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Kamloops
New CNG buses ready to hit the streets of Kamloops
KAMLOOPS – A total of 25 compressed natural gas buses will be introduced into service in Kamloops by the end of May. Kamloops is just the second B.C. community to get a fleet of CNG-fueled buses, Nanaimo began using the new fleet in 2014. The natural gas buses have significantly quieter engines and simplified emission...
Artist and city to decide together on safety changes for rock sculpture
KAMLOOPS - A city supervisor says before potential changes to the Raven’s Nest sculpture in Riverside Park move forward a structural engineer’s report will be brought forward to the artist. Changes were proposed by Kamloops’ parks department after a woman caught fire in the small space beneath the sculpture’s five large carved boulders last month. Parks...
New security on the way following nurse assault at Hillside Centre
KAMLOOPS - The attack on a nurse at a Kamloops psychiatric facility this week is not the first incident against a nurse at Hillside Centre and now the nurses' union and the province are discussing how to better protect nurses from future attacks. Gayle Duteil, president of B.C. Nurses’ Union, and Terry Lake, B.C. health...
Thompson Rivers University issues apology after accidentally accepting all 504 nursing program applicants
KAMLOOPS - You might want to rethink that party you're planning to celebrate your acceptance to nursing school at Thompson Rivers University, at least if you’re one of the 401 students accepted in error. Officials at the university issued an apology and a retraction to the hundreds of nursing program hopefuls who received acceptance letters...
You can now watch nesting ospreys online
KAMLOOPS - The ospreys are moving in at a farm near Kamloops and a newly-installed webcam is allowing us to watch the beautiful birds make a home and raise a family without disturbing them. After the camera was first installed, a bald eagle took a look around the nest. Not what the people at WildSafe...
A look at the northern lights over the Southern Interior
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Mother Nature has given us both clear skies and northern lights the last few nights, meaning local photographers have been keeping late hours this week. In Kamloops, the lights were so bright Thursday night they could be viewed by the naked eye even in the city. Space weather forecasters are calling for unsettled...
Money pledged to help Kamloops homelessness
KAMLOOPS - Several organizations helping homeless people in Kamloops were promised a total of early $700,000 this week. The Homelessness Partnering Strategy will provide $684,000 to eight organizations in Kamloops, Member of Parliament Cathy McLeod announced in a media release. The funding will help provide a variety of supports, including for homeless youth and housing...
Stabbing incident over bicycle
KAMLOOPS - A man has a knife wound after an altercation over a bicycle this morning. RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Cheryl Bush says they were called to Wilson Street shortly after 11 a.m. today, April 16. A 48-year-old man was found with a knife wound to his arm. The man suffered the injury during an altercation...
Psych results in: Accused murderer will stand trial
KAMLOOPS - A man accused of the only murder in Kamloops in 2014 was deemed fit for trial by a Provincial Court Judge Wednesday afternoon after results of a court-ordered psychiatric assessment. On April 15, Judge Stephen Harrison announced Christopher Frank Butler will stand trial on a second-degree murder charge. Butler was charged after Deanne...
School threat may have been false alarm
KAMLOOPS - A threat which prompted the lockdown of a Sahali neighbourhood elementary school may have been a false call. Cpl. Cheryl Bush, a spokesperson for the Kamloops RCMP detachment, says investigators determined the threatening call to Summit Elementary around 2 p.m. yesterday, April 15, came from a blocked source and found out other schools...
Airport numbers continue to drop in Kamloops
KAMLOOPS - A slight decline in traveller numbers at Fulton Field is being attributed to a continued decline in the number of resource workers in northern Alberta. In March the number of travellers dipped by almost 250 passengers to 28,290, compared to more than 28,500 in March 2014. Combined with modest declines in January and...
Performing arts centre would give Downtown Kamloops more heart
The release of the report on the proposed performing arts centre in Kamloops means the residents of Kamloops must now decide if they want the proposed $90-million facility. The site would include a 1,500-seat theatre, a 300-seat black box facility as well as parking and amenities such as meeting rooms, retail, food and beverages. The...
UPDATE: All children accounted for after Summit Elementary locked down
KAMLOOPS - All students are accounted for while police continue to investigate a threat that locked down Summit Elementary around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 15. Cpl. Cheryl Bush says a person called into the school and made a non-specific threat, though they did say they had a weapon, which triggered a police response. Parents and...
Kelowna to review prayer policy after Supreme Court ruling bans them at public meetings
KELOWNA - A ruling by the Supreme Court of Canada about conducting prayers at public meetings has prompted the City of Kelowna to review its own council procedures bylaw. While there are no prayers given at regular council meetings, deputy city clerk Karen Needham says a prayer is offered at the public hearings held every...
Kamloops councillors back hospital laundry workers
KAMLOOPS - The health of the hospital is so much more than just doctors and nurses and potential job cuts to laundry services could deeply hurt the hospital. This is the message Donisa Bernardo, the Hospital Employees' Union's financial scretary, brought to Kamloops city council Tuesday, April 14. The organization is concerned about the amount...
Young actors needed in Kamloops for Mary Poppins production
KAMLOOPS - Know a young boy or girl who loves acting and singing? This might be the job for them. A production of Mary Poppins is on the agenda for Western Canada Theatre this year and young actors and singers are needed to fill the roles of the Banks children. A 10- to 13-year-old girl...
UPDATE: Westsyde Pool repair will cost the City of Kamloops millions
KAMLOOPS – The Westsyde Community Centre Pool will be closed longer than its usual summer…
Crown appealing sentence for man who fooled police and lawyers with fake name
KAMLOOPS - It’s common for criminals to operate under an alias, but it’s very unusual for someone to be tried, convicted and sentenced under a fake name. That’s what happened with Eric Bradley Charlie, born 1983, who told police in 2013 he was James Rocky Whitford, born 1990, one of 18 known aliases on his...
Performing arts centre may be a record-setter
KAMLOOPS - If the City of Kamloops proceeds with its preliminary business plan for a new performing arts centre and parkade, it would be the most expensive municipal building ever built in the interior of B.C. The long-awaited report for the 97,600 square-foot facility — which includes a 1,200-seat main theatre, 350-seat studio theatre, rehearsal...
Minor increase for Kamloops tax payers
KAMLOOPS - After hours of discussion council has finally come to an agreement on the 2015 budget and property owners in Kamloops can expect to pay an average of $34 more this year. Taxes will increase by 1.22 per cent, a little lower than last year's two per cent increase. Council started the meeting sitting...
Pedestrian killed in highway collision
CACHE CREEK - RCMP are still investigating the cause of a collision that left one pedestrian dead on Highway 1 outside of Cache Creek this past weekend. Ashcroft RCMP Sgt. Michel Grondin said around 5:10 a.m. Saturday, April 11, police attended the scene where a 45-year-old man died after being struck by a pickup truck...
RCMP following lead on fence-cutting suspect in Cherry Creek
KAMLOOPS - RCMP officers are following a report of a female suspect after a series of suspicious fence-cutting incidents. Staff Sgt. Doug Aird with the rural RCMP detachment says around 10:19 p.m. Monday night, a Cherry Creek resident and a neighbour chased a female lurking on their property. The woman, believed to be the same...
Police make morning arrest in pub
KAMLOOPS - After responding to an alarm at Westsyder Pub around 2:30 a.m. April 14, RCMP members discovered the door was insecure and noticed a man in the building. Officers took the 18-year-old into custody. Cpl. Cheryl Bush, a spokesperson for the detachment, says the man is known to police but did not have a...
More snow on Interior highways
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - After more than 30 centimetres of snow fell on some Interior highways this past weekend, the white stuff continues to fall. The Coquihalla Summit had more than 30 cm fall in two days and after a one day reprieve, another 6 cm fell at the highway pass overnight. The Okanagan Connector also received...