Vernon news
Gymnastics society stretching for more room in Vernon
VERNON - A local gymnastics society is hoping a partnership with the city will lead to a bigger, better centre for Vernon youth in the next few years. The North Valley Gymnastics Society was founded in 1993 and for a long time ran its programs out of the Beairsto Elementary School gym. In 2004, issues...
Valley athletes do well at crossfit regional games
OKANAGAN - Crossfit athletes from the North and Central Okanagan recently posted some stellar results during the gruelling West Crossfit Regionals in Tacoma, Wash. Crossfit, a type of workout that combines Olympic weight-lifting with elements of gymnastics and interval cardio, emerged out of California in 2002. Participants in the regional games must complete seven different...
Police warn about resurging scams
VERNON - If they weren't con artists, thieves and frauds, you might be impressed with their ingenuity but police in the North Okanagan are definitely not impressed. Spokesperson Gord Molendyk says local RCMP detachments had more than 30 calls about two different scams operating by phone and email in the area. One is the Revenue...
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...
Investigation into Vernon hit and run continues
VERNON - Police continue to investigate a hit and run which left a motorcyclist with serious injuries. The May 23 accident happened in the area of Okanagan Landing Road and Fulton Road when, according to a witness, a Silver Toyota Celica stopped in the middle of the street, causing a motorcyclist to crash into the...
Paving project set for Highway 6, Mabel Lake Road
LUMBY – Millions of provincial tax dollars will be spent on paving projects in parts of Lumby this summer. The province announced today close to 75 kilometres of roadway in the area will get repaved. Work is to start sometime in June on Highway 6 and Mabel Lake Road with the $8.9 million project expected...
Salmonella outbreak proof that monitoring system works: Buckerfield’s CEO
KELOWNA - The recent spike of salmonella cases connected to live poultry sales is a good news story, proof the system works rather than an indictment of its failings, according to a local business. “Fourteen cases is a very small number and it was detected and caught and the public was actually protected from what...
Boil water notice for Silver Star continues
VERNON – Residents of Silver Star Mountain are still being advised to boil their water following a advisory issued last week. Customers of the Silver Star Water Utility at the Village on Silver Star Mountain are being advised to continue to boil their tap water until further notice, according to a media release from the...
Silver Star residents advised to boil water
VERNON - A boil water notice has been issued for the Silver Star Water Utility due to a bacteria count. The Regional District of North Okanagan, in conjunction with Interior Health, issued the notice yesterday evening, June 3, advising customers to boil all water intended for consumption purposes for one minute. Consumption purposes include drinking,...
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,...
Proposed Shuswap River boating restrictions meet stiff opposition from locals
“I CAN TELL YOU, BUSINESS OWNERS AND PROPERTY OWNERS ARE GOING TO GO OUT SCREAMING LIKE A LION” ENDERBY - Proposed boating restrictions on the Shuswap River face fierce opposition, says a local Grindrod resident and waterfront property owner. Sherri DeCorby has lived on the river for the last 10 years and uses it for...
The beetle is gone, now the hard work begins
WILDFIRES, JOB LOSSES, JEOPARDIZED WATERSHEDS THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - For the most part the small, yet devastating, mountain pine beetle has disappeared from the landscape of the Southern Interior, but the aftermath of its work will be felt for many years to come. The mountain pine beetle epidemic that crawled into B.C. in 2000 is recognized as...
Regional districts, Splatsin band join forces to acquire abandoned railroad
ENDERBY - Local governments and First Nations will work together to acquire a discontinued rail corridor stretching from Armstrong to Sicamous. The North Okanagan Regional District, Columbia Shuswap Regional District and Splatsin Band have formalized their partnership with a Memorandum of Understanding, an important step in pursuing the land deal. “It brings us together as...
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...