SMOKE FROM A DISTANT FIRE
The heavy smoke, orange sky and ash that’s falling on your car isn’t coming from the Philpott Road fire. BC Wildfire figures it is coming from south of the border including a large fire in Washington State. There are also a couple in the Kootenays that could be contributing to it. So depending on the winds it may stick around for a while.
PHILPOTT FIRE
As of yesterday afternoon the Philpott Road Wildfire was still pegged at about 465 hectares in size and only 20% contained. It continues to burn in steep terrain. More residents of Joe Rich were allowed to go home yesterday but about 200 still remain on evacuation order. Highway 33 was fully reopened in the afternoon but it’s a good idea to check with Drive BC because it can change at any time.
Aug. 26
BEARS
Bears have been spotted in several West Kelowna neighbourhoods and the city is reminding residents to be bear aware. As Yogi and his buddies prepare for winter denning, there are a few things residents can do such as putting garbage out only on the morning of collection, pick ripe fruit and clean up any that have fallen.
SCHOOLS
One more long weekend coming up before kids head back to the 1,566 public schools and 360 independent schools in BC. Locally, construction continues on the new Okanagan Mission Junior Middle school – a project worth $36.1-million. The operating budget for public and independent schools in the province this year is just under 6 Billion dollars.
MOBILE IPAD
Interior Health’s mobile RV overdose prevention unit is getting a unique technological boost courtesy of Okanagan College’s Enactus team. The team purchased and installed two iPads last week. Access will be free and is open to all visitors as a resource to connect with their family.
WARRIORS FIRST RESPONDERS
The West Kelowna Warriors will be hosting a First Responders Appreciation Night at their home opener on Saturday, September 9th against the Trail Smoke Eaters. The Warriors would like to show their respect to the hard-working men and women who risk their lives every day in order to keep us safe. We’ll give you more details next week about some of the events that will take place.
BUDGET UPDATE
The John Horgan minority government will give us its version of what the province’s finances look like on September 11th. Finance Minister Carole James will deliver a budget update which she says will include money for education. BC ended the last fiscal year with a budget surplus of 2.7 billion dollars.
LIBERAL LEADER
BC liberals will choose their next leader in February. Every member of the party will have an opportunity to vote online or by phone over three days. Every leadership contestant will be required to participate in party-sponsored debates or forums in Vancouver, Surrey, Prince George, Nanaimo, and the Thompson-Okanagan region. There will also be one organized by the BC Liberal Indigenous Network. The winner will be announced February 4th.
TEXAS FLOODING
Tropical storm Harvey has killed at least 15 people, displaced tens of thousands and produced the most rainfall ever for one storm in history of the continental United States. But it is going to get worse as at least one levee overflowed and engineers had to release water from behind at two dams, which then rushed into Houston flooding even more areas. Some parts around Houston have received more than 100 centimetres of rain.
Whitecaps on Interstate 10 near Houston. @Dade Phelan
SPORTS
The Blue Jays were shut out 3-0 by Boston last night. They’ll play one more game today at 4 before Toronto moves on to Baltimore.
The West Kelowna Warriors have another preseason game tonight. They take on the Vees in Penticton. West Kelowna is 2 and 1 so far in the BCHL preseason.
It’s not a huge surprise after losing their first eight games of the season. June Jones has decided on a quarterback change for his first game as head coach of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Jeremiah Masoli will start the Labour Day Classic against the Toronto Argonauts in place of Zach Collaros.
The Air Canada Centre in Toronto will be renamed Scotiabank Arena beginning July 1, 2018 after the bank struck a 20-year agreement with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment worth a reported $800 million. Scotiabank reported a profit for the last quarter of 2.1 billion dollars.
Teemu Selanne and Paul Kariya will be honoured by the Anaheim Ducks in a ceremony before their November 19 game against the Florida Panthers. The ceremony will fall less than a week after the dynamic duo’s induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 13.
The Houston Texans and Dallas Cowboys will donate proceeds from tomorrow’s preseason game to the United Way to assist with Hurricane Harvey relief efforts. A number of players, teams and leagues have also said that they will be making donations.
