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Armstrong
Log Barn signage gets the boot
SPALLUMCHEEN - A roadside attraction known for its wild and wacky signs has been told to tone it down. The Log Barn, located off Highway 97A just north of Armstrong, was ordered by the Township of Spallumcheen to remove close to 20 property signs in May 2015, and recently lost a bid to reinstall a...
Armstrong moves to elevated watering restrictions
ARMSTRONG - Armstrong residents are being told to cut back on water use. The city has implemented stage two water restrictions, which means residents can’t use sprinklers or irrigation systems to water lawns, gardens trees or shrubs. Washing driveways, sidewalks, parking lots or exterior building surfaces is also banned, according to a notice on the...
Surprise gives Armstrong woman the ‘wedding of a lifetime’
THE WHOLE TOWN WAS BASICALLY IN ON IT ARMSTRONG - Joan Jong was sad to be missing the Saturday farmers market in Armstrong — even if it was because she was getting married. She’s been selling vegetables at the market, which her family helped establish many years ago, for practically her whole life. But as...
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...
Appeal date set for June 2016 for man convicted in Taylor Van Diest murder
ARMSTRONG – A trial date has been set to hear the appeal of a British Columbia man who was found guilty of murdering an 18-year-old woman four years ago.
Okanagan men accused of trafficking marijuana hidden inside logs ordered extradited to the U.S.
NORTH OKANAGAN - A group of eight men accused in a cross-border drug smuggling operation in which marijuana was trucked to California in hollowed out logs have been ordered extradited to the U.S. A Supreme Court Judge has ordered Shane Donald Fraser, Todd Ian Ferguson, Daniel James Joinson, Darrell Romano, Robert Romano, Ivan Djuracic, Aaron...
North Okanagan neighbourhood begs for police presence on dangerous road
ARMSTRONG - After seeing police action taken on a stretch of road known for having a problem with speeders, people in other North Okanagan neighbourhoods are lining up for the same treatment. Mounties conducted a road check on Otter Lake Road May 19 after residents expressed concerns about people speeding to police and city council,...
Armstrong couple’s Instagram photos will make your jaw drop
ARMSTRONG - We guarantee you’ll be reaching for your hiking boots — and maybe your passport — after scrolling through this Armstrong couple’s Instagram photos. Kam Phung and Nanae Hoshi, from the small North Okanagan town of Armstrong, have been documenting their travels and outdoor adventures with a series of stunning Instagram photos from around...
Locally filmed Tomorrowland starring George Clooney hits theatres
VERNON - A movie partly filmed in the North Okanagan opens in theatres today. Disney’s Tomorrowland — starring George Clooney, Hugh Laurie and Britt Robertson — hits the big screen Friday, May 22 In Vernon, your first chance to see the film will be at Cineplex. The first showtime is 4 p.m. today. You can...
Alpaca headed to Armstrong auction makes a break for it
ARMSTRONG - A runaway alpaca caused quite a scene in the Armstrong area Thursday. It jumped out of a truck while being unloaded at Valley Auction, off Highway 97 in Spallumcheen, and made a break for it, May 21. “The little fellow takes off on us,” Valley Auction owner Don Raffan says. “At one point...
Tolko’s mountain of ash plagues Spallumcheen residents
SPALLUMCHEEN - Palisades Mobile Home Park resident Beverly Anderson first experienced what she calls a “soot storm” shortly after she moved in last year. “My first mistake was we went out and left all the windows open. When I came back in it was like a dust storm all over my floor, and my cupboards,”...
Police step up efforts to curb speeding in Armstrong
ARMSTRONG - Several speeders were surprised to find police waiting for them on a backcountry road in Armstrong this week. Residents in the Otter Lake Road area of Armstrong have expressed concerns about speeders to police and city council, and those worries prompted an enforcement blitz early Tuesday morning, RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk said in...
Armstrong man’s story “did not ring true” in sexual assault trial: Judge
ARMSTRONG - What began as a cordial conversation between two strangers hiding out from the rain at an Armstrong church took a sinister turn when the man pinned the woman against a wall, sexually assaulted her, and threatened to strangle her if she resisted. The woman, in her early 20s, was scared and hesitant at...
Serious assault in Kelowna puts Armstrong teen in hospital
KELOWNA – A weekend assault in Kelowna has left a teenager from Armstrong in hospital in serious condition. The 18-year-old boy was rushed to hospital at about 9:36 p.m., Saturday, May 9, after he was hit in the head with a blunt object during a fight between two groups of people in Rutland’s Davie Park....
Man accused of killing Armstrong woman returns to court this fall
VERNON - The man accused of killing an Armstrong mother of two will go before a judge for a preliminary inquiry this fall. Logan Scott, 31, of Salmon Arm was charged with manslaughter and theft under $5,000 in August 2014, nine months after Jillian McKinty, 27, was found dead in her Armstrong home. At the...
Small fire at Armstrong Tolko mill
ARMSTRONG – The sprinkler system and an employee with a fire extinguisher quickly dealt with an electrical fire at the Tolko Industries mill in Armstrong this afternoon. Fire crews responded to what they thought was a structure fire at about 1:25 p.m., Monday, March 30, but it turned out to be an electrical motor fire....
Windstorm slams BC interior knocking power out to 39,000
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – A major wind storm blew through the B.C. interior Saturday afternoon, March 14, knocking down trees and breaking branches which in turn hit hydro lines cutting the power to about 39,000. In the Thompson-Okanagan area just under 1,000 B.C. Hydro customers are still without power as of 1 p.m., Sunday, March 15 due...
Fire and vandalism draw authorities to Armstrong middle school
ARMSTRONG - A fire at Lenwood Middle School in Armstrong had 32 firefighters jumping out of bed at 2:30 a.m. Wednesday. Initially reported as a structure fire, members feared the worst. But Armstrong-Spallumcheen Fire Chief Ian Cummings says it was just a small fire in a garbage can a few feet from the school. “There...
These videos about small Thompson-Okanagan towns will make you proud to live here
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - From brewhouses to outdoor theatre companies, a number of small businesses in the Thompson-Okanagan are being celebrated in a six-part video series. It’s part of a project called Small Business, Big Culture that highlights select cities across B.C. and Alberta. Vernon, Armstrong and Kamloops made the cut, in addition to Medicine Hat, Lethbridge,...
Dad suspected of drunk driving crashed car with 8-year-old daughter as passenger
ARMSTRONG – A Kelowna man is facing an impaired charge after driving his car off the road just outside Armstrong on the weekend. His 8-year-old daughter was a passenger. RCMP were called to the car crash at about 4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 21 near the intersection of Swanson Mountain Road and Salmon River Road,...
Armstrong horses find new homes
"EVERYBODY WAS WORKING TOGETHER" ARMSTRONG – There was standing room only at an auction Saturday…
Armstrong horse owner fears for animals being sent to auction
“I HOPE THESE HORSES FIND GENTLE PEOPLE. I HOPE THEY LIVE OUT LONG AND FULL LIVES” ARMSTRONG - The possibility some of his 100 horses may go to slaughter after a court-ordered auction this weekend is not a pleasant thought for Armstrong man Gary Roberts. But that’s the reality the SPCA and the courts have...
Animal cruelty charges laid against Armstrong horse owner
ARMSTRONG - An Armstrong man is facing criminal charges after animal cruelty investigators seized 16 emaciated horses from his care. Gary Roberts, 69, is charged with causing unnecessary pain or suffering to an animal and failing to provide necessities for an animal. He also faces one count of uttering threats to cause death or bodily...
Drunk driver hits hydro pole in Armstrong
ARMSTRONG – A 24-year-old man has been charged with drunk driving after smashing his pickup truck into a Hydro pole in Armstrong on the weekend. RCMP say officers arrived at 2920 Okanagan St. to find the Dodge Ram pickup truck still running with the pole on top the box and the driver in the care...