Top Stories – Apr 12 – Bad Drivers Busted

BC Highway Patrol and Kelowna RCMP recently teamed up to conduct patrols and check-stops on Highway 33 and Big White Road. When they were done, 15 violation tickets including 10 for speeding were handed out. There were also 5, 90-day driving prohibitions for blowing over the legal limit and 3, 3-day suspensions for blowing between 6 and 10.

The province says business owners and entrepreneurs will have better access to intellectual property resources to protect and develop their ideas through a new partnership. Victoria, Innovate BC and Innovation Asset Collective will provide people with IP education. There’s also resources, including hosting information sessions, education events and speaking opportunities. For more info, go to ipcollective.ca .

‘Attention Kmart Shoppers, we are just about closed for good.’ At one time there were well over 2,000 stores in the U-S… soon there will be just 3. In Canada, Hudson’s Bay purchased Kmart’s 112 stores in 1998, closing some and converting others into Zellers.

Kelowna Council approved the first Community Safety Plan which is a five-year action plan focused on proactive actions to reduce risk, vulnerability and harm. As a next step, a Stewardship Team, including leaders from government, non-government organizations and the community, will be recruited and established to finalize the implementation. Details are at kelowna.ca/safetyplan .

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he wants to make it easier for more Canadians to drive electric vehicles. He said the federal government will extend a program that offers buyers up to $5,000 to help with purchases and will introduce mandatory sales targets that require 20 percent of all vehicles sold by 2026 to be electric. The budget also includes 400 million dollars over five years to expand charging infrastructure.

The mayor of the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol says that more than 10-thousand civilians have died in the Russian siege of his city, and that the toll could pass 20-thousand. He also said Russian forces brought mobile cremation equipment with them to dispose of the bodies. He accused them of refusing to allow humanitarian convoys into the city in an attempt to conceal the carnage.

Kelowna’s KF Aerospace is getting into the passenger transportation business. Starting from bases here and in Calgary, they will use 737-600 jets for a new passenger air charter service called Aeroflyer, for the leisure, tourism and work force transportation markets. They will offer a full package of on-board services including custom catering, and wireless in-flight entertainment. More info at kfaeroflyer.com .

A national recall of Kinder brand chocolates has been significantly expanded. Health Canada says it now covers 23 different products with a variety of expiration dates. The problem is possible salmonella contamination and the details are on the Recalls Canada website.

Prince Charles and his wife Camilla are set to return to Canada next month. The three-day royal tour will see the couple travel to Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories and the Ottawa region. Their most recent visit was in the summer of 2017.

Sports

Just one game in the NHL last night. In Montreal, it was another miserable night for the Canadiens as they were beaten 4-2 by Winnipeg. The Vancouver Canucks play Vegas again tonight at Rogers Arena at 7.

To wrap up the first round of their playoffs in the BC Hockey League, forward Christophe Farmer of the West Kelowna Warriors was named one of the Stars of the Week. He racked up three goals and four assists in three games against Vernon last week.

The Blue Jays began a 4 game series in New York with a 3-0 win last night. George Springer hit a two run homer and had the other RBI for Toronto. They play today at 4.

Quarterback Kirk Cousins hopes his recent short-term extension is a precursor to a longer deal that allows him to finish his career with the Minnesota Vikings. While the 33-year-old has been a stabilizing presence since signing in 2018, he’s yet to engineer a deep playoff run.

Kelowna Rockets forward Colton Dach was named the Western Hockey League’s Player of the Week. The Blackhawks prospect led all skaters with 10 points in four outings with the Rockets last week including a career-best five-point effort Saturday against the Giants

There’s a report that the L-A Lakers have honed in on Toronto head coach Nick Nurse as a replacement for outgoing bench boss Frank Vogel after Los Angeles missed the playoffs. Nurse won a championship as a rookie head coach and amassed a 186-122 record.