Top Stories – July 20 – Speedy Speedsters

Kelowna fire crews fought a wildfire yesterday evening between the rail trail and the Monashee neighbourhood on Dilworth Mountain. It was small when first spotted but began to spread quickly and grew to about 250 ft by 75 feet before it was brought under control about 50 feet away from some houses. How it started is being investigated.

Excessive speeders continue to generate a lot of paperwork for Kelowna RCMP. In one morning last week, a motorcyclist was nailed for doing 103 in a 50 zone on Clement. Then 2 drivers were busted on Hwy 97 by Ellison Lake… one for going 135 in a 90 zone and the other for speeding and no insurance. All were fined at least $368, had their vehicles impounded for a week with associated fees, and received 3 penalty points.

If your travel plans are taking you to Summerland or beyond to Penticton, keep in mind the continuing road work on Highway 97. Construction is ongoing between Arkell Road and Lakeshore Road South along with a lane closure and reduced speed limit. Drive BC says to expect delays between 9am and 3pm daily.

Illicit fentanyl continues to drive unregulated drug deaths in BC with 180 victims last month, bringing the total this year to more than 1,200. In Kelowna, there have been 48 illicit drug deaths in 2023.

An Amber Alert was issued yesterday for an eight-year-old girl and her 10-year-old brother. Surrey RCMP say Aurora and Joshuah Bolton were last seen in Krafty’s Kitchen and Bar in Kelowna. Police say the suspect is Verity Bolton, who is five-foot-two-inches tall, with brown hair and eyes. The three are possibly travelling in a blue Dodge D250 pickup. More details and pictures are in the news tab on our website.

The second round of catch basin mosquito control hits many Central Okanagan neighbourhoods next week. About 12,000 roadside catch basins will be treated with an environmentally approved larvicide as part of the RDCO Mosquito Control program. It follows up on initial treatments done last month.

Researchers at Western University say two tornadoes hit southern Quebec during a big thunderstorm last week. The Northern Tornadoes Project says it found evidence of a weak tornado northeast of Montreal, including a telltale track through crops. They say that another tornado, which was reported by a weather observer at Mirabel Airport, northwest of Montreal, caused no damage.

Less than 48 hours after it started, the fire up Westside Road was declared under control by BC Wildfire yesterday morning. Large air tankers hit it hard Monday evening, preventing it from spreading more than 4 hectares. BC Hydro says strong winds at the time brought a tree down on power lines which sparked the fire.

The provincial government has told the city of Surrey that it cannot go back to the RCMP and must proceed with having its own Police Service. The change was started under the previous mayor and council. Victoria says the city failed to meet the requirements to prevent an exodus of Surrey Police Service officers, or to staff up the Surrey RCMP without pulling officers from other communities.

Have you noticed lower prices for cellular service. With most people locked into multi-year contracts, many may not have noticed that inflation data for June shows consumers paid 14.7 percent less compared with the same month last year. However, a report released earlier this year found Canada still had among the highest prices internationally for cellphone and broadband service in 2022.

A First Nation community near Cranbrook has lost homes because of a fast-moving wildfire. It wasn’t immediately clear how many people or homes have been affected. Fire officials say the out-of-control St. Mary’s River fire was human-caused and was eight square kilometres in size.

Sports

It’s week 7 in the CFL and it begins with a western tilt. The Blue Bombers host the still winless Edmonton Elks. Kickoff in Winnipeg is at 5:30.

The Blue Jays lost their second straight game to the San Diego Padres last night at Rogers Centre. Toronto will have one last chance to get a win in the series today when the first pitch goes just after 10 our time.

In Corvallis, the Kelowna Falcons lost their 2nd straight game to the Knights. Game three in their series goes this evening before the Falcons return home.

The Open Championship is underway at Royal Liverpool. Australian Cameron Smith is the defending champion.