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Vernon news

Vernon Vipers out of the playoffs; game seven shutout in Penticton

PENTICTON – The BCHL season is over for the Vernon Vipers after losing 2-0 to the Vees in Penticton last night, March 22. Patrick Sexton’s goal at 17:07 of the third period proved to be the game winner, as the Vees took the BCHL Interior Division playoff series. It was Sexton’s first goal of the...

Malakwa-area man killed when CP train hits car; unanswered questions

MALAKWA – A nightmare scenario for three people in a car which was stuck on the tracks in Malakwa Saturday night as a CP Rail train approached. RCMP were called just after 9 p.m., March 21 about a car on the tracks just off Malakwa Road and Summerville-Husted Road, according to Const. Patrick Pyper in...

Mobile home on ‘Heroin Hill’ in Shuswap goes up in flames

SCOTCH CREEK – A suspicious fire burned a partially demolished mobile home in Scotch Creek to the ground Friday night, March 20. Fire chief Art Stoll says they decided to let the fire in the abandoned singlewide trailer at 4143 Butters Road burn itself out. People in Shuswap town called the property Heroin Hill due...

Vernon Vipers come up short; Vees force game seven

VERNON – Netminder Hunter Miska stopped 36 of 37 shots as the Penticton Vees downed the Vernon Vipers 5-1 at Kal Tire place last night, March 21, The Vees’ win sends the teams back to Penticton for Game 7 of the BCHL Interior Division final tonight, March 22. Vernon’s T.J. Dumonceaux scored the lone goal...

Falling loonie could impact Vernon’s plan to buy new fire truck

VERNON – City council had promised Vernon Fire Rescue a new water tender for firefighters at the Okanagan Landing fire hall, but the falling value of the Canadian dollar is impacting the price tag. Council approved the purchase of the new fire truck last fall, but since then, the loonie has taken a beating on...

BCHL PLAYOFFS: Vernon Vipers face Vees in Penticton

VERNON – The Vernon Vipers are looking to break the trend of losing at the South Okanagan Events Centre in the BCHL Interior Division final series against the Penticton Vees. The Snakes are in Penticton tonight, March 20, for Game 5 of the best-of-seven, with the series tied at two-games each. The final turned into...

BCHL PLAYOFFS: Penticton Vees host Vipers in Game 5

PENTICTON – The Penticton Vees are looking to extend this year's B.C. Hockey League Interior Division final tradition of winning on home ice. With the best-of-seven series tied at two wins each, the Vees will play host to the Vernon Vipers tonight, March 20, at the South Okanagan Events Centre.  The Vipers got past the...

Enderby couple toughs out grim diagnosis with love and laughter

ENDERBY - Ray Hartt, an Enderby firefighter, will do just about anything for his wife, recently diagnosed with a rare and fatal autoimmune condition. He doesn’t hesitate to do the dishes or the laundry. He installed a remote control camera in the house so he can keep an eye on her, even when he’s not...

That’s the spirit – Okanagan distiller wins international awards

OKANAGAN - Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery is celebrating a repeat win after being named distillery of the year for the second time at the 2015 World Spirits Awards in Dennmark. The distillery’s black currant liqueur beat out competition from 25 countries and 65 distilleries to take Spirit of the Year. Its Danish-style Aquavitus and Haskap...

Victim identified in fatal Shuswap car crash

BLIND BAY – A Sorrento woman has been identified as the person who died in a three car crash on Highway 1 in Blind Bay on Monday. The B.C. Coroners Service says Anisha Husseinali Moore, 55, was the only one in a car involved in the crash on the Trans Canada at Hilltop Road at...

Shipping container doors open to reveal unique Vernon art show

VERNON - The shiny steel doors of Vernon’s new pop-up art gallery open to the public today. The large metal shipping containers donated by BigSteelBox represent the first art gallery of its kind in the Okanagan. Designed to house a portion of the international Okanagan Print Triennial show, the satellite gallery at the corner of...

Vernon Vipers use home ice to even series against Penticton Vees

VERNON - The Interior Division Final will come down to a best-of-three after the Vernon Vipers picked up a 5-2 win over the Penticton Vees Wednesday night, in game four at Kal-Tire Place. The Vipers, like the Vees, held serve on home ice, winning both games by 5-2 scores to come back from a 2-0...

Coroner releases findings into fatal Easter crash near Vernon

VERNON - A driver who crossed into the wrong lane on Highway 97 two years ago made no attempt to avoid hitting an oncoming vehicle, a coroner’s report into the deaths of three people has found. In her report, Margaret Janzen of the B.C. Coroners Service describes the 2013 Easter Sunday collision that killed Eric...

Former Vernon Mountie to stand trial this summer on child porn charges

VERNON - A former Vernon mountie charged with possession of child pornography will stand trial this summer. Ryan Hampton, 37, was scheduled to start his trial Mar. 2 in Vernon Supreme Court but his case has now been put over until July. It has also been moved to the Kelowna courthouse. Hampton, a former police...

Silver Star Road, voted worst in B.C., is getting a facelift

VERNON - B.C.’s worst road is getting some love from the provincial government. Silver Star Road in Vernon, voted number one in BCAA’s 2014 worst roads survey, is one of the items listed in a 10-year transportation plan released by the province. Sometime in 2015, the road will be resurfaced as part of an initiative...

How a quick call to police helped someone with mobility problems

VERNON - A scooter has been returned it to its owner thanks to a tip from the public. Mounties believe the scooter, valued at $500, was taken overnight on March 8 from a home on 30 Avenue in Vernon, according to a Vernon RCMP media release. The owner of the scooter has mobility problems and...

Lake Country Food Bank digs in to build new facility

LAKE COUNTRY - Less than two months after winning $100,000 in a contest to put toward the project the Lake Country Food Bank broke ground today on their new million-dollar facility. During the ceremony, representatives were on hand from the District of Lake Country along with other major partners including a few from Okanagan College....

Improvements to Birnie Road intersection part of provincial plan

VERNON - The intersection at Highway 97 and Birnie Road, which was the scene of a fatal accident in 2014, is one of the improvements targeted under a new ten-year provincial road improvement plan. The Birnie Road intersection is commonly used by Vernon residents on their way to the landfill. An accident along that stretch...

Appeal to be heard over Lavington pellet plant’s operating permit

LAVINGTON - Construction may have started on a pellet plant in Lavington, but in six months time, an appeal will be heard over the company’s operating permit. Three local residents and members of Lavington Is For Everyone (LIFE) filed an appeal with the Environmental Appeal Board, calling for a review of the Ministry of Environment’s...

Molotov cocktail chucked at Vernon church

VERNON - Police and the Fire Department are investigating after a molotov cocktail was thrown at the Vernon Family Church Monday night. Deputy Fire Chief Lawrie Skolrood says a nearby resident noticed a large flame around 7:30 p.m. outside the church, located on 25 Avenue, and phoned 911. “It’s very fortunate the building was stucco...

What you should know before spending the night at a forestry campsite

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - If you can’t bear the thought of digging out your own personal earthen toilet bowl, jump back in your 36 foot deluxe model travel trailer and turn right around — forestry camping is not for you. Those of you who didn’t spend Sunday morning frantically reserving a campsite in one of B.C.’s provincial...

Windstorm wreaks havoc on Lumby trailer park

LUMBY - It was like a scene out of the Wizard of Oz: A carport swept into the air, bits of siding blowing off homes and dust clouding the air. There were numerous wind-related incidents Saturday afternoon in the North Okanagan — B.C. Hydro responded to some 300 wind-related outages across the province — but a trailer...

Enderby woman’s story highlights WorkSafe B.C. initiative

ENDERBY - It was supposed to be just a regular day out mending a fence on the family farm, but in a fraction of a moment a 21-year-old Enderby woman became entangled in machinery and her life was in the hands of a medical team at Kelowna General Hospital. In a media release this week,...