Elevate your local knowledge
Sign up for the iNFOnews newsletter today!
Charlotte Helston
REPORTER
Charlotte Helston grew up in Armstrong and after four years studying writing at the University of Victoria, she came back to do what she loves most: Connect with the community and bringing its stories to life.
Covering Vernon for iNFOnews.ca has reinforced her belief in community. The people and the stories she encounters every day—at the courthouse, City Hall or on the street—show the big tales in a small town.
If you have an opinion to share or a story you'd like covered, contact Charlotte at Charlotte Helston or call 250-309-5230.
Charlotte Helston's Stories
Twitter
Facebook
HELSTON: One tiny, burning ember can do a lot of damage
All of us were reminded this week how destructive fire can be, in so many different ways. On Tuesday night, we saw how fire can take down a building in mere hours, leaving nothing but ash and rubble. It’s awe-inspiring in the most horrific way. But the physical damage is just the beginning. When Vernon’s...
Hay barn goes up in flames at North Okanagan dairy farm
SPALLUMCHEEN - A North Okanagan dairy farm is suffering major losses after its hay barn and cattle feed were destroyed in a fire. The Armstrong Spallumcheen Fire Department was called to the blaze on Knob Hill Road around 5:45 p.m., July 1. When crews arrived on scene, the fire was raging, fire chief Ian Cummings...
Cause of destructive Vernon fire under investigation
MINISTRY OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT SETS UP TEMPORARY LOCATION AFTER OFFICE BURNED TO THE GROUND VERNON - The roof of a burning government office and podiatry clinic caved in shortly after firefighters were inside checking to ensure no one was trapped during a massive blaze Tuesday night in Vernon. “They forced open the doors because they...
Cyclist suffers life threatening injuries in Vernon accident
VERNON - A cyclist was seriously injured early this morning after being struck by a vehicle. The accident happened around 6:20 a.m. Thursday, July 2, in the 3400 block of 25 Avenue. The cyclist, a 38-year-old woman, sustained serious, life-threatening injuries, and has been moved to Kelowna General Hospital, says RCMP Const. Karla Ivany. The...
UPDATE: Missing Lumby woman has been found safe
VERNON - Police say a Lumby woman has been found safe. A family member reported Susan Catt, 54, missing about 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, June 28, to the Lumby RCMP detachment. She was found sometime Tuesday, according to a RCMP release sent around midnight. An original release said Catt left her home in Lumby around...
Emergency crews responding to large fire downtown Vernon
VERNON - A large fire is burning near Vernon’s Village Green Mall. Reports say the fire broke out at the Vernon social assistance office on 48 Avenue, behind the Petro Canada gas station. A tower of smoke can be seen from across the city. Emergency crews are at the scene working to contain the blaze....
Man found dead in Kal Lake identified; second man still missing
VERNON - Police have launched a full scale search for an individual last seen with a man found dead in Kalamalka Lake over the weekend. In a media release issued in this afternoon, June 30, RCMP Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy confirmed what 23-year-old Curtis Wilson’s family announced earlier in the day; that he was last seen...
RCMP following up on torched SUV left on Spallumcheen road
SPALLUMCHEEN - Police are investigating after a vehicle was set on fire just outside of Vernon yesterday. RCMP Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy says officers were called out around 11:30 a.m. Monday, June 29, to Highway 97 near L&A Crossroad in Spallumcheen where a vehicle had been set on fire. “The vehicle was a Lincoln SUV that...
Police warn Vernon residents not to give money to man going door to door
VERNON - Police are issuing a public warning about a man going door to door asking for money. Over the past three days, an unknown man has reportedly been going door to door in the area of 48 Avenue to 30 Avenue, RCMP Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy said in a media release issued today, June 30....
Man assaulted in Vernon parking lot
VERNON - Police are investigating an assault that took place in the parking lot of the Fruit Union Plaza and put a man in hospital this weekend. A witness contacted police around 4:30 p.m. Sunday, June 28, to report the assault. RCMP Sgt. Tory Romailler says the victim, a man in his late-40s, was taken...
Men who died in Vernon motorcycle crash identified
VERNON - The names of two men who died in a weekend motorcycle crash have been released by the B.C. Coroners Service. They were James Tyler Folden, 23, of Lumby, and Trinity James Dale Bright, 24, originally from Cherryville, but most recently residing in Canmore, Alberta. Folden was driving an offroad motorcycle with Bright as...
Missing person last seen with man discovered dead in Kal Lake: Family
VERNON - A person last seen with the man who turned up dead in Kalamalka Lake has not been seen or heard from since Saturday, June 27, prompting concerned family members to plead for information from the public. Shanna Wilson says her brother, Curtis Wilson, was last seen in Vernon Saturday morning having breakfast with...
Convertible flips outside Vernon, driver escapes alive
VERNON - A man is lucky to be okay after crashing and rolling his convertible just outside of Vernon. The single vehicle accident happened around 3:30 p.m. Sunday, June 28 at Highway 97 near Bailey Road, Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy says. The 47-year-old driver was the only person in the car when it went into the...
Suspicious dumpster fire outside Vernon high school under investigation
VERNON - A suspicious fire which started in a dumpster outside a Vernon high school is under investigation The fire department was called to Vernon Secondary School to put out the fire about 11:15 p.m., Friday, June 26. “It appeared to be suspicious in nature from what we’ve come across,” deputy fire chief Jack Blair...
No fireworks in Vernon for Canada Day, but here’s what is happening
VERNON - With many people disappointed there won’t be any fireworks accompanying Canada Day in Vernon, a local organizer says there’s still lots to enjoy, and take pride in, this year. Residents learned in May there wouldn’t be a fireworks display on Canada Day — a shock to many who assumed the longstanding tradition would,...
Concern for homeless community heightens as temperatures rise
VERNON - While the hot weather forecast has many of us planning fun ways to beat the heat, members of the homeless population are thinking about something else entirely: survival. Imagine heading into 40 Celsius weather with no air conditioning, no hat or sunscreen, and no water. That’s the situation Vernon’s Cammy LaFleur Street Outreach...
HELSTON: The Canadian Ski Patrol’s legacy is something that’s never leaving
It takes a certain kind of person to be a volunteer, and we’d be lost without them. From the search and rescuer who misses dinner with his family to help find a missing hiker, the listening ear on the other end of the crisis hotline, or the ski patroller who spends her weekend not knowing what kind of emergency she might be called to next — they are here for us, not for money, not for credit, but to help.
No elevated Okanagan watering restrictions — yet
OKANAGAN - Despite record-breaking heat and little rain in the forecast, Okanagan communities remain under normal, or phase 1, watering restrictions, but be warned — that could change. Water utilities are keeping a close eye on supply, demand and weather predictions for the summer, but haven’t yet been forced to elevate restrictions. Kelowna’s five water...
Being dismissed from Silver Star feels like ‘something precious to you being taken away’: Canadian Ski Patroller
CANADIAN SKI PATROL STILL LOOKING FOR ANSWERS VERNON - Sadness, anger and confusion are some of the emotions members of the Canadian Ski Patrol are feeling after finding out they aren’t being asked back to Silver Star Mountain next winter. Volunteers from the Canadian Ski Patrol can be found on many ski hills around the...
Magic of Enchanted Forest put new owner under its spell
REVELSTOKE - The Enchanted Forest had its new owners spellbound from the first time they saw the woodland wonderland many years ago. The roadside amusement park located between Sicamous and Revelstoke on the Trans Canada Highway has, for the fifth time in its 55 years, changed hands, but longtime visitors need not fear any drastic changes;...
Upswing in payroll at Vernon city hall
VERNON - There’s been a hike in payroll at the City of Vernon. Staff salaries went up over half a million dollars last year, according to financial information released in a 2014 annual report. The city shelled out more than $21.7 million in pay and expenses for its employees in 2014, up nearly $520,000 over 2013. Among...
Careless use of flare guns believed to have sparked Kal Park blaze
VERNON - A fire in Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park Tuesday night is believed to have been caused by reckless behaviour. Coldstream fire chief Dave Sturgeon says crews responded to a small, one-metre by one-metre grass fire in the Rattlesnake Point area of Kal Park around 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 23. By the time firefighters arrived,...
Concern arises over rash of suspicious Vernon grass fires
VERNON - A pattern of suspicious brush fires in Vernon has the fire department on edge as the region heads into scorching temperatures this week. Since June 11, crews responded to four grass fires in the city, two in Becker Park June 11 and June 12, one in Jubilee Park June 22, and the fourth on...
City approves wage increase for Vernon firefighters
VERNON - Vernon firefighters will be getting a raise as part of a negotiated deal reached with the City of Vernon this week. The new collective agreement between the Vernon local of the International Association of Firefighters and the city calls for a 2.5 per cent retroactive salary increase for each year, starting in 2013,...