Okanagan

Carjacking and stabbing may be linked

KELOWNA – A man who stopped to help what he thought were stranded motorists was instead beaten and had his car stolen Tuesday morning. RCMP Const. Kris Clark says the man stopped on Gordon Dr. at around 6 a.m. after he saw three men and one woman pulled to the side of the road. “When...

What fans, players and organizers have to say about the 2014 RBC Cup

VERNON - It seems everyone involved in the RBC Cup can’t help but tweet about it. Players, organizers and fans shared their experiences this week on Twitter. Their tweets take us into the grandstands, beyond the locker room doors, and behind the scenes of the ten day Junior A Championship event held at Kal Tire...

Wet weather won’t stop Kelowna’s weekend of events

KELOWNA – It’s the first busy weekend of the year for events in Kelowna, but those attending the Knox Mountain Hill Climb and Rutland May Days will want to bring jackets and umbrellas. Showers are expected Saturday through Sunday combined with lows of only 8 Celcius, but that won’t stop these two marquee Kelowna events...

Gas prices skyrocket for long weekend

THOMPSON OKANAGAN - Gas prices have skyrocketed just in time for the long weekend. Many pumps across the Thompson-Okanagan are advertising a ten cent jump today. In Vernon, many gas stations are selling at 143.9 cents per litre. It’s the same story in Kelowna, with most places selling at 143.9 and one, the Superstore on...

Preliminary inquiry set to hear evidence in Vernon child pornography case

VERNON - The courts will decide next month whether a man accused of luring girls online for sexual purposes will stand trial. David Willerth, born in 1974, was arrested last summer on a slew of online luring and child pornography charges. A preliminary inquiry to determine if there is enough evidence for the matter to...

Vernon woman pleads to have mother’s stolen ashes returned

VERNON - A Vernon woman is pleading to have her mother’s ashes returned after they were stolen in a break and enter.  “I can’t even focus on anything else, I’ll do anything to get my mother back,” Manon Care says. “I feel more violated than when she passed away a couple months ago.” Care kept...

Passenger watches his brother die in Lumby car crash

NORTH OKANAGAN - A Lumby man tried to save his brother before he died after an early morning car crash Sunday. The 23-year-old man and his 25-year-old brother at the wheel were on their way to help some friends having vehicle troubles around 2:20 a.m. Along the 1000 block of Whitevale Road near Lumby, the 2003...

Summer forecast predicts eastern Canadian vacation invasion

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – It’s going to be hot and dry in B.C. this summer, while our fellow Canadians to the east will experience cool weather from June to August. The meteorologists at AccuWeather have released their Canadian summertime forecast. They predict the West will have a warmer, drier summer compared to normal, while the cool weather...

Security, impact on residents take centre stage in planning for COG

KELOWNA - In an effort to broaden appeal, heighten security and reduce negative impact on residents, Center of Gravity is making some changes for 2014. This year will mark the 7th in a row the summer sports and music festival has come to Kelowna courtesy of Wet Ape Production. While the festival certainly helps promote...

National Day of Honour recognized at Kelowna airport

KELOWNA – Almost three dozen men and women serving with the Canadian Armed Forces deployed through the Kelowna International Airport to the war in Afghanistan. The B.C Dragoon reservists and all of the country’s military veterans were recognized Friday at a ceremony at the Kelowna airport during the National Day of Honour. The Dragoons presented...

Peachfest adds high-flying acts

PENTICTON - A high-flying act was added to the lineup for the 67th annual Penticton Peach Festival. A trampoline show, performed by The Trampoline Wall and Power Track Show, will present daily in Okanagan Lake Park during the festival. “This system allows the acrobat to carry out performances where he may walk on a vertical...

Halley’s Comet debris trail sets the sky aglitter tonight

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - A peak at the annual debris trail from Halley’s Comet may be possible tonight and early Tuesday morning if skies clear. Every spring bits of the debris trail burn up resulting in the annual Eta Aquarid meteor shower. This year the peak will occur tonight, Monday, May 5, through Tuesday morning. The bright...

Spring cleaning on the Coquihalla

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN — If you plan on hitting the highways this week plan for delays as crews clean and fix highways hit hard by a cold, wet winter that left potholes and frost heaves on many roads in the region. Work has already begun on some highways and over the next week drivers can expect to...

GOG: How you can help me help you survive this damn flight

I recently had to be somewhere else in a hurry, and the only way of achieving that is, of course, by flying. It’s been a while since I had to travel by aeroplane, and I had forgotten just how dreadful an experience it is. First one must face the ritual humiliation of “security” where in...