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Kamloops
Coop coup at council
KAMLOOPS - Six hens are being allowed to roost at their Heffley Creek home a little longer thanks to some chicken-loving council members. Lyann Wourms lives in a semi-rural area in Heffley Creek. Her property backs onto a large treed portion of crown land and about a year ago she brought home six laying hens....
Kamloops residential construction continues to grow
KAMLOOPS - Kamloops continues to be a leader in single family building permits for 2014, up by about 65 per cent over the same time period last year. There was a slight gain in permit numbers in April over last year, up to 14 from 12. The year to date numbers sit at 48 this...
Coroner identifies man in fatal accident near Grindrod
ENDERBY - The B.C. Coroners Service identified a man who crashed his motorcycle near Grindrod May 11. He was Herman Gerrits, 64, of Enderby. Gerrits was driving a motorcycle north on the Enderby/Grindrod Road at about 10:30 a.m. when he collided with a southbound vehicle. Gerrits' family was notified of his death. The B.C. Coroners...
School district bans e-cigarettes
KAMLOOPS - Without much discussion the school district board easily passed an amendment to the smoke-free policy banning e-cigarettes and related items on school grounds. Staff recognized the need to change the policy, which is intended to keep the school grounds smoke-free, to include electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) based on advice from health agencies. “They’re not...
Oil spill drill
KAMLOOPS - Kinder Morgan runs regular emergency response training exercises for staff and this year they decided it's time for a lesson on how to clean up the river in an oil spill. On Wednesday, May 14, Kinder Morgan staff, local officials, emergency planners, first responders and First Nations representatives will be on hand at...
Help these kittens get the care they need
KAMLOOPS - While staff and volunteers at the local B.C. SPCA branch rally to work towards the goal of $40,000 in the City Challenge fundraiser, several cats in dire need of special, and expensive, care have come into the shelter recently, increasing the need for those funds even more. Wesley came in with a fractured...
Water rising in Kamloops
KAMLOOPS - Rising and rushing water has the city asking people to be careful near smaller tributaries as well as near ditches and culverts. Peterson, Tranquille and Campbell creeks are among the creeks already affected by high water flow and this fast moving water not only makes the water unsafe, it also can cause the...
Incentives to build affordable housing
KAMLOOPS - Builders in Kamloops now have even more incentive to provide affordable housing thanks to a city initiative meant to help eliminate homelessness in our community. The city, in partnership with the Kamloops Homelessness Action Plan and HomeFree, is now offering packages for developers providing affordable housing. The package outlines all the current incentives...
Screams deter would-be robber
KAMLOOPS — A woman's screams warded off an armed man who tried to rob her Sunday evening. The woman was talking on her phone while waiting for the bus on Columbia Avenue near Greenstone Drive around 7 p.m. on Mother’s Day when a man with a knife demanded she hand over her purse and phone....
Child’s stolen Mothers’ Day gift returned
KAMLOOPS – A young girl would have been heartbroken if the RCMP had not found and returned her stolen backpack. Early Saturday morning, police were investigating after a thief was spotted breaking into a car on the North Shore. The RCMP weren’t able to track down the suspect but they did find a backpack during...
Injured hiker shares story of fear and rescue
ASPERGER’S SYNDROME ADDS TO STRESS KAMLOOPS — An infatuation with actress Emma Watson helped a 28-year-old man get through six hours of waiting for help after a dislodged boulder broke several of his bones while hiking on Mt. Savona. Matthew Corcoran, who was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome as a teen, was hiking with a friend...
Last chance to experience Beethoven Festival
KAMLOOPS — The Beethoven Festival wraps up Saturday after a week of spreading musical awareness. The Beethoven Festival has featured concerts, guest conductors, films and speakers. The festival concludes with one of the greatest symphonic works ever composed. The Kamloops Symphony Orchestra will perform Beethoven's Ode to Joy Saturday night at 7 p.m. in the...
Two convicted in botched armed robbery
KAMLOOPS – Two Kelowna men were convicted while a third was acquitted on charges related to a botched robbery involving a duffel bag full of weapons. Rick Herd, born 1984, and Joel McLean, born 1987, were convicted of possessing a restricted firearm and ammunition without a proper license. The two were involved in an attempted invasion...
Judge believes ‘very little’ but drops robbery and threat charges
KAMLOOPS - Fabricated stories from both sides resulted in dropped robbery and threat charges for a man familiar to courts. Trevor Wilvers, 36, originally faced several charges alleging he held a knife to the neck of a friend to get cash for a lost motorhome, but the charges were dropped because he suspected no one told...
Kamloops woman could make one-way trip to Mars
KAMLOOPS – Only 705 people in the world can say they’re in the running for a trip to Mars – Raine Light is one of them. The 30-year-old Kamloops paramedic applied for the Mars One project last year because it peaked her interest. “Whenever I see something really interesting I want to learn more; I want...
Neighbours push for nuisance bylaw
KAMLOOPS - Some say it's different living in North Shore, worrying about gunfire, stolen vehicles and arson. These are the things North Shore residents Joanne Forde and Angela Rigby say they deal with daily and they hope the city will soon put a bylaw in place to help bylaw and police officers deal with the nuisance...
2141 project chugging along
KAMLOOPS - Without much hesitation council approved more than $200,000 be signed over to the Kamloops Heritage Railway Society to repair the historic 2141 steam engine. It has been over a year since the steam engine was shut down by Transport Canada and the group ordered to fix the boiler before the beloved old train...
Young boys report stranger danger in Kamloops
KAMLOOPS — Two young boys were offered a ride home by a unknown male yesterday afternoon, prompting a warning from RCMP for parents to review stranger awareness with their children. Police say two six-year-old boys were walking on the north side of the Parkcrest Elementary School grounds near Edgemount Avenue Wednesday when a man in...
Perks of Being a Wallflower book to stay in schools
CONCERNED PARENT SAYS HE WILL NOT FILE AN APPEAL KAMLOOPS – Administration at School District 73 have decided a controversial book will remain in schools, much to the chagrin of a concerned father. Dean Audet received a letter from the district last month. He says the letter stated the decision and outlined reasons to keep...
Public invited to check out new casino plans
KAMLOOPS - Gateway Casinos is offering residents a look at the plans for a new casino just off the highway in Aberdeen. Plans to move the Lake City Casino to the old Rona location at 1555 Versatile Dr. are underway and early next week the company will host open houses to show just what the...
Bones, diapers and food scraps may see curb side pickup
KAMLOOPS - If there was somewhere to compost it the city could be offering curb side organic pickup as soon as tomorrow. “We could start pickup tomorrow, but we have nowhere to bring it,” Public Works Director Jen Fretz says. “That’s the problem, there is nowhere we can bring it.” The city is currently only...
Man involved with drug ring pleads guilty
KAMLOOPS – A local man with ties to an organized cocaine operation pleaded guilty to two drug charges in Kamloops Supreme Court yesterday. Jean-Claude Auger, 38, is one of eight Kamloops men charged after an RCMP sting discovered an organized cocaine dial-a-dope operation. The group operated from February until October of 2012. RCMP uncovered the...
Food, animals hot topics
KAMLOOPS — Chickens, bees and community gardens are just a few of the topics already covered in the first six hours worth of meetings held by the newly formed urban agriculture committee. A total of 17 people sit on the committee, which has had three meetings already, and much of the talk has centred around...
Delays in Snelson manslaughter re-trial
KAMLOOPS – A Kelowna man awarded a new trial for manslaughter—scheduled this time in Kamloops—is still waiting to set a re-trial date as he now searches for a new lawyer. Neil Snelson said his trial lawyer, Wade Jenson—also the lawyer who argued the new trial should be moved to Kamloops—is no longer representing him. Snelson was...