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West Kelowna
Constituency offices shut down following Ottawa shooting
PENTICTON - It appears the constituency offices of Members of Parliament across the country are on shut down following events in Ottawa this morning, including those of local MP Dan Albas. In Penticton and Westbank, the offices of Okanagan-Coquihalla MP Dan Albas, was closed and locked today after Members of Parliament were locked down in...
UPDATE: 29-year-old feared missing in Nepal safe
KELOWNA – A Kelowna man who has been missing since the deadly avalanche in Nepal earlier this week has made contact with his family and is safe. According to Global Okanagan, the family of Matt Adams, 29, say they have spoken to him and he is unhurt. Canada’s Emergency Watch and Response Centre said Thursday...
ELECTION 2014: West Kelowna candidates finalized
WEST KELOWNA – Three candidates are confirmed for mayor of West Kelowna, including incumbent Doug Findlater. Challenging Findlater for his job are Stephen Johnston and Mary Mandarino. The nomination period for the Nov. 14 civic election closed at 4 p.m. on Friday. Thirteen people are seeking one of six seats on council: - Joanne Baker -...
Proposed cell tower scrubbed
WEST KELOWNA – A controversial plan to build a cell phone tower in West Kelowna has been abandoned amid protest from neighbours. The 20-metre tall tower, which was to be erected by Rogers Wireless at Mount Boucherie Winery, drew criticism from neighbours who worried it would be an eyesore and could negatively affect their health....
Growing West Kelowna given Crown land for new municipal works yard
WEST KELOWNA - A new municipal works yard for West Kelowna is on the way with a $8.7 million land grant from the province. The five hectare parcel of Crown land is located at the junction of Bartley and Stevens Road and allows the district to move forward with this civic priority without placing the...
Millions announced for upgrades to Westside Road
WEST KELOWNA – Premier Christy Clark announced Friday that the province would invest $45 million over five years to upgrade one of the worst roads in B.C. The first step involves widening an 800 metre section from Waterfront Farm to Blue Grouse as well as installation of roadside barriers and rock protection. Construction on...
B.C. Hydro to conduct study on secondary power line to West Kelowna
WEST KELOWNA – District of West Kelowna Mayor Doug Findlater says last night’s line failure that cut power to thousands of homes for nine hours would have been very serious if it happened just one month from now. The failure was caused by a fire that started atop one of hundreds of poles supporting West...
UPDATE: Power back on for nearly 22,000 West Kelowna customers
UPDATE - According to the B.C. Hydro website, power was restored at about 3:30 a.m. to nearly 22,000 customers. There's no word yet on the cause of the outage. WEST KELOWNA - Nearly 22,000 customers have been without power since about 6:30 p.m. thanks to a major hydro outage affecting homes and businesses in Westbank,...
West Kelowna mayor seeking third term
WEST KELOWNA – Doug Findlater has announced he will seek his third term as mayor of West Kelowna in the upcoming election. First elected six years ago, Findlater has been on the West Kelowna District Council since incorporation. According to a press release sent Monday morning, “Doug is seeking re-election because he believes that the...
Witness shot at three times, continues following
KELOWNA – A witness who took the stand in the attempted murder trial of accused Westside Road shooter Michael Ellis was shot at three separate times, but still refused to stop following him. Michael James Scott is an onsite construction supervisor with the Ministry of Transportation. He was in his work truck on Westside Road...
“HE’S SHOOTING AT ME, HE’S SHOOTING AT ME:” Dramatic audio from the 2012 Westside Road shootout with police
KELOWNA – The chase lasts close to an hour and takes police from West Kelowna to Vernon along the busy, winding Westside Road in the middle of summer 2012. During that time, police are shot at and their cars rammed by a suspect desperate to get away. It began shortly after 1 p.m. July 31...
TEACHERS’ STRIKE: Huge rally planned Wednesday; Soccer fields closing?
WEST KELOWNA – Christy Clark's constituency office better get used to company. More than 200 people gathered out front of the Premier's West Kelowna constituency office on Dobbin Road today—what should have been the first day of school—to add pressure in her dispute with the province's teachers and a whole lot more may be coming...
Suspicious fire in West Kelowna
WEST KELOWNA – The RCMP are looking for your help to find a couple of young men after a suspicious fire was set in West Kelowna Wednesday night. Firefighters were called to the front entrance of a property in the 3500 block of Elk Road around 10:30 p.m. and quickly put out the fire. RCMP...
Fast charge stations for electric cars proposed for West Kelowna
WEST KELOWNA – Fast charging stations for electric cars could be coming soon to West Kelowna. The new stations, part of a province-wide initiative put forward by B.C. Hydro, will recharge a vehicle in approximately 30 minutes using direct current (DC) instead of the several hours needed at a regular AC household outlet. Facilities manager...
Elliott Road reopens to public after seven month closure
WEST KELOWNA – The section of Elliott Road between Main Street and Dobbin will reopen to vehicle and pedestrian traffic Monday after being closed for more than seven months for construction of a new transit exchange. Construction of the Westbank RapidBus transit exchange won't be completed until the end of the month and motorists are...
STAHN: The view from up here
You may think I’m wrong to admit this, but I am actually really excited about this fire season. I have been since murmurs of another active season began. The opportunity to see our guys and gals in action, putting themselves in harms way to save our homes, the air tankers and helicopters constantly buzzing above:...
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...
Shannon Lake Regional Park re-opens while Smith Creek fire still burning
WEST KELOWNA - Shannon Lake Regional Park is open again for use even though there's still some fire activity in the Smith Creek area. Shannon Lake Park Road was closed to the public early in the battle against the wildfire. The Regional District of Central Okanagan recently re-evaluated the risk following recent wet weather and...
UPDATE: More West Kelowna evacuees going home
WEST KELOWNA - Even more Smith Creek wildfire evacuees went home Sunday. As of 5 p.m., the staff at the Emergency Operation Centre lifted the evacuation order for more streets in the Shannon Woods nighbourhood in West Kelowna. The evacuation alert has been lifted for Bartley Road and Lenz Road. About 2,000 of the 2,500 West Kelowna residents...
Pet rescues underway in Smith Creek fire zone
WEST KELOWNA - An animal rescue team is doing everything possible to ensure no pet is left behind while a forest fire rages in West Kelowna. The Canadian Disaster Animal Response Team (CDART) has recovered over 60 animals from the evacuation zone near Smith Creek, including 16 horses, 21 cats and 21 dogs. Spokesperson Petra...
Crews making progress on Smith Creek wildfire; evacuation order still in place
WEST KELOWNA – Despite the cooler weather and some rain showers Saturday, the Smith Creek wildfire in West Kelowna is still a threat to homes in the area. While north and central parts of the province saw the fire danger ratings downgraded to low or moderate, the Southern Interior still has high to extreme ratings....
UPDATE: Smith Creek fire now 30 per cent contained
WEST KELOWNA – Some positive news from the fire lines at the Smith Creek wildfire burning in West Kelowna Saturday morning. B.C. Wildfire Management is reporting the 260 hectare blaze is now 30 per cent contained. The perimeter contained is the area of the fire closest to the 1,100 evacuated homes. The cooler temperatures, higher humidity...
Evacuees watch crews attempt to save their homes
WEST KELOWNA - Margaret Maljevac is living out of Rubbermaid bins and watching water bombers swirl above her home, hoping it will still be there when the evacuation order is lifted. Maljevac is one of thousands of residents displaced by the Smith Creek wildfire in West Kelowna, now 400 hectares large and only 20 per...
Vet opens heart, clinic to evacuated pets
WEST KELOWNA - Evacuations can be a high stress situtation but one local vet is trying to make it easier on people and their pets by offering free kennelling for all pets displaced by the wildfire burning in West Kelowna right now. Dr. Moshe Oz , a vet with Rose Valley Veterinary Clinic, says they’ve...