Credit: FILE PHOTO

Central Okanagan firefighters head north to help with provincial emergency

CENTRAL OKANAGAN – The Central Okanagan Regional District is sending firefighters and equipment from the valley to help fight wildfires in northern B.C.

Fire services manager Ross Kotscherofski said in a press release that he will be leading a local contingent of paid-on call fire fighters, three from Joe Rich Fire plus one each from Wilson’s Landing and North Westside departments.

Joe Rich Fire will provide a bush truck while North Westside is sending a water tender to the Fraser Lake area along with the five members, Kotscherofski said, while he will be doing command staff in the Burns Lake area.

The secondment of men and equipment is in response to the state of emergency declared yesterday by the provincial government in response to the hundreds of wildfires burning across B.C.

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John McDonald

John began life as a journalist through the Other Press, the independent student newspaper for Douglas College in New Westminster. The fluid nature of student journalism meant he was soon running the place, learning on the fly how to publish a newspaper.

It wasn’t until he moved to Kelowna he broke into the mainstream media, working for Okanagan Sunday, then the Kelowna Daily Courier and Okanagan Saturday doing news graphics and page layout. He carried on with the Kelowna Capital News, covering health and education while also working on special projects, including the design and launch of a mass market daily newspaper. After 12 years there, John rejoined the Kelowna Daily Courier as editor of the Westside Weekly, directing news coverage as the Westside became West Kelowna.

But digital media beckoned and John joined Kelowna.com as assistant editor and reporter, riding the start-up as it at first soared then went down in flames. Now John is turning dirt as city hall reporter for iNFOnews.ca where he brings his long experience to bear on the civic issues of the day.

If you have a story you think people should know about, email John at jmcdonald@infonews.ca

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