Commercial vehicle loaded with volatile substance catches fire, prompts highway closure near Merritt
Highway 97C the Okanagan Connector remains closed in all directions, east of the Highway 5A Junction, as crews continue their work to assess a hazardous commercial vehicle fire. On December 31, 2019 at approximately 1 a.m., Merritt RCMP received a report of a commercial truck fire along Highway 97C east of the Highway 5A Aspen...
Avalanche Canada extends Special Public Avalanche Warning for Purcells
In a media release Friday, Avalanche Canada is extending the Special Public Avalanche issued earlier this week and revising the regions involved. Avalanche Canada said the warning will continue through the weekend but only for the Purcells and Kananaskis Country. Avalanche Canada said forecasters remain concerned about the persistent weak layer that is now buried […]
Fatal crash west of Paulson Summit UPDATED
UPDATED INFORMATION FROM THE RCMP: The investigators have completed a preliminary investigation and found that a westbound commercial tractor-trailer lost control and slid sideways across the three lanes striking the rear of an eastbound commercial transport vehicle and then a smaller Honda SUV before continuing over an...
Castlegar Mounties continue to spread holiday cheer one family at a time
Castlegar RCMP officers and employees open up about their annual holiday gift basket initiative in hopes of inspiring others in the Kootenay’s to give back to their community, especially around the holiday season. For years now the police officers, civilian employees, even friends and family of the Castlegar RCMP have...
MLA lauds grant funding for Castlegar/Rossland organizations
New Democrat MLA Katrine Conroy is welcoming $31,500 in capital project funding for two community organizations in Castlegar and Rossland. One $17,000 grant will go to the Castlegar Sculpturewalk Society to support sculpture infrastructure upgrades throughout the city. Another $14,500 grant will go to the Black Jack Cross Country Ski Club Society to support the […]
Editorial: An object lesson from Uzbekistan
A Kootenay man, environmental consultant Michael Keefer who lives in Rossland and Cranbrook, was invited to go to Uzbekistan for a conference on solutions to the Aralkum Desert problem. While there, he toured the area and took many hundreds of pictures. When I sat down with Keefer, who told me fascinating tales ...
Cycling Unlimited getting closer to goals
Cycling Unlimited is getting closer– to taking seniors and those with mobility issues for outdoor rides on trishaws in Trail and Rossland. The group has been busy fundraising for the past few months and is happy to report some encouraging early results. Co-chair Diana Daghofer says, “First, a great big thank...
Thoughtexchange surges ahead
Rossland-based crowdsourcing intelligence platform, Thoughtexchange, announced on December 5, 2019, that it has secured a $20M Series B financing in an oversubscribed round led by Information Venture Partners (Toronto) with participation from existing investor Yaletown Partners (Vancouver) and new investor Voyager Capital...
David Suzuki bringing climate talk to Trail
"The way we see the world shapes the way we treat it.” That’s a quote from David Suzuki, who is coming to Trail on May 1, 2020 to speak at a public event at the Trail Memorial Centre. An evening with David Suzuki - Human impact on our environment will feature his observations about our collective impact on the environment and...
Column: From the Hill -- on the job back in Ottawa
On Sunday I returned to Ottawa to prepare for the opening of the 43rd Parliament. Last week I was given my shadow cabinet roles—critic for Natural Resources and deputy critic for Transport. I was the critic for Natural Resources for the last four years so know that file well, and issues of transport intersect natural resources...
