Top Stories – Apr 3 – School’s Back

Spring break is over so don’t forget the kids are back on the roads this morning. And also remember school buses are out and when they stop, drivers going in all directions around them have to stop as well. And the 30 kph speed limit in school zones is back in effect.

Wilson’s Landing Fire members are inviting anyone who is interested to the fire hall on Westside Road tonight for a special recruitment information evening. It starts at 6:30 and you can learn how to become involved in helping your neighbours. Applications are available, and training is provided for successful candidates.

More than 51,000 registered, psychiatric and licensed practical nurses in BC have reached a tentative contract with the provincial government. The nurses work in a variety of settings including hospitals, long-term care homes, home-care environments and public health. Details of the contract will be available after the ratification process is completed.

Sessions of the Kelowna RCMP’s Coffee with a Cop are returning starting today. The idea is to break down the barriers between police officers and the public. This morning, RCMP will be at the UBC Okanagan campus in the Courtyard outside from 930-11.

BC is the first province to offer free prescribed birth control. Residents with a valid Medical Services Plan can get more than 60 commonly used forms of birth control, including oral contraceptives, I-U-Ds and hormone implants.

Along with the federal minimum wage going up from $15.55 an hour to $16.65, the BC minimum stays at $15.65, there were some other changes on April 1st. Canada Student Loans and Canada Apprentice Loans, including those currently being repaid, become permanently interest-free. Financial institutions can start offering the Tax-Free, First Home Savings Accounts to help Canadians save up to $40,000 tax-free for their first home.

A section of the Mission Creek Greenway will be closed for two weeks starting today. The trail will be closed upstream from the Hollywood Road parking lot and trail entrance to the Smoothing Stones bridge. But it will be open evenings and through the upcoming long weekend. Crews are wrapping up flood-related trail restoration work.

The Okanagan Regional Library is receiving nearly 1.7-million dollars in provincial funding. It’s intended to modernize technology, enhance programs and services, and provide better access to information.

The Quebec government has tabled a bill that would prevent children under the age of 14 from working most jobs after a rise in workplace injuries involving kids. It would ban those under 14 from the workforce except for certain jobs, including newspaper delivery, babysitting, day camp monitoring or tutoring.

Sports

The Kelowna Rockets have their work cut out for them in the Western Hockey League playoffs as they came home down two games to the Seattle T-Birds. Game 3 goes tomorrow at Prospera Place.

In the BCHL, the Vernon Vipers and West Kelowna Warriors split the first two games of their best of seven playoff series in West Kelowna on the weekend. The series moves to Kal Tire place tomorrow.

At Rogers Arena yesterday the Vancouver Canucks scored first but the Los Angeles Kings scored four times after that to take a 4-1 win.

The Toronto Blue Jays wrapped up a season opening three-game series in St Louis yesterday with a 9-4 loss. They move on to Kansas City today.