Top Stories – March 22 – Security Guard Stabbed

Another security guard has been stabbed while on the job in Kelowna. The man was working in the 1000 block of Sunset Drive early yesterday when he was attacked. He was taken to hospital where he was treated and released for serious, but non-life threatening injuries. The suspect is a white man, 30 to 40 years of age, 5’8” tall, with a large build and blonde hair wearing a black fur-rimmed parka and carrying a backpack.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says Canada will soon impose new sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. She says the sanctions are necessary to put pressure on the Russian government to end its invasion, which has driven nearly 3.4 million people from Ukraine, according to the United Nations.

Canadian business leaders in the US capital said they were in damage control mode as a work stoppage at CP Rail deals another blow to cross-border supply chains. The Business Council of Canada, says US lawmakers and counterparts have been worried for weeks about a possible labour dispute. The damage to Canada’s reputation could be long-lasting, coming on the heels of last month’s week-long shutdown of the Ambassador Bridge.

In Ukraine, as Mariupol’s defenders held out against Russian demands that they surrender, the number of bodies in the rubble of the bombarded and encircled city remained shrouded in uncertainty. In the capital of Kyiv, a shopping centre was a smoking ruin after being hit late Sunday by shelling that killed eight people. The attack shattered every window in a neighboring high-rise. The bulk of Moscow’s forces are being kept at least 25 kilometres from the centre of the city.

Kelowna Council endorsed the city’s 2022 carryover budget requests at its meeting yesterday. They include 177-million dollars in operating and capital expenditures for projects that were unable to be completed in 2021 or that are multi-year projects set for completion within the next few years. These include the development of Pandosy Waterfront Park, and expansion of the airport.

There were 136 new covid cases in BC yesterday as the government reported 506 since Friday. In our region Monday, there were 44 new cases with 63 in hospital. And rapid tests for people 30 and older are now available at pharmacies. Just take your Care Card.

A study by Okanagan College and community partners has found low levels of microplastics which are particles less than 5 millimetres in length in parts of Okanagan Lake. Microplastics Okanagan was launched last August, when water samples were taken near Kelowna. The team says concentrations of microplastics appear to be low… teaspoons of plastic over 30-thousand litres of water.

Another six people from that Sunwing flight to Mexico last year where passengers were filmed partying are facing potentially hefty fines. The Transport Minister says five of the cases involve non-compliance with vaccination rules and one was for failing to wear a mask. A dozen penalties of about $5,000 have been handed out so far and more are expected.

Ottawa has tightened rules for Russian aircraft after a commercial airliner was able to circumvent a ban on entering Canadian airspace late last month by falsely claiming to be a humanitarian flight. However, Nav Canada has no actual power to stop Russian flights from entering Canadian airspace. Any violations are reported to Transport Canada, which works with police and the military to respond.

Sports

The Kelowna Rockets will hope to end their 4 game WHL losing streak tonight in Victoria. They have back to back games against the Royals before two more games against Kamloops this weekend.

77 year old NFL Hall of Fame broadcaster Al Michaels is joining Amazon Prime Video to serve as play-by-play commentator for Thursday Night Football. Mike Tirico will take over NBC’s Sunday Night broadcasts with Cris Collinsworth.

On the NHL trading deadline, the Canucks claimed Brad Richardson off waivers after the Flames bumped him off the roster. This will be Richardson’s second spin with the Canucks, as he played two seasons in Vancouver from 2013 to 2015 before they let him go to unrestricted free agency.

The Vancouver Canucks have traded forward Tyler Motte to the New York Rangers in exchange for a 2023 fourth-round pick. The Canucks and Motte worked at signing a contract extension, but obviously couldn’t get to the right number.

Charles-Alexis Legault of the West Kelowna Warriors was named one of the BC Hockey League Stars of the Week. The defenseman had 3 game-winning goals and 5 points in 3 games last week.

Phil Mickelson has been removed from this year’s Masters playing field and will miss golf’s marquee event for the first time since 1994. Mickelson hasn’t played since announcing in February he’s stepping away from the sport amid strong criticism of his comments about the Saudi-backed golf series.