Top Stories – Dec 2 – Record Heat

Hope you enjoyed that much warmer than usual day yesterday. Kelowna10 meteorologist Duane English says the previous record high of 12.2 degrees on December 1st goes back 80 years to 1941. At the Kelowna airport yesterday, it got up to 17.8 in the noon hour. However that appears to be it for the year as much cooler temperatures and possibly flurries could come on the weekend.

BC reported 375 new cases of covid 19 yesterday including 69 for interior health. The total number of active cases in our area was 537. Since December, the province has administered 8.7 million doses of vaccine.

The Canadian Medical Association says it will cost 1.3 Billion dollars to clear the backlogs for eight key procedures that were put on hold during the pandemic. They include hip replacement, cataract surgery, knee replacement, MRI scans, CT scans, coronary artery bypass and breast cancer surgery. Consulting firm Deloitte found a backlog of 328,000 procedures.

West Kelowna gets ready to officially kick off its holiday season with the big Light Up tomorrow night. It will be held on Brown Road, from Main Street to Gossett Road from 5 to 8pm with the switch flipped at 6. The family-friendly event will allow people to move along the street and take part in activity stations, and interact with vendors over short periods of time.

Accelerate Okanagan announced that it is receiving $275,000 from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program. It will support the creation of new and improved capital training activities for entrepreneurs over the next two years. Accelerate will leverage the funding to create new initiatives and activities that support small to medium-sized enterprises.

A federal bill banning conversion therapy has cleared the House of Commons and is on its way to the Senate. It was fast-tracked through the legislative stages in the House, with the unanimous consent of all MPs. The so-called therapy is widely discredited as a harmful practice, aimed at trying to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity.

The link between the coast and the interior was cut off for 5 hours yesterday, but it wasn’t highway 3. An accident between a pickup and a transport truck in Kaleden on Highway 97 at 8am caused a diesel spill on the road, which resulted in the closure for it to be cleaned up. It reopened to single lane alternating traffic about 1:20 in the afternoon and was fully open by 6.

BC’s Public Safety Minister may have made the understatement of the year. Mike Farnworth said ‘the extreme weather events we’ve been experiencing are unprecedented’. On the south coast especially, higher temperatures mixing with all the rain and melting snow are adding to flooding rivers and streams.

About two-thirds of Canadians are seriously considering leaving their job because of issues such as compensation, declining satisfaction, and overall well-being. The annual survey from recruitment firm Hays revealed that 65 percent of respondents are looking for a change, a 16-point jump over last year. About 40 percent of employers surveyed reported that staff have left for higher pay elsewhere.

Sports

Make it 2 wins in a row for the Canucks as they beat the Senators 6-2 in Ottawa last night. Quinn Hughes and Jason Miller had 3 point nights and goalie Thatcher Demko had an assist! Vancouver is off until Saturday when they host the Penguins.

West Kelowna Warriors forward Felix Trudeau was named the BC Hockey League first star for November. The 19 year old finished with the most goals of any BCHL player with 11 in 11 games and had the second most points with 19.

At Prospera Place yesterday the Vancouver Giants handed the Kelowna Rockets a 5-3 loss before 3,560 fans. Next up for the locals is a Saturday trip to Kamloops to take on the Blazers.

The NHL gave the go-ahead for the New York Islanders to proceed with their regular-season slate after having a pair of games postponed due to COVID-19 protocol. The team will host the San Jose Sharks today.

The West Kelowna Warriors struggled with injuries and suspensions last night in Vernon, losing 5-1 to the Vipers. Next up is the first of back to back, home and home games against Salmon Arm.

Cowboys wide receiver Amari Cooper is expected to play today against the New Orleans Saints after missing the last two games with COVID. He remains unvaccinated.