Top Stories – Oct 28 – Peachland Burn

Smoke from a prescribed burn southwest of Peachland was visible from Kelowna, West Kelowna and across the lake yesterday. In total 170 hectares is scheduled to be burned over the next few weeks. BC Wildfire says smoke will be visible over the entire period. The burn is to provide a level of community protection from wildfire by reducing fuel and restore the ecosystem, including mule deer winter range.

Don’t forget the Family Monster Bash returns on Sunday from 1-4 at the Capital News Centre. Every family member can play all kinds of activities, including an obstacle course, a bouncy house, active games on the sports field and Halloween-themed games. It’s free to get in, but they ask you to bring a donation for the food bank.

The airline industry is warning of unavoidable disruptions in the upcoming holiday travel season as labour shortages persist. The Air Line Pilots Association claims airlines are not doing enough to retain pilots because they have resisted paying them more. There is also a problem keeping air traffic controllers.

Open burning permits are now available for eligible Central Okanagan property owners from their local fire service. They take effect at noon today allowing burning on days when both air quality and venting indices are good. Before lighting any fire, permit holders must call the toll-free Outdoor Burning Hotline to determine if open burning is allowed on a particular day.

As the coast deals with another series of Atmospheric Rivers, the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry is calling for a comprehensive flood control plan for the Fraser Valley. The report also calls for co-operation between Canada and the U-S to address transboundary water issues, including the Nooksack River, which overflowed in the States and was a major contributor to the flooding in the Valley.

The northeastern Ontario Crown prosecutor is proceeding with a sexual assault charge against Hedley frontman Jacob Hoggard. It’s in relation to an incident alleged to have taken place in 2016, in Kirkland Lake. The singer was granted bail this month in a separate case after he launched an appeal of his five-year prison sentence for sexually assaulting an Ottawa woman.

An off-duty RCMP officer saved a man’s life in the 1500 block of Gordon Drive in Kelowna. Constable Scott Anderson noticed an elderly driver slumped over the wheel of his car at an intersection and called 911. When he banged on the window and the driver didn’t respond he smashed the back window, checked for a pulse but found none. The fire department arrived and performed CPR, the man started breathing and was taken to hospital.

David Eby will be sworn in as BC’s 37th premier on Friday, Nov. 18 at Government House in Victoria. The November break of the fall legislative session will be extended leading up to the ceremony so Eby can meet the legislative assembly as premier the following week.

It’s very unlikely that BC will host the 2030 Winter Olympics after the provincial government decided not to support a bid. In other words, no money. Victoria says there are Billions of dollars in direct costs, and potential guarantee and indemnity liability risks that could jeopardize the government’s ability to address pressures facing British Columbians right now.

Sports

The Kelowna Rockets are in Portland for a couple of games. Face off against the Winterhawks is tonight at 7 which means the pregame show on 1047 The Lizard begins at 6:30. They’ll play again tomorrow, except an hour earlier.

The Canucks finally broke the streak and got one in the win column… 5-4 against the Kraken in Seattle.
Vancouver hosts Pittsburgh tonight.

The BC Lions play their final regular season game today in Winnipeg with the kickoff at 5:30. Head coach Rick Campbell said earlier this week that Nathan Rourke will start at quarterback.

World Series starts tonight in Houston with the Astros hosting the Phillies.