Okanagan

COSAR tips for back country travel

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – With the risk of avalanche slowly increasing over the last week in the regions surrounding the Thompson-Okanagan, Central Okanagan Search and Rescue have some tips to help keep you safe in the back country. Avalanche.ca reports the risk of avalanche to be “considerable” in the Kootenay Boundary and South and North Columbia regions....

Get your winter driving face on for holiday travel

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If you have travel plans over the next couple of days give yourself a little more time, and not just because of the amount of holiday traffic that usually files down the highway at this time of year. The next 24 hours could bring a lot of snow as well. Environment Canada is...

B.C. wildfires, cold and heat make list of top 2014 weather stories

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - You would expect that temperature would play a big part in a list of top weather stories, but unlike in previous years Environment Canada says our long, cold winter was the attention grabber in 2014. It was such a cold winter that much of the country remained cooler than usual throughout the summer...

Chances of a white Christmas slim

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If you live in Penticton, you only have a 36 per cent chance of seeing a white Christmas in town, but in Vernon you have an 88 per cent chance. The current forecast is offering very little hope for a white Christmas through most of the region, unless you plan on heading up...

Low gas prices a present at the pump

PLAN A KAMLOOPS PIT STOP TO FILL UP THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Spent a little too much on gifts this year? You might still come out flush on your holiday budget thanks to the dropping prices at gas pumps around the country. For those that plan to drive during the holidays gas prices are often a thing...

Snow to impact holiday travel this weekend

HEAVY SNOW FORECAST FOR COQUIHALLA THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If you were planning to hit the highways this weekend to visit family and friends, or to head out of town to get your last minute shopping done, beware, Environment Canada is warning of a storm system moving over the Interior highways. Snow is already falling this morning...

Will we have a white Christmas?

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The halls are decked, the trees are trimmed and the presents are wrapped, or at least bought, or at least thought of, but it doesn’t really feel like Christmas until there’s snow on the ground. But will Mother Nature cooperate? Right now, it’s not looking so good. With Environment Canada forecasting above normal...

The new way to put up Christmas lights in Vernon? Hire someone

VERNON - At age 10, Nicholas Moffat was helping his mom with the magical and much anticipated Christmas display at Art Knapps, something they began planning three months ahead of time. Now, many years later with kids of his own, the businessman has found a way to keep doing what he loves. The only difference?...

Okanagan Indian Band opposes rail corridor sale

BUYER BEWARE: BAND SAYS NO CLEAR TITLE ON RAIL CORRIDOR  VERNON - The Okanagan Indian Band is speaking out against a recent deal between Okanagan municipalities and CN Rail to buy the decomissioned rail line between Vernon and Kelowna. Chief Byron Louis said Tuesday the band is advancing a land claim for the Commonage Reserve,...

Police seek information in bizarre Kelowna handgun incident

KELOWNA - Police are looking for a man who allegedly pointed a gun at a pair of Okanagan residents and then offered to help them change a tire. The strange incident happened Nov. 4 around 12:30 a.m. at the Willow Park Church parking lot at 439 Highway 33, states a release from the Kelowna RCMP....

So you want to be a wildland firefighter?

NOW IS THE TIME TO APPLY THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The wildfire season is just barely over but the provincial branch responsible for protecting us from wildfires is already getting prepared for next year. This past year crews attended nearly 350 fires, which burned a total of more than 3,800 hectares, in just the Kamloops centre. Across...

Third day of record highs in Interior

COOL DOWN BEGINS THOMPSON- OKANAGAN - For the third day in a row more high temperatures records were set in the region Thursday. According to temperatures recorded by Environment Canada Vernon set a new record with a high of 12.6 Celsius Thursday, more than three degrees higher than the previous record set in 1939, and...

HELSTON: What a young Vernon artist showed us all this week

Marie-Anna Michaud didn’t start rinsing paint off a vandalized mural because she was disturbed by the obscenities scrawled there. She didn’t do it to right a wrong, and she didn’t do it out of anger for the perpetrators. No one asked or paid her to do it. Her act of kindness came as a surprise...

More weather records broken in Interior

BACK TO NORMALS BY SUNDAY THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - As temperatures soared as high as 15 degrees above seasonal normals more weather records were broken across the region Wednesday. According to Environment Canada, temperatures reached 15.6 Celsius in Kamloops Wednesday, nearly three degrees higher than the previous record for the second day in a row, while Vernon...

Weather record set in Kamloops, Okanagan communities just shy

COULD BE ANOTHER RECORD DAY IN INTERIOR THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Kamloops was among a handful of B.C. communities to set new weather records as temperatures soared to above 14 Celsius Tuesday. According to Environment Canada Kamloops reached a high of 14.2 C Tuesday, 3.6 degrees higher than the previous record that was set in 1896. Today...

IH secures enough flu vaccine to open postponed clinics

OKANAGAN - Some flu clinics postponed last week have been rescheduled now that Interior Health has secured enough vaccine. An additional 10,000 doses of influenza vaccine means IH can open their doors for public flu clinics starting next week. There are multiple options for those seeking the jab. Kelowna – The December 15 public drop-in...

Freezing rain, warm temperatures in forecast

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - After more than a week of below normal temperatures we finally climbed above 0 Celsius this weekend, and temperatures will continue to warm up over the next few days. Over the past 10 days we went from a heavy snowfall to well below normal temperatures and then this weekend to a couple days...

UPDATE: Slow down on the highway and watch your step; freezing rain warning issued

WARNING ENDED FOR CENTRAL OKANAGAN THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – Ice is building up on highways, city streets and sidewalks thanks to freezing rain in parts of the Thompson-Okanagan region Saturday. Environment Canada has continued a freezing rain warning for the South Thompson including Kamloops, the Nicola including Merritt, the Shuswap including Salmon Arm, and the North Okanagan...

Police searching for missing 15-year-old boy

VERNON - Police need help finding a 15-year-old boy who went missing from his home a few weeks ago. Dalton James Prasloski-Spencer has indicated he's ok through social media, but his family and police are very worried about his well-being, according to an RCMP media release. He has a history of choosing a high-risk lifestyle....

Self harm among Okanagan youth higher than rest of province

OKANAGAN – The results of a province-wide survey on the health of B.C. adolescents shows that young people in the Okanagan are more likely to participate in activities that risk their health than teens in the rest of the province. The study was conducted by the McCreary Centre Society and looked at survey responses from...

Risk of freezing rain extended

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - A system bringing freezing rain to the Coquihalla Highway could also bring the hazardous conditions to other Interior cities and highways this weekend. Environment Canada issued a statement Thursday warning of the potential for freezing rain to develop on parts of Highways 5 and 3 and now forecasters are saying it could also...

Freezing rain to hit the Coquihalla tonight

SNOW FORECAST FOR IN TOWN THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If you are hitting the highways tonight beware, Environment Canada is calling for a risk of freezing rain. There is a chance of snow on the Coquihalla from Merritt to Hope and Highway 3 from Princeton to Hope this afternoon and evening, but as a Pacific system moves...

Just a few more days of cold

WARMER WEEKEND EXPECTED THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - We are beginning to see a break in the cold weather and by Sunday the entire region should finally be above 0 Celsius. Environment Canada was originally calling for Friday to be the day we would see temperatures rise to above normal, after a week of well-below normal temperatures. Now...

PHOTOS: Top decorating tips for the holidays

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - You have a tree. You have some ornaments. Maybe you even have some garland and ribbon. But if you are not sure what to do next, do not worry, we have some of the hottest tips from local designers to make sure your home is looking its best this holiday season. Kathy Underwood...