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Vernon news

Rain, snow increase avalanche risk in Interior

OKANAGAN - With less than a week left in March spring is well under way in the valleys, but that doesn’t mean winter conditions are not present on mountain highways or in the backcountry. Avalanche Canada is warning of a moderate to high risk of avalanches in many of the alpine and treeline elevations throughout...

Spring snow at Okanagan resorts leaves ski bums less bummed

OKANAGAN - It may have been a rainy week in the valley, but it was dumping snow at local ski hills. Silver Star Mountain in Vernon got close to 60 cm of new snow in the last week, blanketing alpine runs with a 209 centimetre base. As of Friday morning, all chair lifts except the...

HELSTON: Hundreds of bears die every year for this stupid reason

This goes out to anyone who’s left their garbage out and had a bear get into it; you might as well have put a bullet through its head. It sounds harsh, I know, but hundreds of bears across B.C. are killed by conservation officers every year because they’ve grown habituated to garbage. Sorry to break...

Bears are waking up and looking for food in the North Okanagan

VERNON - The Conservation Service is reminding the public to minimize attractants as bears come out of hibernation and start looking for food. Conservation officer Mike Richardson says the number of bear complaints has already started to climb in the North Okanagan. “They’re definitely awake and coming out of their dens,” Richardson says. On Monday,...

Vernon native named to WHL all-star team

VERNON - It’s the end of the regular season in the Western Hockey League and while Vernon does not have a team in the league a local player has still cracked the all-star team. The all-star teams along with the 2015 WHL Awards finalists were named Wednesday, March 25 with awards set to be handed...

Doubt cast over 2015 season of Vernon’s Avenue Market

VERNON - There’s concern that a Vernon market designed to attract people to the downtown core is actually having a negative affect on some merchants. The summertime Avenue Market, which is coming into its second year, invites vendors to set up on 30 Avenue on Friday evenings. When it started, the hope was that it...

Interior Target stores will be closed before Easter

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - By April 2 a total of 62 Target stores will be shut down, including those in Vernon, Kelowna and Kamloops. Target Canada opened doors in Western Canada in May 2013. In January 2015 it was announced the company would be shutting down all 133 stores and liquidation sales began immediately. Last week the...

Citizens call for drastic changes to Greater Vernon Water

VERNON - A citizens group is calling on local politicians to overhaul plans for Greater Vernon’s water supply, including the cost to residents. Citizens for Changes to the Master Water Plan made their case to Vernon City Council Monday afternoon, asking for support in taking a “fresh new look” at the plan. Spokesperson Eric Jackson...

Two Vernon athletes nominated to compete in 2015 Toronto Parapan Am Games

VERNON - Two athletes from Vernon are among 40 swimmers nominated to represent Canada this summer at the Toronto 2015 Parapan Am Games. Sarah Mehain, 20, is a seasoned paralympian and will compete in four events in Toronto, while the games are a first for teammate Riley McLean. The two will compete alongside another fellow...

Vernon parents left frustrated with City Hall over student safety

VERNON - Vernon parents are disappointed local government isn’t planning to do more to make the roads around Beairsto School safer as a drive-through Tim Hortons is built across the street. Out of 11 traffic safety recommendations made by the Beairsto Parent Advisory Council — such as widening sidewalks, reducing the speed limit on 27...

Four local pharmacies to participate in ground-breaking genomics project

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - The concept of tailored medical care based on individual DNA was once the stuff of science fiction novels but now the possibility is ever closer with four pharmacies in the Thompson-Okanagan signed on to take part in a first-of-its-kind genomics project. The 'Genomics for Precision Drug Therapy in the Community Pharmacy' project is...

Death of longboarding teen killed by vehicle was accidental

VERNON - A Vernon teenager struck by a car while longboarding July 13, 2014, died of multiple blunt force trauma as a result of the impact, and the incident was accidental, the B.C. Coroners Service has concluded. Christopher Mathew Mitchell, 17, was out longboarding on 39 Street at 11 p.m. when he was hit by...

Co-workers step up efforts to support Vernon nurse badly injured in hit and run

VERNON - Co-workers continue to support a Vernon nurse left unable to walk after a hit and run last winter.  As part of an ongoing fundraiser called Robin’s Journey, co-workers have launched a silent auction to help support her financially. Organizer Tina Berg says the community’s response so far with donations has been overwhelming. “Robin...

Lumby-based medical marijuana company still awaiting Health Canada approval

LUMBY - It’s been slow going for a company looking to grow medical marijuana in Lumby. Darcy Bomford, the CEO of True Leaf Medicine Inc. (chaired by former B.C. premier Mike Harcourt) says the company is still waiting for full approval from Health Canada. “It’s been almost a year waiting for this one location,” Bomford...