Top Stories – Sept 25

Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth identified 51 year old Ridge Meadows RCMP Constable Rick O’Brien as the officer killed in the line of duty. He was conducting a search warrant in Coquitlam as part of a larger investigation. Two other officers were injured and the suspect was shot and was later charged with first degree and attempted murder.

The Glen Lake wildfire, though still classified as out of control, remained calm over the weekend. It was still estimated at just over 11-hundred hectares with all the evacuation orders and alerts in place. Firefighters and helicopters continued to tackle the northeast and southeast flanks.

A reminder about the roadwork starting today at Highway 33 and Ziprick where there will be single lane alternating traffic during the day Monday to Friday until the end of October. Also today, improvements to the intersection of Airport Way and Innovation Drive/Pier Mac Way begin and will last all week.

If you’re in good shape, at least 19 years old and live on the west side, remember West Kelowna Fire Rescue is looking for people to join their team of paid on-call firefighters. Online applications are being accepted until Oct. 15. There is an information session on Wednesday at 6pm at the Glenrosa fire hall on Gates Road. Qualifications and more info is at www.ourwk.ca/firerescue

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he was happy to hear his country’s anthem in Canada. He and his wife received a standing ovation from a crowd of about one-thousand people when they walked into a Canadian Armed Forces facility in Toronto. A group of students and teachers from St. Demetrius Ukrainian school responded to Zelenskyy’s salute to the crowd by singing the Ukrainian anthem.

The spirit of MuchMusic was alive and well at the premiere of a documentary on the music station. Thousands gathered at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto for the premiere of “299 Queen Street West,” a feature-length look at the channel’s legacy. Joining the crowd were some of Much’s most famous V-Js, including Rick Campanelli, Erica Ehm, Sook-Yin Lee and “Electric Circus” host Monika Deol.

While United Auto Workers in the United States expand their strike action against the big three, workers at Ford in Canada have ratified a new contract. It raises base hourly pay for production workers by almost 20% over three years, and by more than 25% for trade workers. The contract also gives permanent workers a $10,000 bonus and adds a cost-of-living adjustment.

Usher will headline the Super Bowl Halftime show in Las Vegas at Allegiant Stadium on February 11th. The 44-year-old is currently headlining his “Usher: My Way” residency in Sin City, with sold-out shows and rave reviews.

SPORTS

The Kelowna Rockets started the regular season with a 6-5 overtime loss to the Portland Winterhawks. Twenty-year-old forward Turner McMillen earned the game’s second star after recording a team-high 2 goal and 1 assist night.

The Vancouver Canucks gave up four goals, in the first period, of their first preseason game in Calgary last night and went on to lose 10-0.

The Miami Dolphins are the first team to reach 70 points in an NFL game since 1966. It was no contest as they beat the Broncos 70-20.

There are two Monday Night Football games. First up at 4:15 is Philadelphia at Tampa, and that is followed at 5:15 with the Rams taking on the Bengals.

A Max Verstappen win in Japan gave Red Bull the F1 2023 Constructor’s Championship with 6 races left in the season.