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fire department
Vernon officials investigate suspicious backyard grass fire
VERNON - Authorities in Vernon are investigating another suspicious fire, this time in a resident’s backyard. Fire crews were called to the 800 block of Mt. Bulman Place about 2 a.m. Monday to fight a backyard grass fire. Deputy fire chief Jack Blair says the fire was quickly contained and the only damage was to...
Cause of barn blaze remains a mystery
VERNON - An investigation into the cause of a devastating barn fire continues to turn up few answers. Deputy fire chief Jack Blair says they still don’t know what led to the July 31 blaze on Pottery Road, on the outskirts of the City of Vernon. “There’s so much damage it’s hard to pinpoint the...
Cause of barn blaze remains unknown
VERNON - What caused a Vernon barn to go up in flames remains a mystery. Police and the Vernon Fire Department continue to investigate the cause of last Thursday’s blaze on the outskirts of Vernon at a property in the 1100 block of Pottery Road. Deputy fire chief Jack Blair says investigators have combed through the...
Lake Country firefighters respond to brush fire
LAKE COUNTRY - The Lake Country Fire Department responded to a vehicle fire that turned into a small brush fire Wednesday afternoon. Crews were dispatched just before 3:30 p.m. to the fire, somewhere along Oyama Road. More information will be posted as it becomes available. To contact the reporter for this story, email Charlotte Helston...
Semi driver ok after flipping rig on Highway 97
VERNON - A semi-driver rolled his rig into the ditch on Highway 97 near O’Keefe Ranch just after 3 p.m. Tuesday. The driver, John Groot, says he was coming up the hill just past O’Keefe Ranch towards Vernon when another vehicle cut right in front of him. “I thought it was kind of close so...
Ashcroft fire engine burns out during last weekend’s blaze
ASHCROFT – The fire which destroyed several buildings near the Ashcroft Manor on July 18 also burnt out the fire department's engine when it overheated at the scene. “It’s just an old girl that worked hard,” Fire Chief Brian Henderson said Tuesday afternoon. He said the crew coming in that night would strip the truck...
Residents flee from burning townhouse
VERNON - Fire sent the residents of a Vernon townhouse running Thursday morning. The fire, which started around 7:30 a.m. in the second floor bedroom of a 44 Street townhouse, is considered suspicious. "We are looking into the possibility there was a disagreement betwen the residents," RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says, adding the occupants were...
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...
Authorities investigate grass fire in Vernon park
VERNON - A grass fire in Becker Park does not appear to be the work of Vernon’s serial arsonist. The fire broke out around 10 p.m. Sunday in Becker Park, off 39 Avenue downtown Vernon. “It is totally out of the norm of all the other fires we are investigating,” police spokesperson Gord Molendyk says....
Residents ordered to evacuate Gables Hotel
PENTICTON - Residents of the Three Gables Hotel were ordered to evacuate the building yesterday due to unsafe and unhealthy building conditions. Penticton Fire Department officials said the existing building conditions could seriously endanger life or property if there were a fire. The 17 residents were given 48 hours to collect their things and leave....
Storage yard latest target in string of suspected arsons
VERNON - Police and the fire department are investigating a suspicious fire at a Vernon storage yard. It is the seventeenth suspected arson under investigation by authorities. RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk says the fire was reported just after midnight Monday morning. The target was a small wooden structure in a storage lot owned by Chapman...
Man rescued after falling nearly 30 feet
KAMLOOPS - Local fire, ambulance and search and rescue members rescued a man in his sixties after he fell nearly 30 feet down an embankment behind a house in Upper Sahali. Shortly after noon on Friday, Kamloops Fire Rescue were called in for a rope rescue and assisted ambulance responders by carrying the patient, secured...
Fiery scene considered suspicious
VERNON - A flaming dumpster in Coldstream is the latest in a series of suspicious fires in the area. The Coldstream fire department was dispatched to the Graystone Drive fire around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday. Six firefighters were at the fire hall that night for training and were able to respond immediately. “As we came down...
Vernon arson tally continues to climb
VERNON - Fire set to an abandoned house and a pleasure boat has added to the list of suspected arsons within the city. Saturday around midnight, Vernon RCMP were called to a fire in an abandoned house in the 3800 block of 30 Avenue. “The rear of the building was totally engulfed when the fire...
Boat fire in Armstrong could be connected to string of Vernon arsons
VERNON - Police are investigating whether a suspicious boat fire in Armstrong is connected to a rash of suspected arsons in the Vernon area. Emergency personnel were dispatched to 143 L & A Crossing Rd. Saturday around 10:40 p.m. for a report of a boat on fire. “One boat was completely involved and destroyed and...
Vernon firefighters association rings alarm bells over staffing structures
MAYOR SAYS STAFFING STRUCTURE IS EFFICIENT, COST-SAVING AND DOESN’T CAUSE HIM CONCERN VERNON - A heated debate over Vernon's decision to deploy fire crews in groups of two instead of four continues to simmer. The Vernon Professional Firefighters Association is speaking out about staffing structures following the release of a YouTube video showing a fire...
Residents, business owners warned to take precautions against alleged arsonist
"CLEAN UP ANY PALLETS, DON'T HAVE THEM OUT AND AVAILABLE" VERNON - While authorities have determined at least some suspicious fires are not connected to a string of suspected arsons, investigators believe an arsonist is still on the loose in the city. Deputy fire chief Lawrie Skolrood, one of the lead investigators, says out of...
Burnt pallets add to list of suspected arsons
VERNON - Police and the fire department are burning for answers after responding to another suspected arson. A flaming pile of pallets drew firefighters to an industrial area in the 4600 block of 34 Street shortly after 10 p.m. Thursday. Authorities are calling the fire suspicious and investigating whether it is connected to a recent...
Sweet gesture helped firefighters tackle weekend blaze
LUMBY - A long night of firefighting became a little easier through the generosity of a Lumby restauranteur. Around a dozen members of the Lumby volunteer fire department were called to Shuswap Avenue around 10 p.m. Sunday to battle a fire in a machine shop. It was well after most shops closed, and the firefighters...
Pair of suspicious fires ignite concerns
VERNON - A pair of suspicious fires have police and the fire department looking for answers. The Vernon Fire Department responded to back to back dumpster fires Saturday night. The first was in a large construction dumpster on Kalamalka Road around 11:30 p.m., and the second at 44 Avenue and 27 Street by Shoppers Drug...