Latest news with #Okanagan
CTV News
18 hours ago
- General
- CTV News
‘It was magical': B.C. woman sees grizzly bear and cubs from balcony
A Big White resident was treated to a rare sight of a grizzly bear and her two cubs over the weekend. A resident of a ski resort in B.C.'s Okanagan was treated to a rare sight over the weekend. On Saturday morning, Michelle Smith spotted a mother grizzly bear and two cubs from her balcony, right in the village at Big White. She watched the cubs play and roll around on the hill while their mom ate grass. After about an hour and a half, a car from a nearby construction site drove through the area and the bears moved into the woods. 'It was magical to watch and to see the babies just instinctively following mum around,' Smith told CTV News. 'It was beautiful to watch, absolutely beautiful, but I was glad that I was three levels up on my balcony.' In her six years of living at Big White, Smith says she's never seen or heard of grizzly bears entering the town. She says the community has committed to being noisier in the coming days to encourage the bear family to move somewhere less populated, for the safety of the animals and locals. 'Obviously we're living in their habitat, but we don't want them right in the village around people and on the walking paths,' she said. 'I hope that all of the community work together to discourage them, like by keeping all their trash inside, keeping their dogs on leash and staying away from them, just being loud when they're out and about, that's my hope. I don't want anything to happen to them, but I don't want anything to happen to any humans either.' CTV News has reached out to the B.C. Conservation Officer Service to determine whether they have been notified about the grizzlies or are taking any actions, and will update this story if a response is received. If you encounter a grizzly bear, WildSafeBC says to stay calm and back away slowly. If the animal approaches, use bear spray, and if it attacks, the organization says the best defense is to lie on your stomach, protect the back your head with your hands and spread your feet slightly apart to avoid getting rolled over.
CTV News
20 hours ago
- General
- CTV News
Newborn fawn rescued from Okanagan cliff
Central Okanagan Search and rescue shared this photo of a rescued fawn on May 31, 2025. (Facebook/CentralOkanaganSAR) Search and rescue crews doing a training exercise in the Okanagan saved a newborn fawn that had fallen down a cliff Saturday. Central Okanagan Search and Rescue shared the news in a social media post, saying the baby deer was spotted trapped on a cliff in Kalamalka Lake Park at Rattlesnake Point. 'The mule deer fawn was likely no more than one day old. She was quite wet and breathing quickly when we rescue her, but she was otherwise uninjured. We were able to access her… and carry her to the top of the steep cliff where her mother was last seen,' said COSAR boat captain Mitch LaRue, in a Facebook post. 'We have rescued dozens of people over the years and even a few dogs, but a newborn baby deer was definitely a first for me.' Fawning season in B.C. is from May to June, and the B.C. SPCA issues advice annually to anyone who spots what they think is a baby deer in need of rescuing. According to the charity, it's normal for a doe to leave her newborn fawn alone for lengthy periods of time. 'Fawns can't follow their mothers for the first two weeks, so they spend nearly all their time alone. Mom comes back generally around dawn and dusk to nurse them,' a post on the organization's website says. 'Fawns are only cat-sized when born, so it's normal for them to look small and weak.' Anyone who is worried a fawn has been orphaned or abandoned is urged to monitor the animal and consult with an expert before taking action. Signs the animal may need rescuing include if it is seen staying in the same hiding spot for more than 24 hours, or if it is 'wandering aimlessly' and/or 'crying continuously,' the B.C. SPCA says. People who think they have spotted a fawn in distress are urged to contact a local wildlife rehabilitator or the Conservation Officer Service at 1-877-952-7277.
CBC
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBC
Brian Thomas Isaac says the follow-up to his award-winning debut novel mirrors his own life
Social Sharing It's the summer of 1968 and 16-year-old Lewis Toma is spending the summer with his cousins while his mom picks fruit in the United States. It's a summer of firsts — living in a home with more modern conveniences, like a hot shower, and drinking beer and eating greasy chicken while listening to rock 'n' roll music. This all happens two years after Lewis's brother disappeared. That's the situation in Syilx writer Brian Thomas Isaac's new book, Bones of a Giant, the sequel to his award-winning debut novel All the Quiet Places. Bones of a Giant mirrors his life, Isaac told CBC's Radio West host Sarah Penton. Growing up on the Okanagan Indian Reserve, he said he and his mother and grandmother were isolated. "There was nobody up there. Nobody. We lived in a house with basically the whole world to ourselves. It was lonely, but then we got used to it." When he had to leave his home and go to school for the first time, he was terrified. "It's like going to Mars to me, you know? I didn't know what to expect and it was scary." He left school in Grade 8, because Isaac said he couldn't take the racism, and became a labourer. At 18, Isaac left his home in B.C. for northern Alberta to work in the oil patch for two years. He returned to his community with a nice new car, but missed the money he was making up north, so left again. When it didn't work out, he returned back to the Okanagan. He was a bricklayer for many years before he became a writer — at age 70. "When I was really young, I wrote a lot of poetry," Isaac said. While working on fixing up a home he and his wife had bought, he sat down and he started writing. Before he knew it, he had the makings of a novel. "I didn't know how to write," he said. "I read for two years the best books I could get my hands on, and it kind of came through me, you know, like osmosis and then I finished the book. I got a great editor. She was just amazing, taught me so much." 36 Canadian books you should be reading in May Isaac describes his first book as "cleansing," but said Bones of a Giant was much more fun to write. "Friday nights my wife and I would, in the old days, we'd read little short stories to each other for fun," he said. "Now, we sit around and I read my week's work and we have great laughs and discussions. She's amazing to bounce ideas off." In his writing, his intention is to show that First Nations people are just that — people. "We all have pains and we all have tears," Isaac said. "I really wanted people to experience what it's like to walk right beside someone, to walk them through the whole book."
Global News
4 days ago
- Business
- Global News
City of Vernon vows to meet with non-profits after backlash over rent at civic facilities
More non-profit groups are denouncing what they call significant rental fee increases imposed by the City of Vernon at civic properties used for community events. 'It's hard,' said Ingrid Baron, chair of the Creative Chaos event. 'It's hard if we all go, 'Who is going to rent these facilities?'' Creative Chaos, Canada's largest craft fair, brings in thousands of people every year. The event is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year and for the first time in its history, aside from the COVID-19 pandemic, will be operating at a loss. 'We tightened up on a few things,' Baron said. 'We were going to have a bit of a bigger celebration thing, so we've tightened up there. We tightened up on our performing arts, dipped into some savings.' Story continues below advertisement The cost-cutting measures, Baron said, were necessary as the non-profit society has to pay a lot more this year to rent the venue space at the Vernon Recreation Centre. 'We were shocked because it was a 32-per cent increase from the year before,' Baron said. The Vernon Farmers' Market is in a similar situation. It rents the parking lot at Kal Tire Place every Monday and Thursday and it too is now faced with much higher rental fees. 'It's significant, ' said Sarah Martel, president of the Vernon Farmers' Market Society. 'A big increase.' According to Martel, the rent hike has tripled in just two years going from around $3,000 to $14,000 a year. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'It's forced us to increase the price for vendors,' Martel said. 'As a result, we have seen a decrease in the amount of vendors that come. If they're making a loss every day, you know, where do they go from there?' Martel said the market has decreased by about half the size it was five years ago, with only about 80 vendors left. While part of that is blamed on the pandemic, more recently it's the rising fees that are contributing to the shrinking market. Story continues below advertisement 'It's really sad because all the money that's spent at the farmers' market, and even the money that's created and generated by these small businesses, it all stays in Vernon and it all goes to the Vernon local economy,' Martel said. 2:16 Okanagan Military Tattoo cancelled due to soaring rental fees The Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce has been advocating for fairer fees for non-profit user groups since 2023 arguing it is in the community's best interest. 'Unfortunately, we haven't seen the results that we had hoped for,' said Dan Proulx, the chamber's general manager. 'So what we're seeing now is unfortunately the effects of those increases that we warned the city was going to happen.' Proulx referred to the long-running Okanagan Military Tattoo that earlier this year pulled the plug on the event and cited the rental fee hike as the final straw for the tough decision. Story continues below advertisement In an email to Global News, the city's chief administrative officer, Peter Weeber, stated he's aware of the concerns over the rental fees for city facilities and plans on addressing them. 'I will be meeting with these organizations in person, including the Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce, in the coming weeks to better understand their specific concerns,' Weeber said. 'If there are challenges, I want to harness the knowledge and experience within the business community to help address them.' At the farmers' market on Thursday, some shoppers questioned why the city is putting up barriers at a time when buying local is top of mind for so many. 'The timing is absolutely inappropriate, atrocious and ridiculous,' said Vernon resident Rhonda Kohen. 'I don't understand it and where their heads are at because it hurts the city.' Last week, the city stated it had to strike balance between fees paid by the user and subsidization through taxation needs.
CTV News
4 days ago
- General
- CTV News
No one jumped or fell into Kelowna creek, RCMP confirm after search called off
Members of Central Okanagan Search and Rescue search the Mission Creek on May 28, 2025. (Credit: Facebook/CentralOkanaganSAR) Mounties in Kelowna have concluded that no one jumped or fell into Mission Creek on Wednesday night, after a report from the public sparked a search and rescue effort that evening. Central Okanagan Search and Rescue deployed to the mouth of the swollen creek around 5 p.m. after witnesses reported that 'a young, fit female wearing a dark blue shirt and dark shorts' may have jumped into the water. The report was considered 'unconfirmed,' COSAR said in a social media post announcing that it had called off the search until more information was received. Read more: Search and rescue crews appeal for information in Kelowna creek incident 'It has been determined that two athletic youth were enjoying a competitive run down the mission creek greenway at the time of a reported female jumping into the creek,' Kelowna RCMP said in an update on the case Friday. 'However, the father of the two youths called police to report his daughters, who match the initial description, jumped off a bridge in the same reported area, down onto the trail to continue their run and are home safe.' Police thanked the witnesses who made the initial report, as well as COSAR for its efforts searching the creek. 'Police took this matter very seriously with several resources in the search including foot patrols, police boats, a drone and the RCMP helicopter flying both in the day and at night,' Mounties said. 'The RCMP would like to remind the public to be diligent when using the outdoors, particularly around the waterways. With the spring runoff continuing, water levels are very high and the currents are strong, making creeks and rivers very dangerous at this time of the year.'
