from the dash of a car driving...
Penticton dad identified as murder victim; Police haven’t confirmed
PENTICTON - A former Fort McMurray, Alta., man living in the South Okanagan is believed to be the man police found murdered at a Penticton motel unit last week. Police have not confirmed the name, but social media sources appear to confirm Darren Leadbeater as the man killed following an incident at the Golden Sands...
Interior Salish art could draw tourists to Southern Interior
PENTICTON - A demand by tourists for local indigenous art is being heard and the Penticton Indian Band has taken the first steps towards making that happen. The Penticton Indian Band hosted a workshop last week as it works to create a strategy to meet the tourist market demand for authentic Interior Salish art. The event, held...
Interior Health CEO Rob Halpenny to resign
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - After more than five years as chief executive officer, Dr. Robert Halpenny is resigning from the Interior Health Authority. The announcement that Halpenny will resign from his position, effective this fall, came today, June 9. “Over the five and a half years that Dr. Halpenny has served as CEO, he has driven transformative...
Early spring, California drought has Okanagan grocery stores picking local
KELOWNA – The severe drought in California coupled with an unusually warm and early spring in B.C. has local grocery stores stocking their shelves with fruits and vegetables grown right here at home instead of importing from the south. Chris Holmes is the owner of Quality Greens on Spall Road. With stores in Kelowna, West...
Coroner identifies Penticton girl hit by motorhome in Oliver
PENTICTON – The B.C. Coroners Service has identified the Oliver girl who was hit and killed by a motorhome in Oliver last week. Mya Daylene Goddard, 16, of Penticton was crossing the highway in Oliver on June 4, when she was hit by a southbound recreational vehicle, according to a media release. The driver of...
Record hot weather on the way for Okanagan
OKANAGAN - It was a hot weekend in the Okanagan and the hot weather is forecast to continue through this week. Environment Canada recorded temperatures reaching as high as 33.8 Celsius in Penticton on Sunday, a bit shy of the 35 C record set nearly 70 years ago. In Kelowna temperatures climbed to 33 C,...
Penticton heart attack victim thanks life savers
PENTICTON - A Penticton man is effusive in his gratitude to the people who saved his life after he suffered a heart attack while playing pickle ball at the community centre gym. Gary Gierlich, 58, says his last memory before collapsing on April 16 was a feeling of dizziness. The next thing he remembers is waking up...
Keremeos RCMP on hunt for man who flashed young girl
KEREMEOS – Police are hoping the public can help them find the man who allegedly exposed himself to an adolescent girl in Keremeos almost two months. It happened at about 5:40 pm., April 16, according to a RCMP media release issued Friday, June 5. The suspected flasher is described as a man his 20s with...
Mom trying to give parents of stillborn babies a few extra days together
WEST KELOWNA – Kristin Esmail and her husband didn’t find out until she was in labour their son, Richard James, was stillborn. After 39 weeks in utero, finding out that they would not be able to take him home was almost too much pain to bear. “It was such a shock,” the West Kelowna resident...
Pup with broken leg needs your help
PENTICTON – A 10-month-old puppy who was hit by a car needs a little help from the public to get back on all four paws. Jodi, a black and white Labrador retriever mix, was brought into the South Okangan-Similkameen SPCA with a broken femur and in need of more than $4,000 worth of medical treatment....
SNELSON TRIAL: Ex-wife of accused was vigilant after hearing of missing girl
KAMLOOPS - Katherine Oystryk, 44, remembers hearing about Jennifer Cusworth and watching out for her own safety after the 19-year-old girl went missing from a Kelowna house party her then-husband attended 21 years ago. Now Oystryk's ex-husband, Neil George Snelson, 48, stands accused of manslaughter in Cusworth’s killing. This is his second trial. Oystryk testified...
Oliver man killed in Highway 97 crash
PEACHLAND - A crash between a car and a semi in Peachland yesterday claimed the life of an Oliver man. The B.C. Coroners Service has confirmed Grant Wheeler, 81, was killed in the crash, June 4. Wheeler was driving northbound on Highway 97 when he became involved in a collision with a southbound semi-trailer at...