Local
Annual Mixoff combines booze with more booze
KELOWNA – For the third year in a row, bartenders and chefs will be at Laurel Packinghouse for a contest which mixes fun with alcohol, and more alcohol. The Okanagan Spirits Winetender’s Mixoff is a spin on a traditional wine pairing contest. It brings together bartenders from ten local restaurants who are given local wines...
Construction worker trapped in West Kelowna
KELOWNA – A construction worker had to be rescued from a building in West Kelowna today, Sept. 23, after the truss system above him collapsed. Shortly after 2:30 p.m., West Kelowna Fire Rescue responded to a building that was under construction on Carrington Road. A media release says firefighters from Lakeview Heights and Westbank stations...
Money spent on refugees a hot topic at upcoming Kelowna immigration symposium
KELOWNA – The effects of immigration on the Okanagan will be a topic of discussion at an upcoming two-day symposium at Okanagan College and UBC Okanagan this weekend. The Immigration Symposium is a series of in-depth discussions about the impacts various Canadian policies have on immigrants, refugees and temporary foreign workers. It takes place Friday...
UPDATE: Kamloops teen located
UPDATE: 3:39 P.M., SEPT. 23, 2015 RCMP say McKenna Smith has been located and is safe. 3:16 P.M., SEPT. 3, 2015 KAMLOOPS – RCMP are looking for an 18-year-old Kamloops girl who has been missing since the beginning of the month. McKenna Smith was reported missing by her family on Sept. 1 after their last...
Convicted Kelowna killer back in court
KELOWNA - A notorious criminal who served more than eight years in jail for helping to kill a drug dealer in 2005 is back behind bars. Daniel Mader, 31, was convicted in March 2010 of shooting Jody Elliott, who ripped off Mader and three friends. At the time Justice Allison Beames said she accepted that...
West Kelowna singer named best new artist at Indigenous Music Awards
WEST KELOWNA - A local First Nation singer and songwriter has won Best New Artist at the Indigenous Music Awards in Winnipeg. Kelly Margaret Derrickson, daughter of Grand Chief Ron Derrickson, beat out five other artists for the prestigious award on Friday, Sept. 11. Her debut album, Warriors of Love, was released in 2013 and...
Suspicious house fire in West Kelowna
WEST KELOWNA – No one was hurt in an early morning house fire in West Kelowna that investigators are calling suspicious. The fire happened Tuesday, Sept. 22, just before 5:30 a.m. on Alexander Court. No one was home at the time and the cause of the fire is not yet known. Firefighters were able to...
Conflicts between humans and bears expected to increase in the Okanagan
WEST KELOWNA – A busy weekend for bear sightings in West Kelowna could signal the start of a fall rife with bear-human conflicts. Frank Ritcey, the creator of the interactive Wildlife Alert Reporting Program on WildsafeBC.com, says four sightings of black bears were reported in the Shannon Lake neighbourhood in West Kelowna since Friday. “This...
Thieves target performance auto shop in Kelowna
KELOWNA – A Kelowna auto shop was the victim of an early morning break and enter Sunday which cost the owners thousands of dollars’ worth of merchandise. An unknown number of thieves broke into Cutting Edge Auto and Performance on Highway 97 North, Sept. 20. A media release from Kelowna RCMP does not say how...
UPDATE: Former Vernon RCMP officer guilty, sentenced for possessing child pornography
"HE HAS... BEEN SUBJECTED TO PUNISHMENT WELL BEYOND THAT... (OF) A USUAL INMATE" KELOWNA - Former Vernon Mountie Ryan Hampton has been found guilty of possessing and downloading child pornography as well as several counts of breaching court orders. Hampton, 37, pleaded not guilty to possessing child pornography, accessing child pornography and six counts of breaching...
Trial coming to an end for former RCMP officer accused of downloading child porn
KELOWNA - A former RCMP officer accused of possessing child pornography will soon find out his fate. Closing arguments were made Wednesday, Sept. 16, in the Supreme Court trial of former RCMP officer Ryan David Hampton, who is accused by his wife of downloading child porn during a messy separation. Hampton pleaded not guilty to...
Searchers find body of missing Kelowna woman near Big White
KELOWNA - RCMP confirm the body of the missing Kelowna woman has been found in the Big White area but her death is not considered suspicious. Megan Doyle was last seen Friday, Sept. 11, in Kelowna at around 6:30 p.m. Her sister, Paige Doyle, as well as members of RCMP, friends and family, were in...
Changing trends force Okanagan libraries to seek two per cent increase in budget
KELOWNA – The board of directors for the Okanagan Regional Library have approved a draft of next year’s budget that calls for a 1.98 per cent increase. Half of the extra money would go towards wage increases for staff while the remainder would be used to offset higher rents and utilities, higher book and eResource...
Driver hopitalized after rolling car into bucket of a Bobcat
PENTICTON – A 26-year-old woman was taken to hospital Wednesday morning after she lost control of her car and rolled down an embankment into the bucket of a Bobcat. The cause of the crash at 1656 Holden Rd. is still being investigated and the medical status of the driver, the lone occupant, is not known....
VIDEO: Coach of Okanagan MMA club talks about runaway success
KELOWNA - An online fight website has profiled local MMA coach David Lea about his gym’s remarkable success in the world of professional fighting. David Lea is the coach of Toshido MMA. In the video, produced for MMAmadhouse.com, Lea describes how he started the club in 1998, only five years after the Ultimate Fighting Championship...