Top Stories – Jan 11 – No Parking Areas

Overnight street parking is banned in the downtown core and Pandosy areas until Thursday. Kelowna city crews will be working a night shift from 10pm to 7am to remove the snow that has piled up over the last few weeks. The parking ban for snow routes was lifted yesterday. Details at kelowna.ca/snow .

Pfizer says the company will soon be ready to widely distribute a vaccine adapted to the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. The company hopes to have it ready to go, pending approval, in March. Pfizer also says it isn’t convinced a fourth vaccine dose, currently given by Israel to risk groups, is needed, saying more evidence is required.

Ottawa is pushing ahead with a vaccine mandate for international truckers despite increasing pressure from critics who say it will exacerbate driver shortages and drive up the price of goods imported from the United States. Unvaccinated truckers who are not Canadian would be turned back at the border starting Saturday. Canadian drivers will be allowed back into the country, but will be required to quarantine for 14 days.

There were just under 7,000 new covid-19 cases in BC for the period covering Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Yesterday, there were 21-hundred… one thousand LESS than on Friday. For interior health, the number of new cases dipped to 459 from 526. As for vaccines, 89.4 percent of people 12 and over have had 2 doses in BC.

The Quebec coroner’s inquest into deaths at long-term care homes during the pandemic’s first wave resumed Monday after a month-long pause. Almost 4,000 people died in Quebec’s long-term care homes between February and June 2020. That accounted for nearly 70 percent of the deaths reported in the province during the pandemic’s first wave.

Canada’s decision to pursue a foreign investment protection agreement with Taiwan, amid its ongoing tension with mainland China, is being greeted with widespread approval in trade and diplomatic circles. Taiwan is a full-fledged member of the World Trade Organization which makes it fair game for Canada to pursue deeper trade.

The Independent Investigations Office has concluded there was no wrongdoing by police in a death in Kelowna last May. RCMP responded to two calls from a home in the 3400-block of Sexsmith to speak to a man regarding his wellness. The man left after the second police visit and the following evening, a different man who lived at the same address was found dead. The man police spoke with earlier has been charged in the death.

Certain Dole and President’s Choice brand salad products are being recalled due to Listeria. Some of the packaged salads include American Blend, Garden Salad and a number of salad kits. For full details go to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency website and click on Food Recall Warnings.

Staff at National Microbiology Lab facilities across the country are being asked to work from home if possible. The Public Health Agency of Canada says the move is aimed at protecting essential workers doing critical on-site diagnostic and lab research. The work from home order covers staff at the sites in Winnipeg, Guelph, Saint-Hyacinthe, and Lethbridge.

Sports

The Vancouver Canucks finally get to play a game tonight, but they had to go to Florida to do it. It’s the 1st of 5 games south of the border and they take on the Panthers at 4.

The New York Yankees made a groundbreaking hire, naming Rachel Balkovec as manager of the Low-A Tampa Tarpons for the 2022 season. She will become the first woman to manage an affiliated minor-league club.

The BC Lions have signed explosive playmaker Lucky Whitehead to a two-year contract extension through the 2023 season. The 2021 CFL all-star emerged as one of the league’s most impactful free agent signings last season, recording 60 receptions for 932 yards, fifth in the league, and five touchdowns in 12 games.

Brian Flores is out in Miami. The Dolphins fired the head coach after three seasons even though Miami posted a 9-8 record this season, marking its second straight winning campaign under Flores.

With the NFL regular season over, teams are making changes to the coaching staff. In Chicago, the Bears fired head coach Matt Nagy and longtime general manager Ryan Pace. And in Minnesota, it was a similar story as the Vikings fired head coach Mike Zimmer and longtime general manager Rick Spielman.

Two West Kelowna Warriors were among the Top 3 BC Hockey League players of the week. Forward Marcus Joughin  and defenseman Isaiah Norlin shared 3 goals and 2 assists in their 8-2 win over Merritt last week.