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Jennifer Stahn
School enrolment on upswing in Kamloops
KAMLOOPS - For the first time in recent memory the Kamloops-Thompson School District may actually see a net positive count in student enrolment. Supt. Karl de Bruijn says while they are still verifying the final numbers it appears elementary schools saw an increase of more than 260 students while secondary schools saw a decline of...
Budget meetings start now in Kamloops
KAMLOOPS - Last year the city decided to begin hosting budget meetings earlier than normal to help engage residents and separate the core budget from the additional requests. This year they are beginning even earlier — this week, in fact. City service levels will be up for discussion at two different sessions on Wednesday, Oct....
Election signs popping up
KAMLOOPS - It is that time again. The time when election signs pop up at nearly every intersection in the city. It can look a little messy when you have nearly 50 candidates vying for a vote in the civic election — though not all are installing signs — and the city has few regulations...
Don’t forget, it’s flu season
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - While the public's attention has been on Ebola and enterovirus D68 recently, Interior Health is preparing for flu season, rolling out influenza vaccines to clinics and phamacies around the region. Dr. Robert Parker says they start getting calls in September but early November is when they typically start offering vaccinations to the general...
New Pineview school a priority in five year plan
KAMLOOPS - Nearly $150 million in upgrades, additions and new builds are identified in the Kamloops-Thompson School District five year capital plan, including a brand new school in the Pineview Valley area. A new school is named as one of the top priorities for the school district in the five year capital plan, along with...
Just call it Autummer as high temperatures approach records
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - People in the Shuswap enjoyed a record breaking day Sunday and for much of the Thompson-Okanagan region it was a warm day, just not quite hot enough to break records. In Salmon Arm, a temperature of 20.8 Celsius was enough to break a 40-year-old record and was well past the seasonal normal of...
ELECTIONS 2014: Candidate handing out prizes to voters. Can he do that?
KAMLOOPS - While other candidates are figuring out ways to raise funds or organize ‘meet the candidate’ events, one city council candidate is instead offering prizes for online interaction. Bob Dieno has taken to Facebook to interact with voters. While many other candidates have also done so, Dieno is the only one offering prizes if...
UPDATE: Missing dirt biker found injured
KAMLOOPS - Search and rescue members were called out Saturday night to look for a missing dirt biker in the Duffy Lake and by early Sunday morning the rider had been found. According to Search Manager Alan Hobler, Kamloops Search and Rescue was called out Saturday when the rider did not return to Duffy Lake...
ELECTIONS 2014: Vision Kamloops building off individual strengths
KAMLOOPS - The loosely knit alliance Vision Kamloops says they will be helping each other by sharing their strengths, but will also be focused on their own campaigns as we head into the November election. The members of the group all identify as being against the proposed Ajax Mine but do not list that as one...
Teachers upset over missing day of pay
KAMLOOPS - Kamloops teachers are among the minority in the province not getting paid for the day they spent preparing their classrooms for the first day of school. Kamloops Thompson Teachers Association President David Komljenovic says teachers showed good faith by showing up on the Friday before school was set to start, as well as...
STAHN: Making Ajax an election issue
Ajax will be an issue in this local election campaign whether city council candidates want it to be or not, and whether the city really has any say or not. Enough members of the voting public are asking about it and even those candidates who are not willing to take a stance are making it...
ELECTIONS 2014: Where to hear from the candidates
KAMLOOPS - As we get closer to electing a new council and school trustees, several groups are doing their part to ensure we get the chance to get to know the candidates and where they stand on several key points. The Council of Canadians kicked off the forums with an event in October and then...
Female hockey set to take over Kamloops
KAMLOOPS - Four international hockey teams will be will be in town for the 4 Nations Cup the first week of November, along with 47 all-female youth hockey teams. The 4 Nations Cup will see the national teams from Canada, United States, Sweden and Finland hit the ice at the Interior Savings Centre Nov. 4-8....
Kamloops Olympian retires
KAMLOOPS - Jessica Hewitt is retiring from the sport of speed skating just eight months after winning a silver medal in Sochi. “I’ve decided to officially retire from the wonderful world of speed skating,” Hewitt posted to Facebook Wednesday. “I’m thankful for all the memories and experiences…. This sport has taught me a lot about...
Homeless concern a city survey surprise
KAMLOOPS - Nearly 200 people responded and more than 60 per cent say they love Kamloops because of the weather or recreation, but it was the responses on what the city could do better that offered a bit of surprise to Coun. Arjun Singh. Singh put out the survey as a way to gauge the...
Last minute mayoral candidate passionate about Kamloops
KAMLOOPS - Pierre Filisetti wants a more liveable Kamloops, a Kamloops residents can be proud of and the rest of the world won’t look down on, and he wants to help create that from the head of the council table. Filisetti says he decided to run for mayor at the last minute when he realized...
Open burn ban to be fully lifted
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The Kamloops Fire Centre received calls of open burns in areas still under prohibition this long weekend, but staff are happy none led to wildfires. Fire Information Officer Kayla Pepper says a 13.7 hectare fire just north of Lytton this weekend is believed to be human-caused, but not a result of open burning....
ELECTIONS 2014: Candidate ‘alliance’ emerges
KAMLOOPS - A ‘loosely-knit alliance’ of five city council candidates announced Tuesday morning they are running under the umbrella of Vision Kamloops, but they were not yet ready to say what they stand for as a group. Dieter Dudy, Jenny Green, Brad Harrison, Daphane Nelson and Denis Walsh say they began talking about the possibility...
Experts in Kamloops to talk air pollution
KAMLOOPS - How to improve air quality and reduce health risks will be on the menu at an upcoming public forum on air pollution in Kamloops. Between several weeks with smoky skies because of forest fires this summer and constant concern being raised over the proposed Ajax mine and other industrial activity, air quality has been...
Thanksgiving for the less fortunate
KAMLOOPS - As families gather to feast on turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing this long weekend others in the city are coming together to make sure the less fortunate do not miss out on a hearty Thanksgiving meal. The New Life Mission is once again hosting a Thanksgiving dinner on Monday from 11 a.m. to...
IN PHOTOS: A tour of the proposed Ajax Mine site
KAMLOOPS - KGHM Ajax Mining has been offering tours of the mine site on the outskirts of Kamloops for a few years already, but the tour changed slightly with the release of a new footprint earlier this year. The tour meets at the Inks Lake overpass and were the group takes a bus along the...
ELECTIONS 2014: Your Kamloops candidates
KAMLOOPS - Nominations are officially closed and we appear to have a decent sized race for councillor and school trustee seats, and four candidates are vying for the mayoral seat. At the end of the nomination period Friday, incumbent councillors Donovan Cavers, Ken Christian, Nelly Dever, Tina Lange, Arjun Singh, Marg Spina and Pat Wallace...
Thanksgiving long weekend full of fall fun
KAMLOOPS - A teddy bear picnic, corn mazes, pumpkin patches, salmon and hockey. Yes, you have a lot of options to keep the family busy beyond eating turkey this Thanksgiving long weekend. Kick off the weekend with a Blazers game tonight. The team will be hosting Lethbridge Friday and then will host Everett on Saturday....
Washout strands campers near Browne Lake
KELOWNA - Campers trapped by a washout on a forestry road near Browne Lake Thursday were prepared to camp for a longer period, but the incident has search and rescue team members reminding people to be prepared in the back country. Central Okanagan Search and Rescue members were sent to rescue five people trapped east...