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Vernon
Taxi driver ticketed for speeding after rolling car near Parkinson Way
KELOWNA - A taxi driver was ticketed for speeding after he lost control of his car and rolled over on Highway 97 and Parkinson Way in Kelowna just before 6:30 p.m. July 26. The driver, a 35-year-old Vernon man, was the only occupant of the vehicle, which Cpl. Joe Duncan says lost traction in the...
PHOTOS: Centre of Gravity 2015
KELOWNA – More than 20,000 people attended the 8th annual Centre of Gravity extreme sports and music festival in Kelowna over the weekend, but despite having the best lineup of talent of any previous year, rainy weather kept ticket sales down slightly. In past years they have sold out, however event organizer Scott Emslie said...
You face multiple fines for that one cigarette butt or campfire, even if it doesn’t start a wildfire
KAMLOOPS - That cigarette butt tossed on the ground, the sparks from your off-road vehicle, that campfire you were sure was safe. You can be fined by multiple agencies for any of these transgressions if you’re caught. And in the midst of a major fire season, the agencies in charge of fining you are not...
Coolest weekend of July over, sun and heat on the way for Okanagan
OKANAGAN - The weekend was much cooler than what we’ve seen so far this summer, but we will be back above seasonal normals by mid-week. With temperatures only reaching the low- to mid-20s Friday through Sunday it was one of the coolest weekends we’ve seen in the past couple of months. Temperatures did reach the...
Cool, wet weekend in store for Okanagan
OKANAGAN - This weekend should offer a reprieve from the hot, dry weather that has led to a number of wildfires burning around the region. Today, July 24, highs will range from 25 Celsius to 28 C, according to Environment Canada. Skies will be a mix of sun and cloud and there is a 30...
Friend of cop charged with child porn says accuser-wife showed pornography after child’s birthday party
"IT WAS EXTREMELY GRAPHIC." KELOWNA – A friend of a former Vernon cop and his ex-wife Valerie Little, who accuses him of downloading child pornography, says she believes Little was trying to get pregnant to have a better chance at taking sole custody of their kids. She also testified Little accidentally played a pornographic video...
Take a seat at the painted piano downtown Vernon
VERNON - The people of Vernon are making beautiful music together, thanks to a colourful, communal piano on Main Street. The old upright piano appeared about three weeks ago on the sidewalk outside a 30 Avenue business, Good Gracious. The store’s former owner Dave Russell, who is now retired, came up with the idea after...
Shelter Cove fire remains steady during the day
WEST KELOWNA - B.C. Wildfire has been hitting smoke on the south flank of the Shelter Cove fire with air tankers but other than that, not much has changed today in the 430-hectare blaze. The evacuation order continues for 70 homes along Westside Road which is closed in both directions between Cinnabar Creek and La...
Smoky skies advisory issued for Okanagan
OKANAGAN - It may come as little surprise given the number of fires burning in the area, but a smoky skies advisory has been issued for the entire Okanagan. The special air quality statement was issued by the Ministry of Environment and the Interior Health Authority yesterday evening, July 21, for the entire Okanagan, including...
Health authority hard hit by influenza last season
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The Southern Interior was hard hit by influenza last season with a jump in confirmed cases and deaths. But at the same time, the flu season here in the Interior Health Authority was typical of what the rest of Canada experienced. Dr. Gillian Frosst, an epidemiolgist with the heatlh authority, told the board...
UPDATE: Evacuation order issued for aggressive wildfire near Falkland
FALKLAND - An aggressive wildfire in the Bolean Lake area of Falkland has prompted an evacuation order. The blaze, which was reported to B.C. Wildfire about 2 p.m. Monday, July 20, quickly grew to an estimated 300 hectares in size up from four hectares earlier in the day. B.C. Wildfire reported Tuesday morning the blaze...
Pedestrian struck on Vernon crosswalk in critical condition
VERNON - A pedestrian is in critical condition after being hit by a car while using a Vernon crosswalk Saturday morning. The 53-year-old Vernon woman was walking in the crosswalk at Tronson Road and Okanagan Landing Road just after 7 a.m., Saturday, July 18, when she was hit by a car, RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk...
RCMP investigating disappearance of migrant workers from Vernon orchard
VERNON - Police are on the lookout for a group migrant workers from Mexico who went missing from a Vernon orchard in June. The four men left personal items behind, but appear to have taken their identification papers, RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says. The orchard owner told police they disappeared June 26. The men are...
Sunny week ahead for Okanagan
OKANAGAN - It was a hot, sunny and stormy weekend and this week is expected to be a bit closer to normal Okanagan summer weather. Temperatures reached as high as 36 Celsius Sunday as storms rolled through the region. While there is a risk of thunderstorms again today the chance of rain forecast for the...
Yoga fundraiser planned for Kelowna woman killed in car crash
KELOWNA - A deep friendship cut short has pushed a Kelowna woman to help out her friend's family. Anna Mandl says she knew Chantal Bazin since elementary school. Bazin is the young woman who was killed last weekend along with Kayla Cartwright in a car crash on Highway 97 in Vernon. “I’ve known Chantal since...
VIDEO: Eating pie while surfing in Kal Lake? No problem for this guy
VERNON - Crumbs? No problem. Calories? He’s literally burning them off as he eats. Troy Delfs recently satisfied a Davison Orchard pie craving while surfing in Kalamalka Lake — and he made it look easy. In a video posted to Facebook and viewed thousands of times, Delfs begins in the water, holding onto a tow...
Okanagan Across the Lake Swim will be bigger than ever this year
KELOWNA – For the 67th year in a row, swimmers from across the province will plunge into Okanagan Lake for the Across the Lake Swim this weekend. And this year will be bigger than ever. Last year, 900 participants showed up but this year event organizers have increased capacity significantly. A record 1,200 swimmers of all ages...
Grass fire sparked north of Vernon
SPALLUMCHEEN - Emergency crews weren’t taking any chances with a small grass fire just north of Vernon beside Highway 97. Fire information officer Kelsey Winter says B.C. Wildfire crews were on the ground alongside firefighters from the Armstrong Spallumcheen Fire Department in an area roughly 15 kilometres north of Vernon near Gurney Creek. The fire,...
Vernon lingerie store’s not the best hangout for cadets
VERNON - It’s that time of year when hundreds of sharp-dressed cadets can be found around town, but it appears one local business wants to keep them at bay. A notice posted outside La Senza in the Village Green Centre, a popular stop for the cadets on weekends, asked that no more than five enter...
Bringing the heat in the Okanagan this weekend
OKANAGAN - Mother Nature gave us a bit of a reprieve this week, but the temperatures will be back into the 30s again this weekend. After several weeks of intense heat and then a week of near-normal temperatures, the Okanagan will again see temperatures reach the low- to mid-30s Saturday through Tuesday. Environment Canada is...
Hampton disputes testimony he left images of child porn for his wife to find
KELOWNA – The former Vernon Mountie facing child porn charges in Kelowna says he didn’t tell an investigator he left images and videos of child porn on a flash drive for his wife to find, directly contradicting testimony given by the Sargent who first interviewed him in May of 2013. Ryan Hampton is on trial...
Unusual bike cruises down Vernon train tracks
VERNON - At first glance, it looks like an ordinary bike. But there’s something different about this particular two-wheeler, that much is clear from three pole attachments jutting out horizontally from the bike. The odd contraption, spotted on the railroad by Kal Beach in Coldstream, is made to run along train tracks. What is it,...
Solve the clues and find the treasure at Kamloops’ newest attraction
KAMLOOPS - You and three friends enter a parlour decorated with antiques and cat-themed trinkets. The door closes behind you, the clock starts and you hear the voice of a lady named Margaret. She tells you she has an estate, and the clues leading to her fortune are in the very room you’re standing in....
Aboriginal forestry business gets boost from federal funding
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Aboriginal-owned forest sector companies in B.C. and Alberta will soon enjoy technical support and business advice from Western Economic Diversification Canada. Western diversification minister Michelle Rempel announced during a press conference at the Westbank First Nation corporate offices in West Kelowna that private company FP Innovations would receive $1.8 million to deliver educational...