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Penticton news
Kelowna man who died while rafting lived and loved ‘all in’
"DON'T FORGET HOW LUCKY YOU ARE TO LOVE YOUR LOVED ONES SO MUCH IT HURTS" KELOWNA – They were high school sweethearts planning their dream Kelowna wedding when Rene Bourgault’s life was cut short in a tragic rafting accident last weekend. Friends, family and everyone who has been touched by his life are mourning his...
Improvements could be coming to vacant Three Gables Hotel property
PENTICTON - A long standing vacant lot in Penticton’s downtown core has attracted the attention of Penticton's city councillors. The owner of a series of vacant lots on Main Street which used to contain the Three Gables Hotel approached city council this week with a request for a variance in order to operate a parking...
First phase of Trail of the Okanagans nearing completion in Summerland
PENTICTON - Construction is nearing completion on the Trail of the Okanagans connection between Summerland and Trout Creek. Founding Director of the Trail of the Okanagans, Don Gemmell, says the link is nearly finished, as workers perform clean up work on the corridor. The connection, which links Lakeshore Drive in Summerland to Landry Crescent in...
Local man documents entire CN rail corridor for posterity
KELOWNA – An Okanagan man with a passion for local history has begun work on a video he hopes will preserve the significance of the CN Rail corridor for generations to come. Alan Gatzke spent dozens of hours and thousands of dollars from his own pocket to modify his pickup so it could be used...
Volunteer appreciation evening planned in Oliver
PENTICTON - The Town of Oliver is preparing to show its appreciation to the many volunteers who worked tirelessly to manage emergency efforts last weekend during the worst of the Wilsons Mountain and Testalinden Creek fires. An appreciation event is planned for Thursday, August 20, starting at 6:30 p.m. at Oliver Community Park. Emergency Support...
UFC extends contract with Kelowna fighter
KELOWNA – Local UFC welterweight Matt Dwyer has had his UFC contract extended by four fights. Dwyer, 25, a Kelowna resident since he was two years old, fights out of Toshido MMA in Kelowna. He was signed to a remarkably rare four-fight contract with the UFC in 2014. Although his first appearance resulted in a...
Controlled burn operations continue on Testalinden Creek fire
PENTICTON - Fire fighters on the Testalinden Creek and Wilsons Mountain fire continued to make progress on the fire front today. B.C. Wildfire spokesperson Noelle Kekula says the Testalinden Creek fire is now estimated to be 1,850 hectares in size, at 40 per cent containment. It is currently being worked by 126 firefighters, 10 helicopters...
Mussel threat turns real during training session
OKANAGAN - A training session on how to inspect for invasive mussels turned hands-on when a contaminated boat showed up from Ontario. An Ontario couple shipped the boat to the Lower Mainland after it was moored for several months in the mussel-infested Rideau Canal, according to a press release from the Okanagan Basin Water Board....
Smoky skies advisory issued for Penticton
PENTICTON - Residents with respiratory issues are being advised to limit activities as smoke conditions worsen in the South Okanagan. The Ministry of Environment in collaboration with Interior Health, has issued a smoky skies advisory for the South Okanagan today, August 19. The ministry advises residents to avoid strenuous outdoor activities as smoke concentrations are...
Credit card skimmers prompt public warning by RCMP
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Police in the Central Okanagan are once again warning about card skimmers after the devices were discovered in Vernon and Kamloops. Spokeswoman Const. Anne Donnelly of the Kelowna RCMP fraud section, said in a press release there are ways to foil the scam, which requires both your debit card number and your personal...
How does a local Penticton company one up an A&W float-thru? One word: Relvis
PENTICTON - Earlier this week, the massive burger chain A&W produced a commercial about a stunt on the Penticton channel. Now a home-grown competitor has one-upped the big guys in style: Elvis style. Ralph "Relvis" Ramsay, owner of Houndogs at the mid-way point on the Penticton channel produced a high-quality commercial celebrating ten years in...
Warm fall, mild winter in long-range forecast
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Look for a hotter, drier fall across the Southern Interior if AccuWeather’s long-range fall forecast holds true. Issued by AccuWeather’s global weather centre, the forecast says a stubborn high pressure system anchored over the West coast and abnormally warm water over the north-eastern Pacific have kept the weather warm and dry. This is...
Turning industrial trash into home furnishing treasures
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - There's something quintessentially Canadian about taking an item like a lowly wooden pallet or a fruit packing box and making good use of it. Keith Hamer and his crew take it one step further in an old fruit packing house in Oyama, creating a business to make new furniture out of old wood...
Former mayor blasts council for waterpark decision
PENTICTON - Penticton mayor and council received an earful in council chambers last night as those opposed to the proposed waterpark development at Skaha Park addressed council once more. A deal was signed earlier in the month for redevelopment of the Skaha Marina area, but council agreed to hear, once more, from those opposed to...
Vernon cadets show bravery in moments after head-on collision
VERNON - A group of staff cadets and instructors celebrating at a recent graduation parade in Vernon didn’t hesitate to drop what they were doing and run to help those involved in a serious car crash. “The flags were just being marched on and we heard a loud bang,” Major Keri Winkelaar says. “We turned...
Cautionary notice from Penticton as B.C. Wildfire crews continue suppression efforts near Oliver
PENTICTON - The City of Penticton is urging residents to take extra care while using interface areas of the municipality. Communications Officer Simone Blais says the city identified high hazard areas last week, including Munson Mountain and the Kettle Valley Trail as places where the public needs to take “that extra step to make sure...
Doughnuts, deportation and tossed cigarettes keep Penticton police busy
PENTICTON - Crime appears to be taking a bit of a break in the Peach City, although RCMP were still kept busy working at the wildfires that broke out across the region last week. In the past week RCMP dealt with the following incidents, according to RCMP media spokesperson Cpl. Don Wrigglesworth: - Thieves attempted...
Penticton airport expansion announced
PENTICTON - Rumours of impending expansion of the Penticton Regional Airport are rumour no more. According to a post by Coun. Andre Martin on the Penticton Business website the expansion of the holding area will begin soon. He notes local contractor Greyback Construction was awarded the contract from Public Works and Government Works Canada. The work is expected...
Fire south of Big White still not fully contained
KELOWNA – An active wildfire south of Big White near Clark Lake is only 50…
Man who died in Osoyoos jet-ski incident identified
OSOYOOS - The B.C. Coroners Service has identified the man who died in a jet-ski incident on Osoyoos Lake in June. He was Samen Pirzadeh-Tabaei-Zavareh, 34, from North Vancouver. The man and another passenger were riding the jet-ski on June 28 when it capsized due to strong winds and water currents. A passing boat rescued...
Oliver wineries confident wildfires won’t affect quality of crop
OKANAGAN - The full effects of Friday’s wildfires on Oliver wineries may not be known for awhile but winery owners are breathing a sigh of relief no wineries have been lost during the blazes. Fire crews continue to make progress in their efforts to quench the Testalinden Creek and Wilsons Mountain fires this week. What still...
Bird book inspired by UBCO’s bio-diversity
KELOWNA - If you’re looking for hot chicks, look no further than the Birds of the UBC Okanagan Campus 2016 calendar. Produced by biologists, the annual calendar features some of the birds that can be found on the school’s campus. Photographers this year ranged across the entire 209 hectares of campus grounds and includes bluebirds,...
Okanagan First Nations develop new business with sustainable sockeye initiative
PENTICTON - Years of hard work and dedication by the Okanagan Nation Alliance to re-establish the Okanagan sockeye has resulted in a new and emerging interior fishery, as well as a new business opportunity for local First Nations. The Alliance reintroduced sockeye fry into Skaha Lake in 2003, entering into cooperative water sharing agreements with...
Structure fire at Oliver business
PENTICTON - Oliver has been rocked by another major fire, this time a structure fire to a business. Following two major wildfires near the town last Friday, August 14, the Oliver Fire Department is fighting another fire this afternoon. Members of the Oliver Volunteer Fire Department have been fighting a blaze that broke out at...