Top Stories – Mar 28 – Chapman Place Shooting

One person was shot and another was taken into custody early yesterday morning in a building on Chapman Place in Kelowna. RCMP say the two people were known to each other and there is no danger to public safety. The condition of the injured person was not released other than they were taken to hospital for treatment.

At least 10 people were seriously injured after an explosion destroyed one home and damaged 8 others in northeastern Calgary. As of late yesterday crews had just started to search the site. Emergency Medical Services says all the people sent to hospital were adults, and six were in life-threatening condition.

Canada is extending a scaled-down version of its military mission in Iraq and the Middle East for another two years. It comes more than eight years after Canada first deployed troops to the region in October 2014 as the Islamic State militant group threatened to take over Iraq and Syria.

Sadly, once again in the United States there are thoughts and prayers in the wake of a school shooting. Three children, all 9 years old, and three staff members were gunned-down by a 28-year-old woman with assault weapons and a handgun. It happened at a covenant school in Nashville before she was killed by police. It was the 33rd shooting on school grounds in the U-S since January 1.

A federal source says today’s budget will extend the temporary boost to the GST rebate for low-income Canadians, but will frame the payment as help with the rising cost of groceries. It would provide up to $234 for a single person with no children, $467 for a couple with two kids and $225 for a senior. In February, grocery prices were 10.6% higher than a year ago.

Just as it started to come down a bit, the price of lettuce is set to rise again. This time it’s because of the bad weather that has been plaguing
California. The Salinas Valley, where lots of veggies are grown has seen flooded fields and delayed planting, causing hundreds of thousands of dollars in crop damage.

You can now drive half way up Knox Mountain between noon and 8 daily. It’s a staged reopening that has the park itself open from 6am to 10pm. Cars can go up to Crown Lookout. Meantime, city crews continue to prepare parks, beaches and fields for reopening next month.

A regimental funeral was held for two Edmonton police officers yesterday. Constables Travis Jordan and Brett Ryan were responding to a family dispute at an apartment complex earlier this month when a 16-year-old shot at them multiple times. 35-year-old Jordan joined the Service more than eight years ago, and the wife of 30-year-old Constable Ryan is pregnant with their first child.

Police say two more bodies were pulled from the rubble of a building that caught fire March 16 in Old Montreal, bringing the death toll to seven. The Fire operations chief says searchers don’t believe there are more victims but will continue to look. Some of those killed in the fire had rented their accommodations on Airbnb, which is illegal to use in that part of the city.

Sports

The Vancouver Canucks will be going for their fourth straight road win today in St Louis. It’s a 5pm face off against the Blues before they come home for five games.

The final preseason game for the Toronto Blue Jays is today as they take on the Philadelphia Phillies at 9 this morning. The regular season begins on Thursday when the Jays travel to St. Louis.

Quarterback Lamar Jackson requested a trade from the Baltimore Ravens earlier this month. The 26 year old unanimously won the league’s MVP award in 2019.