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Armstrong
The popular actor you never knew was from Armstrong
ARMSTRONG - You’ve seen him in the movie 40 Days and 40 Nights alongside Josh Hartnett. He made you laugh with his role on the quirky TV series Eureka, and charmed you as Smee in Once Upon a Time. He’s played a weapons expert, a wizard, and conspiracy theorist. But actor Chris Gauthier started out...
Splatsin First Nation acquires portion of rail corridor
ENDERBY - There’s been a significant advancement on the discontinued rail corridor between Armstrong and Sicamous. Following lengthy negotiations with Canadian Pacific Rail and the federal government, the Splatsin First Nation has acquired 29.25 acres of land along the old rail corridor, which was shut down in 2009. Splatsin Chief Wayne ‘Wunuxtin’ Christian says the...
North Okanagan fog phenomenon explained
VERNON - It’s beginning to look a lot like Fog-ville. The Vernon and Armstrong areas have been socked in with low-lying fog on and off for days, leaving the region cloaked in the wrong kind of white stuff for the holidays. So what’s causing the stubborn fog, and when will it be on its merry...
SPCA seizes emaciated horses from Armstrong farm, recommends charges
ARMSTRONG - The B.C. SPCA has seized 16 horses from a farm in Armstrong and is now recommending animal cruelty charges against the owner. Senior animal protection officer Kathy Woodward says the SPCA, along with the RCMP, executed a warrant at the farm Dec. 11 after receiving tips from the public. Of approximately 117 horses...
An Armstrong resident invited a homeless man back home for a shower, meal, and shelter
HERE'S WHAT HE SHOULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY VERNON - A stabbing incident in Armstrong could have been prevented if the assailant had been connected with appropriate support services, according to Vernon’s homeless shelter. Police say the assault happened when a Spallumcheen resident invited a homeless man to his house for a hot shower, a meal,...
Miscalculation on election night means a different Armstrong councillor is celebrating
ARMSTRONG - A tallying mistake on election night means an Armstrong woman who thought she’d won a seat on council is getting some bad news. On Saturday night, the City of Armstrong reported Helen Jackson earned 425 votes in the civic election, enough to beat Lance McGregor, with 403 votes, for the sixth councillor seat....
Social media campaigns fire up to improve voter turnout in the North Okanagan
HOW SOCIAL MEDIA IS BEING USED TO GET RESIDENTS OUT ON VOTING DAY VERNON - Local groups and municipalities are hoping social media campaigns can help boost voter turnout this civic election. The City of Vernon is encouraging voters to use the #ivotedvernon hashtag and to post selfies on Facebook and Twitter of themselves wearing...
ELECTION 2014 FORUMS: Time to quiz your candidates
VERNON - Dates have been set for area voters to learn more about their municipal candidates. The Vernon Performing Arts Centre will host two forums, one for City of Vernon candidates and the other for District of Coldstream nominees. Both will provide an opportunity for candidates to state their platforms, and for the public to...
Trap set for yet another North Okanagan cougar
NORTH OKANAGAN - A cougar preying on house cats in a North Okanagan subdivision marks yet another big cat encounter in what has been a busy year for the conservation service. Sgt. Josh Lockwood of the North Okanagan Conservation Service says the latest cougar was spotted two weeks ago in the McLeod subdivision, north-east of...
‘Large sum’ of unclaimed cash could go to good samaritan who found it
ARMSTRONG - No one has claimed a wad of money found in the Armstrong Liquor Store earlier this month, and with each passing day, the good samaritan who turned it in gets closer to cashing out. Video surveillance at the liquor store shows the owner of the cash—a white haired woman in a black top...
Pile of cash found; RCMP looking for owner
ARMSTRONG – RCMP are looking for the owner of a large sum of cash dropped in the Armstrong Liquor Store Saturday morning. Someone spotted the pile of money and turned it over to the clerk, who called the police. The investigators had a look at the surveillance camera footage and discovered the owner of the...
Spallumcheen home burns to the ground
SPALLUMCHEEN – When fire crews arrived at a home in Spallumcheen Sunday night, half the house was already consumed by fire and the flames were roaring out of control. Armstrong and Spallumcheen fire chief Ian Cummings says they were called out just before 7 p.m. to a home on Demorest Road. It’s a long, narrow,...
Armstrong singers strike a pose as calendar girls
ARMSTRONG - A group of fearless ladies are baring it all as calendar girls to raise money for a desperately needed piece of hospital equipment. The women are all members of Armstrong’s Tapestry Ladies Choir, made up of around 40 singers in their 30s to their 70s and the fundraiser is aptly called Girls Just...
Summer still afloat in Armstrong
ARMSTRONG - It may be fall, but there’s still time to enjoy a popular summer activity in Armstrong. The outdoor pool in Memorial Park is open for another week. Historically shut down the week of the Interior Provincial Exhibition at the end of August, Armstrong Spallumcheen Parks and Recreation is now offering an extended pool...
Charges laid in connection with death of Armstrong woman
ARMSTRONG - A Salmon Arm man has been charged with manslaughter in connection with the death of an Armstrong woman. Jillian McKinty, 27, was found deceased in her home on Wolfenden Terrace in Armstrong Nov. 27, 2013. She was a mother of two. “The circumstances surrounding Jillian’s death were suspicious in nature,” RCMP spokesperson Gord...
Cyclist clipped near McDonalds in Armstrong
ARMSTRONG – A 16-year-old Armstrong boy will be all right after he was hit by the driver of a Mazda pickup truck across from the McDonalds on Smith Street Thursday afternoon. The teen was riding his bike on the sidewalk when he was struck by the truck coming out of a strip mall parking lot...
Armstrong video store rewinds customers to a social kind of movie night
ARMSTRONG - Video store manager Sherry Aiken remembers days when the aisles were filled with people; families, couples on date night, movie buffs lining up for new releases. But like a good movie, those days came and went all too fast. “It’s becoming the end of an era,” Aiken says. “This used to be the...
Railroad removal prompts call to action
ARMSTRONG - The rail bed between Armstrong and Sicamous is shrinking with each passing day, and that’s launched rail trail proponents into high gear. Phil McIntyre with the Shuswap Trail Alliance says the Canadian Pacific Railway has been pulling out the tracks over the past several weeks. Crews were seen this week in Armstrong removing...
Sexual assault charges laid against Armstrong man
VERNON - Police have charged an Armstrong man with sexual assault in a two-month-old investigation. RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says charges have been laid against Joseph Vance Caron, 45. “This investigation required a great deal of time to complete, and required forensic evidence to assist in the identification of their suspect,” Molendyk says. Caron is...
House fire wrecks wedding plans
ARMSTRONG - An Armstrong couple’s home, and the place they were going to get married, was severely damaged in a fire over the weekend. The Lockhart Drive homeowner and groom awoke just before 5 a.m. Sunday to flames ripping up the deck. Armstrong-Spallumcheen fire investigator Alastair Crick says seven people were in the house at...
Caution advised after Armstrong mail boxes broken into
ARMSTRONG - Police are asking the public to watch for unusual activity after a set of mail boxes were broken into in the Armstrong area. RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says numerous mail boxes at the corner of Lansdowne Road and McLeery Road in Armstrong were tampered with Monday morning. The damage was reported around 8...
Community asked to lend a hand for Taylor Van Diest trail
ARMSTRONG - Murdered Armstrong teen Taylor Van Diest’s family is looking to the community to help keep her memory alive. Taylor’s mother Marie pleaded with the City of Armstrong for assistance weeding and watering along the Taylor Jade Van Diest Memorial Trail, which has become overrun with weeds, but the city will only agree to...
Measures sought to curb accidental storefront drive-ins
ARMSTRONG - Michelle Cummings, owner of The Source in Armstrong, thought people driving into storefronts was like lightning—it never strikes twice. But since a truck smashed its way inside her electronics store, a driver crashed into 7/ Eleven in Vernon and another drove into the Kindale Developmental Association, part of the same shopping complex as...
How police are using this gadget to curb speeding
VERNON - You can’t completely hide your speed from the cops anymore, even if they aren’t there to catch you in the act. Drivers will notice a new speed reader board circulating around the North Okanagan. The $10,000 gadget was purchased by the cities of Armstrong, Enderby and Township of Spallumcheen as a way to...