Top Stories – May 9 – Trudeau In Ukraine

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made an unannounced visit to Ukraine yesterday, where he reopened the Canadian Embassy in Kyiv. He also met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in person, for the first time since Russia began its invasion. Trudeau reaffirmed Canada’s unwavering support and praised Ukraine’s president for his leadership and the courage of Ukrainians in defending their country.

Members of the BC General Employees Union are taking a strike vote to back demands for a two-year contract containing a five percent wage hike each year. The union says talks with the Public Service Agency, which bargains for the province, broke down last month, with the government offering a three-year deal with a total increase of 5.5 percent.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says poultry and egg producers have lost more than 1.7 million birds to avian influenza since late 2021. Two farms in Kelowna have been quarantined after birds tested positive. Authorities say the fast-spreading H5N1 virus is probably transmitted from wild birds.

A 30 year old impaired driver is in big trouble after not only driving his SUV into the Subway on Main St. in West Kelowna early Saturday, but hitting an RCMP SUV in the process. Police say the driver went through a stop sign, nailed the front of the police vehicle and then careened through the front of the restaurant. Luckily, there were no serious injuries.

First quarter Central Okanagan Economic Indicators show a continued resurgence in the economy with airport passengers up 270% and job postings up 44% compared to Q1 of last year during Covid. The largest increase was in Sales and Service occupations at 29.4%. And breaking down the 2021 census data, people aged up to 14 accounted for 13% of the population, 15-64 was 63% and 65 and older was 24 percent.

With the price of gas just under 2 bucks a litre in the central Okanagan right now, get ready for it to climb even more this week. Dan McTeague of Canadians for Affordable Energy, says gas prices could go up an additional five cents if the situation worsens in Ukraine and as Canadians gear up for the May long weekend. In Vancouver, it’s as high as $2.22 for regular.

Because of the Whiterock Lake wildfire, some areas of the North Westside are at higher risk for overland flooding and potential landslides. To raise awareness, the Central Okanagan Regional District will hold a YouTube live online information session on Thursday, May 12 from 2 – 3pm. It will be at regionaldistrict/youtube and be recorded and posted the next day.

Up to 60 Ukrainians were feared dead after Russian bombed and destroyed a school that was sheltering about 90 people in the basement. Moscow’s invading forces are keeping up their barrage of cities, towns and villages in eastern and southern Ukraine with no apparent concern for what the bombs hit.

The proposed 26-billion-dollar merger between Rogers and Shaw may be disconnected after the Commissioner of Competition has indicated it intends to block the deal. The CRTC signed off on it earlier, but other agencies also need to approve it. The companies say the merger will offer economic and consumer benefits.

Sports

NHL playoffs yesterday saw Tampa Bay beat the Leafs 7-3 to tie their series at 2 games each, and in Los Angeles, that best of 7 is also tied at 2 after the Kings beat the Oilers.

The CFL Players’ Association says players won’t report to training camp later this week without a fair and equitable collective bargaining agreement in place. The two sides aren’t scheduled to meet again until Wednesday, giving them three days before the expiration of the current deal.

The Toronto Blue Jays are off today after a weekend in Cleveland that saw the Guardians win 3 of the 4 games. The Jays move on to the Bronx for a couple of games starting tomorrow.

The inaugural running of the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix was won by Red Bull driver Max Verstappen. The two Ferraris were 2nd and 3rd. The series takes a week off before 2 races in Europe.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said the Ottawa Senators are not looking for a new ownership group in the wake of Eugene Melnyk’s death. Bettman said that it’s up to Melnyk’s two daughters – aged 19 and 23 – to decide what to do with the team.

The Wells Fargo Championship in Maryland was won by American Max Homa by 2 shots over 3 other golfers. Mackenzie Hughes was top Canadian.