Top Stories – Oct 6 – Mandatory Vaccines

The BC government is making vaccination a requirement for public service employees in the province. The Public Service Agency, will require its 30-thousand employees to be fully vaccinated by November 22. Dr. Bonnie Henry also announced that all visitors to long-term care homes in BC will be required to provide proof of vaccination as of next Tuesday.

There were 128 newly reported cases of covid-19 in Interior Health yesterday as part of 593 in the province. There were 41 people in hospital in the region with 36 in critical care. There are 4 long term care and assisted living homes in the interior with outbreaks of the virus.

Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen told a US Senate panel that Congress must intervene to solve the ‘crisis’ created by her former employer’s products. She said the government needs to take action like it did with seatbelts, cigarettes and opioids. Haugen told senators she would be ‘sincerely surprised’ if Facebook stops working on Instagram For Kids.

September saw a drop in sales of single family homes, townhomes and condos across the central Okanagan. However, the Association of Interior Realtors says sale price were up across all categories from a year ago. The single home price jumped 27 percent to a benchmark 923-thousand dollars, and condos up 23 percent to 428-thousand. All categories averaged less than 40 days to sell.

Nominations are now open for the Premier’s Awards for Excellence in Education. They honour BC teachers, support staff workers, administrators and school district leaders who have made outstanding contributions to their students and school communities. To nominate an education professional go to gov.bc.ca/excellenceineducation .

Two Rhode Island men are a little lighter in the wallet after discovering flares are for emergencies, not weddings. They touched off a needless and expensive ocean search-and-rescue effort when they fired maritime distress flares to celebrate a friend’s wedding. They have agreed to pay $5,000 each to settle the case.

Kelowna Council considered a rezoning request for a three-storey, five-unit townhouse development at 2590 Richter Street between Patterson and Wardlaw. The South Pandosy Urban Centre and Osprey Park are one block south of the proposed townhouses. The public hearing was waived although Council will accept written correspondence until October 25.

Victoria is rolling out support to help farmers who had to cover the costs of implementing covid health and safety measures. The Seasonal Domestic Farm Worker COVID-19 Safety Program offers farmers up to $2,000 in reimbursement for on-farm expenses between April 1 and Oct. 31 that helped protect workers while also producing local fruits and vegetables.

Lockdowns that left Canadian cars sitting idle in driveways and garages for weeks on end last year pushed gasoline use to its lowest level in two decades. Statistics Canada says Canadians bought 38.6 Billion litres of gas in 2020, 14 percent less than 2019 and less than in any other year since 2001. That’s about the same as taking 3.1 million cars off the road.

Sports

The second preseason meeting between the Canucks and the Kraken was won 4-0 by Seattle. Vancouver takes on the Oilers in Edmonton tomorrow in the first of a home and home series to wrap up preseason play.

Winnipeg Blue Bombers receiver Kenny Lawlor has apologized for his weekend actions which saw him get busted for impaired driving. He says he is truly sorry that he disappointed his teammates and fans. He adds it was a mistake and a selfish decision.

One game in the CFL today and it is in Toronto. The 4 & 3 Argos host the Ottawa RedBlacks who have just 2 wins against 5 losses.

Josh Gordon is getting another chance. The NFL receiver has had many issues with substance abuse in recent years, but signed with Kansas City in week 3 and will make his debut in week 5.

The American League wildcard game yesterday was won 6-2 by Boston over the Yankees. The Red Sox will take on the Tampa Bay Rays in the ALDS showdown.

Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan publicly reprimanded Urban Meyer for the coach’s “inexcusable” behaviour at an Ohio bar over the weekend. A social media video One shows a young woman dancing close to Meyer’s lap as he sits on a barstool, while a second, more damning video appears to show Meyer touching the woman’s behind.