Firefighters end up in physical altercation after responding to call last night
Police are recommending assault charges against a Castlegar man after he allegedly assaulted Castlegar Fire Chief Gerry Rempel last night. Rempel says he answered a call just before 9 p.m., in which a resident (whose name will not be released until/unless the Crown files formal charges) had a fire that was too large to be legal. […]
UPDATE: Second person dies from plane crash near Brenda Mines
The BC Coroners Service has confirmed that a second person — Lauren Patricia Sewell, aged 24, of Surrey — has died from injuries following the crash of a small plane near Brenda Mines Monday ( August 13). Sewell was a passenger aboard a Piper Comanche plane that went down about 30 kilometres west of Kelowna Monday afternoon....
Crews make quick work of two local wildfires — Five Mile Creek and Above Syringa
Crews made quick work of two fires in the West Kootenay — Five Mile Creek and Above Syringa — that started Sunday according to the Southeast Fire Centre. Both fires are now in the mop-up stages after fire crews, with the aid of helicopters, fully contained the blazes Wednesday. Thirteen firefighters working on the ground […]
Five-year-old girl earns praise from police for 911 call
West Shore RCMP is hailing the actions of a five-year-old Vancouver Island girl after she called 911 Wednesday morning when her mother had a seizure. Rebekah Simpson told the 911 dispatcher that her family was in the back yard, while father was at work, but her mother wouldn’t wake up. Simpson’s two younger siblings, Joshua, […]
UPDATED: Saskatchewan man dies of injuries suffered during Shoreacres accident
A Saskatchewan motorcyclist has died from injuries sustained during an accident Tuesday afternoon near the Shoreacres Bridge a few kilometers west of the junction of Highway 3A and 6 in South Slocan. At approximately 2 p.m., Castlegar detachment received a report of a collision between a motorcycle and a Ford Explorer on Highway 3A, west […]
Smoke impacting Grand Forks air quality
The Grand Forks valley has been waking up to intense levels of smoke over the past week. The good news is there are no local fires, but the bad news is the poor air quality is from ongoing fires in Russia. The West Kootenays has three active fires, all believed to be caused by lightening strikes, said Fionna Tollovsen fire ...
Crews close to full containment of two local wildfires
Fire crews are getting the upper hand on two remote fires in the Nelson and Castlegar area. The Five Mile Creek fire, located in the City of Nelson watershed, is now 75 percent contained according to a report on the Southeast Fire Centre website Tuesday. “The fire is not threatening any communities or structures but […]
Shambhala organizers issue release regarding Sunday's overdose death
Shambhala Music Festival is sad to inform the passing of one of our patrons in the early hours of Sunday, Aug. 12. At approximately 5:20 a.m., a patron collapsed in the food court. Several patrons in the area quickly notified first aid services. First responders rushed to the scene and at that time found him […]
Death at Shambhala appears to be overdose
Sunday morning (Aug. 12), Trail RCMP Detachment were contacted by the Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital in Trail. Mitchell Joseph Fleischacker of Sidney was transported from the Shambhala Music Festival near Salmo to Trail, according to RCMP Staff Sgt. Dan Seibel. “It is believed that the (Fleischacker), who had no identification, was suffering from a drug […]
Five Mile Creek fire continues to burn
The Five Mile Creek northeast of Nelson continues to burn as fire crews worked through Monday attempting to get a handle on the blaze. “The fire is not threatening any communities or structures but is generating smoke and fire suppression activity that is visible to local communities,” the Southeast Fire Centre said. “Fire is burning […]
