Corrections

UPDATE: Near zero visibility for some foggy Okanagan areas

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Environment Canada has issued a fog advisory for much of the Southern Interior. According to Environment Canada, a strong temperature inversion over southern B.C. will cause widespread, dense fog to develop over many Southern and Central Interior valleys this evening. The fog will persist until midday Tuesday. Visibility may be significantly and suddenly reduced...

UPDATE: Name released in second Kamloops prison death

KAMLOOPS - Investigators are examining the cause of an inmate death on Jan. 19 at Kamloops Regional Correctional Centre. The B.C. Coroner's Service has confirmed the dead inmate as Daryl Vic Belseck, 52, and said the death is not considered suspicious. Cindy Rose, a spokesperson for B.C. Corrections, provided very little information, saying the inmate...

Dwindling student body means grade changes coming for Rutland Senior Secondary

KELOWNA - The end of the echo boom is hitting Rutland Senior Secondary, forcing the Central Okanagan school district to change grade configurations or risk losing some of the school’s unique programming. “We had a wave of high school students pass through in the last few years,” the school district’s secretary-treasurer, Larry Paul says. “This...

UPDATE: Highway 12 reopens after giant boulder cleared

LYTTON – A huge boulder that fell onto Highway 12 in a rockslide on the weekend has been cleared and the highway has reopened. The highway was closed between Lytton and Lillooet until early Monday afternoon after the boulder fell, blocking much the roadway. The Drive B.C. website noted the Ministry had to wait on...

Mounties respond to ‘unnerving’ report of man carrying Samurai sword in Enderby

ENDERBY - Police arrested an Enderby man for possession of a weapon after a reported incident involving a Samurai sword last Friday.  RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says police responded to a report of a 39-year-old man yelling at a resident in a Baird Avenue apartment building in Enderby to come out and fight.  Police arrived...

VIDEO: Calgary man survives spectacular car rally crash in Chile

A driver from Calgary took quite a tumble over the weekend while participating in an off-road rally in Chile. Even though this footage of 63-year-old Matt Cambell's crash looks quite spectacular, he made it out alive and is resting today, released over the weekend from a South American hospital. Only his helmet was damaged, according...

Donations for toddler’s funeral stolen from Enderby gas station

VERNON - Police are hoping the public can help them find someone who stole donations for a three-year-old’s funeral. RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says police received a report about the unfortunate incident on Saturday, Jan. 3 at the Esso in Enderby. “The suspect stole the donation box that was to assist the family... with funeral...

Excessive speeding has spiked 300 per cent in the North Okanagan

VERNON - As we ring in the New Year, the message from Vernon RCMP is keep the roads safer in 2015. Traffic Services impounded 78 vehicles for excessive speeding in 2014, up 300 per cent from 25 in 2013. “They (Traffic Services) just shake their head,” RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says. The need for decreasing...

Flu season underway with outbreaks in five Interior Health institutions

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The flu season is upon us and Interior Health is dealing with a number of its facilities in the Okanagan suffering from active outbreaks over the holidays. Dr. Sue Pollock, Medical Health Officer with Interior Health, said what is currently being experienced in the Okanagan is “a fairly typical influenza season" so far. "Normally we...

He strangled the cat to protect girlfriend, save money

KAMLOOPS — A Kamloops man who admitted to strangling his cat for peeing on the floor, was in court today facing several animal cruelty related charges. Steven Seidel, 28, admitted in Kamloops Provincial Court today to strangling his cat, Oreo, on March 14, 2013, out of concern for his pregnant girlfriend. “I just grabbed him...

Facebook group fights graffiti

PENTICTON - Penticton resident Kyle Bachmann is determined to do something about graffiti in the city after last weekend’s spray painting spree. “I’m tired of so many people out there doing graffiti in Penticton. On the weekend, Smart Shopper, Queen’s Park and Parkway Schools, the old Kentucky Fried Chicken building, Theo’s, Murray’s Pizza, Whole Foods...

UPDATE: Man charged with Kelowna bus killing appears in court

KELOWNA – The Kelowna man charged with second degree murder in connection with the stabbing death of a passenger on a B.C. Transit bus appeared in Kelowna provincial court and has been remanded in custody. Tyler Jack Newton, 23, went before a judge Monday morning. Newton spent the weekend in jail following his arrest Friday...

Drivers asked to avoid stretch of Bella Vista Road in Vernon

VERNON - Emergency officials are asking travelers to avoid a section of Bella Vista Road in Vernon after a car accident Saturday. Due to a single vehicle rollover on Bella Vista Road near Sandon and Davison Roads, Vernon Fire and Rescue Services is requesting drivers avoid the area. Travelers are asked to use Allenby Way...

Murder re-trial begins with recorded confession from accused

GRAPHIC CONTENT ADVISORY KAMLOOPS – The re-trial for a Kamloops man accused of beating his girlfriend to death began in Kamloops Supreme Court Wednesday afternoon with a confession he allegedly made to an undercover police officer posing as a crime boss. In 2007, Robert Donald Balbar met with several undercover police officers for nearly three...