Penticton news

Young Stars Classic begins with Canucks training camp in Penticton

PENTICTON - Hockey season is almost here again, and nowhere will that be more evident than Penticton's South Okanagan Events Centre this week. The roster and schedule for the Vancouver Canucks Young Stars Classic Tournament was announced today, Aug. 31. The tournament begins with the Canucks training camp on Sept. 10. Practices on the arena's main...

Temperatures to heat up again in Okanagan

OKANAGAN - Back to school is kicking off with a little rain this morning but by the end of the week we can expect highs well above seasonal normals throughout the Southern Interior. Temperatures will remain below seasonal normal lows of 21 Celsius today, Sept. 8, but it's expected to reach 23 C Wednesday before...

Bogus American money circulating in Okanagan

OKANAGAN – RCMP are warning people to be on the lookout for counterfeit American currency in the Okanagan. Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy says in a media release there have been numerous reports of bogus $20 and $50 bills. She is urging businesses to carefully check the authenticity of any currency before they accept it as payment....

Falling signage slams car at Penticton gas station

PENTICTON – A bizarre incident at a Penticton gas station Sunday afternoon has left a driver with a damaged vehicle. The signage above the gas pumps at the Husky station at the corner of Skaha Lake Road and Kinney Avenue let loose and smashed onto a car getting filled up around 2:30 p.m., Sept. 6....

Grist Mill’s Apple Day too late for early harvest

PENTICTON - An early season harvest has forced a change of plans for one of Keremeos Grist Mill’s most popular late season events. Apple Day at the Grist Mill usually takes place in October, but due to the early harvest this year most apple varieties will be ready long before that. Grist Mill Manager Chris...

Gaining ground in fight against Naramata’s fire ants

NARAMATA - A biologist from Thompson Rivers University has made some progress in his battle to stop an invasive species of fire ant from gaining a foot hold in the South Okanagan. Dr. Robert J. Higgins and assistant Naomi Harder have been working to find an effective method of eliminating the invasive species discovered in Naramata...

Ministry seeks solution to off road vehicle use and ecosystem conflicts

PENTICTON - A desire to minimize the impacts of off road vehicle use in sensitive areas in the Okanagan has the province seeking further public input. Residents are being asked to provide input into how grassland ecosystems in the area of Oliver Mountain can be protected from off road vehicle use, while at the same...

Why the bridge to nowhere in Penticton is actually going somewhere

PENTICTON - It’s being called a “bridge to nowhere” by some on social media, but developers building the Satikw Bridge at Green Avenue on the Penticton river channel say that’s an unfair label for a project which has taken two decades to come to fruition. Penticton Indian Band Development Corporation’s economic development consultant Chris Scott...

Drive B.C. adds eight new highway webcams to help you plan your trip

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – Just in time for winter, Drive B.C. has installed eight more highway cams between West Kelowna and Kaleden, and in the Merritt area to help drivers assess road conditions and traffic. The cameras include four south of West Kelowna on Highway 97 and Highway 97C, and three near Kaleden in the South Okanagan....

Filmed in the Okanagan: TV show focuses on traditional First Nation food

OKANAGAN – A TV series about gathering and cooking wild food will air on the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network next week. And it was filmed in the Okanagan. Quest Outwest: Wild Food follows Syilx storyteller and Penticton resident Tracey Kim Bonneau as she hunts and forages around the Okanagan looking for traditional ingredients she prepares...

Penticton RCMP ask for your help to find a stolen truck

PENTICTON - Penticton RCMP hope the public can help locate a vintage pickup truck reported stolen earlier this week. Cpl. Don Wrigglesworth says the pickup truck was stolen from the Okanagan Marina parking lot on Marina Way in the early hours of Sept. 2. Police are looking for a grey, custom built 1950 Chevrolet short...

Penticton firefighters called to townhouse bedroom blaze

PENTICTON - Quick action by Penticton firefighters kept a bedroom blaze from spreading in a townhouse complex yesterday. Penticton Fire Chief Wayne Williams says the department received a call to 3099 South Main St. at 6:38 p.m., Sept. 3, to find a bedroom in one of the units at the Chateau Village ablaze. “The truck...

Cooler weather sticking around for Okanagan long weekend

OKANAGAN - The last long weekend of the summer is upon us but Mother Nature doesn’t seem to be ready to join the celebration this year. For the most part September kicked off with temperatures just below seasonal normals of 22 Celsius and the Labour Day long weekend will be much the same. Environment Canada...

What’s happening on the last long weekend of summer

PENTICTON - The last long weekend of summer will be a low-key affair in Penticton this year. The entertainment agenda is light on this year’s Labour Day long weekend, as the city takes a pause before ramping up the schedule the following weekend with the Pentastic Jazz Festival, the Vancouver Canucks Young Stars Classic and...

Penticton’s economic development office heading into a busy fall season

PENTICTON - This fall promises to be a busy time for Penticton’s Economic Development office. Economic development officer Colleen Pennington says she is working on several initiatives in addition to preparing for the GoMedia convention slated for Sept. 27 to Oct.1 at the Penticton Trade and Convention Centre. One of those projects is the Virtual...

Two people in hospital after motorcycle accident on Highway 97 in Kaleden

KALEDEN –  Two people were transported to hospital following a motor vehicle accident on Highway 97 near Kaleden this afternoon, Sept. 3. Kaleden Fire Chief Darlene Bailey says a man driving a Harley Davidson motorcycle was heading northbound on Highway 97 when a woman driving a Honda sedan pulled out of the Petro Can gas...

Whooping cough still a concern as school approaches

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - With the first day of school approaching, parents should remember a recent spike in potentially fatal whooping cough has only just began to drop. “We have been in communciations with schools informing parents about communicable diseases in general and the fact we have been observing increased cases of whooping cough,” Dr. Kamran Golmohammadi...

New executive director for Chamber of Commerce

PENTICTON - The Penticton and Wine Country Chamber of Commerce has a new executive director. Brandy Maslowski was selected by the chamber board earlier this week to head the organization as it seeks to build a thriving business community in Penticton. Maslowski has been with the chamber since May working as the events planner and...

Okanagan episode of Amazing Race Canada to air next week

SUMMERLAND – Fans of the Amazing Race Canada will see some familiar sights next week. The Summerland area will be featured in Wednesday’s episode of the hit CTV show where pairs of Canadians race around the world hoping to be the first to reach the final destination and claim the $250,000 prize. Contestants will be...

Drivers beware: Increased enforcement of school zones next week

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - RCMP are sending a message to the province’s drivers reminding them September is back to school time. Police are asking drivers to remember their ABCs and if they don’t, they will certainly help teach them a lesson, according to a RCMP media release. The driver’s ABC’s are: A for attention, B to be...

Forget fire, we’ve got snow on local ski hills

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The weather has flip-flopped in the last week, so much so local ski hills are reporting their first snowfalls instead of watching for wildfires. Silver Star Mountain operations director Brad Baker sent out pictures showing a fair dusting of snow at the resort near Vernon, and a reminder of the mountain’s early bird...

Judge holds out hope for rehabilitaton of drug dealer

PENTICTON - A  man's troubled past and his desire to rehabilitate himself convinced a judge to give a convicted drug dealer a break in Penticton Supreme Court today, September 2. Judge Gordon Weatherill handed down a sentence of three years, less time served, to Grant McEwen, who was convicted Feb. 4, 2015 of unlawfully possessing...