Top Stories – Aug 4 – Keremeos Creek At 4,200 Hectares

You probably noticed the sky wasn’t as blue yesterday afternoon as it has been lately. For the first time this summer, wildfire smoke is making an appearance in the valley, and while there is no official air quality advisory for the Central Okanagan, areas to the south and west of us aren’t so lucky. Air quality around here late yesterday was still around 3, in the low range, with 10 being bad.

The Keremeos Creek wildfire jumped to approximately 42-hundred hectares yesterday as crews worked to strengthen fire lines and conduct controlled burns. Highway 3A had to be closed for a while after some debris rolled down the hill at the North end of Yellow Lake. It’s best to check with Drive BC before travelling between Kaleden and Keremeos. Neither of those communities are on any type of evacuation status.

Stats Can released its annual Crime report and Kelowna was at the top of the list for a metropolitan area in Canada. There were just over 11-thousand crimes per 100-thousand people… up 10 percent from 2020. In the Violent Crime Severity Index, which takes out property crime, the area was 7th. The local RCMP say Stats Canada is ignoring the 2.2 million people who spend time in the Kelowna area every year which affects incidents of recorded crime.

The annual Perseid meteor shower peaks late next week, but you may be able to see some burning chunks of rock in the sky before then. Astronomers say if the sky is clear, it could be better now because the moon will be getting brighter towards the peak period. Meteors can be spotted between mid-July and late August.

Later today, parks crews will complete seasonal boulevard maintenance on Boucherie Road between Hayman and Hudson Roads in West Kelowna. Work will happen from 6 to 10:30pm and will require a full closure of the road, bike lanes and sidewalks. Drivers can use Hudson Road and Highway 97 as a detour to avoid the work area.

Interior Health clinics are set for children between the ages of six months and four years old with a COVID-19 vaccine specifically formulated for that age group. Appointments are necessary for these vaccines at ‘getvaccinated.gov.bc.ca’ and will be held in child-friendly local clinics. Pediatric COVID-19 vaccines are not available in pharmacies.

Kelowna RCMP are investigating what appears to be a targeted shooting on Tuesday night where the victim is not expected to survive. Police are just saying he is a Lower Mainland man who has connections to others that are well-known to authorities. It happened in the 1800 block of KLO and the Serious Crime Unit is working closely with its partners to determine a motive.

West Kelowna and Interior Health, have issued a Boil Water Notice for the entire Lakeview-Rose Valley System due to the presence of coliform. An isolated notice had been in effect since Friday in a section of the Shannon Lake area. The bulk filling station at Shannon Lake and Asquith Roads provides a safe, alternative source of drinking water. Take clean bottles for filling.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly is calling for calm as the Chinese government announced a series of military exercises around Taiwan to start today in the wake of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island this week. Joly says the visit should not be used as a pretext for any action that could destabilize the Asia-Pacific region. China has claimed Taiwan as its own, despite the country having its own democratically elected government.

Sports

Canada was undefeated in the preliminary round of the Hlinka-Gretzky U18 Championship in Red Deer after a 3-0 win against Sweden last night. Andrew Cristall from the Kelowna Rockets had 1 assist. Canada will play Finland in a semi final tomorrow.

Week 9 in the CFL begins tonight in Montreal. The Alouettes host Winnipeg at 4:30. The Lions don’t play until Saturday when Edmonton visits BC Place.

The Kelowna Rockets will open their training camp ahead of the WHL season starting with a rookie camp that features on-ice sessions September 1-3. The main camp will take place from the 4th to 8th. The Rockets first home preseason game is September 10 against Kamloops.

The PGA Tour is in North Carolina this week for the Wyndham Championship. Kevin Kisner is the defending winner after last year’s tournament went to a 6 man playoff.

The Blue Jays dropped a 3-2 decision to the Tampa Bay Rays yesterday to split their 2 game series. Toronto moves to Minnesota for 4 games starting tonight.