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Penticton
Heading for the hills this weekend? Here are 11 ways to keep it safe
THOMPSON - OKANAGAN - If you're looking to dodge the tourists and get a more peaceful outing on your long weekend, a hike or a campout in the backcountry may be the best way of achieving a relaxing getaway. To keep it safe, members of the Central Okanagan Search and Rescue team have some tips...
A look at your long weekend weather, dry lightning expected
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – Make sure to keep a watchful eye under those sunshades this weekend; despite sunny forecasts, B.C. Wildfire is expecting dry lightning to hit the area. “We’re heading into a period now where we’re seeing the potential for more naturally occurring wildfires to pop up, but with lightning tracking in the region it’s common...
What you need to know if you’re coming to Boonstock
PENTICTON - If you’re heading out to Penticton this weekend for the Boonstock Music and Arts Festival you may have some questions about the grounds, booze, and what to do in town while giving your liver and ears a break. Here’s the low-down: ACCESS The festival grounds can only be accessed from the North side...
VIDEO: Smith Creek fire from above and by the numbers
KELOWNA - Take a guess: How much water have fire crews dropped on the Smith Creek fire over the past week and a half? Would you believe more than 1.2 million litres? As of Monday morning helicopters had flown more than 100 hours, skimmers had dropped more than 300 loads of water and foam and...
Meteor shower to peak early next week
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Grab a date, a blanket and a bottle of wine and prepare to spend a night gazing up at the sky during the peak of a month-long meteor shower early next week. The Delta Aquarids meteor shower runs annually from July 12 to Aug. 23 and this year the peak will occur in...
Mother Nature bringing the heat
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - This week brought stormy skies but next week will once again bring the heat as temperatures are set to soar into the mid-30s. “The good news is it’s over,” Environment Canada Meteorologist Doug Lundquist says of the heavy rains and thunderstorms that passed through this week. “And then the ridge builds next week...
Snow greets Ironman Triathletes in Whistler
WHISTLER - Residents and tourists woke to snow in Whistler Thursday morning after a cool, wet system moved through overnight. The snow came just in time for the Ironman Triathlon, which kicks off this weekend, though it will likely be gone before the athletes compete on Sunday. More rain and cool temperatures are expected through...
Intense storm dropped record rain at rapid rate
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Several rainfall records were broken Wednesday but a local meteorologist says it is the rate of the rainfall that is the big story. “A record rain doesn’t really tell the story, the real story is the speed which it came out of the clouds,” Doug Lundquist of Environment Canada says. “You can have...
UPDATE: Severe thunderstorm warnings end
UPDATE: A severe thunderstorm warning reissued for the Okanagan Valley has now ended. Twice today, Environment Canada has warned the storms could produce strong wind gusts, dime to nickel sized hail and heavy rain. All weather warnings have now ended for the South Thompson, Nicola, Shuswap and North Thompson regions that were under warnings earlier...
Campfire ban lifted in Clearwater area
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If you want to have a fire while camping this weekend you may be fighting off the masses heading north to the Clearwater region thanks to the campfire ban being rescinded as of noon Wednesday for that fire zone. B.C. Wildfire is now allowing campfires in the area thanks to rain reducing the...
UPDATE: Heavy rains, thunderstorms in forecast
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - As much as 50 millimetres of rain could fall over the next two days as a low pressure system moving through southern B.C. is set to produce heavy showers and thunderstorms. Environment Canada issued a special weather statement this morning noting the potential for locally heavy rainfall of 25-50 mm with thunderstorms, which...
Thompson-Okanagan drownings could have been prevented
THOMPSON OKANAGAN - A 14-year-old boy who died in a tubing accident in Vernon is one of 42 people across the province, and seven in the Thompson-Okanagan alone, whose lives were claimed in preventable drowning or water-related incidents over the past six and a half months. Miles Wohlford, 14, fell off his tube during an afternoon...
Police warn gangsters to avoid Kelowna this weekend
KELOWNA – With one of the city’s biggest festivals taking place in downtown Kelowna this weekend, local RCMP are once again issuing a public warning to gang members planning to take part. Sgt. Lindsey Houghton of the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit says every year gangs are drawn to the Okanagan, but they are not...
Cooler, wet forecast could help Thompson-Okanagan fire crews
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - A little help is in the forecast for fire crews this week as Mother Nature dials down the temperatures and throws in a little rain. While temperatures will be near normal (26-29 Celsius) across the region for the next two days we can also expect to see rain today with a 40 per...
UPDATE: Boot Hill fire partially contained
PENTICTON - A fire burning 30 kilometres southwest of Penticton near Lookout Mountain is now 50 per cent contained. As of Saturday night the fire is mapped at 100 hectares, down from the 138 ha it was thought to be Friday, and was caused by lightning. It is was first discovered Monday, July 14 and...
UPDATE: Apex wildfire now 60 per cent contained
PENTICTON - The wildfire on Apex mountain has burned 345 hectares and is now 60 per cent contained. The evacuation alert issued Wednesday remains in place for the lower portions of Green Mountain and Apex Mountain Roads, though it has been lowered to nine properties from 13. B.C. Wildifre has also reduced the amount of resources...
Support for firefighters heats up on social media
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Firefighters have been working hard to battle blazes across the province. Many residents have taken the time to thank the B.C. Forest Service and municipal fire crews for fighting day and night. Below are some helpful lines of support and thank you's from the public. Did you know? B.C. Wildfire has a specific...
Fires rage across province
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Firefighting resources are being juggled and reassigned as British Columbia's Wildfire Management Branch handles several blazes, including one that forced about 2,500 people from their homes. The Smith Creek fire near West Kelowna raged to an estimated 400 hectares by Friday morning, only a day after an evacuation order was issued for the...
Evacuation information: What you need to know
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - During fire season, it’s always best to keep an emergency plan in place in case you are under evacuation alert. An alert doesn’t mean you have to leave your home right away, but it’s time to get personal items at the ready in case the alert becomes an evacuation order. DURING AN EVACUATION...
UPDATE: Aggressive Murray Lake fire partially contained
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - An aggressive fire south of Merritt near Murray Lake is now 30 per cent contained, though an evacuation order for all properties adjacent to the lake remains. The Thompson Nicola Regional District issued the state of emergency and evacuation order around 9 p.m. Wednesday due to the potential threat. The evacuation order covers...
More weather records fall, rain finally in forecast
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - While most of the Interior saw temperatures soar above the mid-30s Wednesday only a few communities actually saw old records broken. Penticton, Osoyoos and Clinton all set new records for July 16 but Osoyoos saw the biggest jump with a temperature of 39.6 Celsius, up nearly three degrees from the previous record set...
Smoky skies advisory for Interior
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - Fires to the north of us are causing smoky conditions and the Ministry of Environment is now warning people to take additional precautions because of the smoke. A smoky skies advisory was issued today for the Thompson, Shuswap, Okanagan, Similkameen, Nicola, Boundary and Fraser Canyon areas. Similar advisories have also been issued for...
Fire closes Mt. Boucherie Park
KELOWNA - An interface fire Tuesday afternoon has prompted closure of Mt. Boucherie Park until fire crews finish putting out hot spots and the district can assess the risk. The fire began around 3 p.m. Tuesday and quickly grew to just over four hectares. West Kelowna fire crews were aided by B.C. Wildfire air tankers...
Fires becoming more aggressive
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - There have been more than 25 wildfires in the Kamloops Fire Centre in the past two days but most of the smoke in the air is coming from the more than 36,000 hectares burning in northern B.C. Just yesterday crews battled fires at Apex Mountain in Penticton, Mt. Boucherie in West Kelowna and...