BUSINESS BUSINESS THE CENTRAL
INSIDE INSIDE HIGHLY TOUTED
833 serving our community serving our 1930 to 2013 community 1930 to 2013
HIGHLY TOUTED Immaculata Regional Immaculata Regional High School volleyball High volleyball playerSchool Siobhan player Siobhan Fitzpatrick has decided Fitzpatrick decidedto to stay herehas agreeing to stay here agreeing to play for UBCO. A16 play for UBCO.
THURSDAY THURSDAY May 23, 2013
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OKANAGAN THE CENTRALECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OKANAGAN ECONOMIC COMMISSION will hold DEVELOPMENT its second annualwill Business COMMISSION hold Walk next annual week toBusiness hear its second directly from manufacturing Walk next week to hear businesses here. directly from manufacturing businesses here.
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ENTERTAINMENT ENTERTAINMENT THE POWER of words will
Folds down for easy storage Fantastic Deal…
be onPOWER display June 1 when THE of words will Syrian-Canadian Ghada be on display Junepoet 1 when Alatrash performspoet an evening Syrian-Canadian Ghada of poetryperforms and musicanatevening the Alatrash French Cultural Centre in of poetry and music at the Kelowna. French Cultural Centre in Kelowna.
B1 B1
34999
$
7021P
Watch for our flyers in Friday’s paper
1892 Spall Rd 250-868-1010 • 1892 Byland Rd 250-769-7355
23,Okanagan’s 2013 TheMay Central Best-Read The CentralNewspaper Okanagan’s Best-Read Newspaper www.kelownacapnews.com www.kelownacapnews.com
▼ WEATHER ▼ WEATHER
Rain raising level of Okanagan Lake Rain raising level of Okanagan Lake THE MORE RAIN WE GET, THERAIN LESS THE MORE ROOM IS IN WE GET,THERE THE LESS OKANAGAN ROOM THERELAKE IS IN FOR NORMALLAKE OKANAGAN SNOWMELT FOR NORMAL RUNOFF. SNOWMELT Des Anderson RUNOFF. Des Anderson
However, the forecastHowever, for the rest the the offoreweek and weekend is for cast for the rest of the showers, he isfeels week and which weekend for the lake which can handle, as showers, he feels long as they don’t turn the lake can handle, as into heavy rain.don’t turn long as they good intoThe heavy rain.news is that the The cooler has goodweather news is that slowed the rate of snow the cooler weather has melt. the rate of snow slowed Environment Canada melt. meteorologist Doug LunEnvironment Canada dquist said this upper low meteorologist Doug Lunpressure is nordquist saidsystem this upper low mal for mid-May pressure system through is norJuly 7; what he calls mal for mid-May through the Okanagan’s July 7; what he ‘moncalls soon Okanagan’s season,’ with lots of the ‘monrain showers and stormy soon season,’ with lots of weather. rain showers and stormy There was even snow weather. thisThere week on Pass, wasAllison even snow this week on Allison Pass,
WARREN HENDERSON/CAPITAL NEWS
IT’S NOT JUST PEDESTRIANS who have had to cope withHENDERSON/CAPITAL heavy rain this week, WARREN NEWS local NOT creeks,JUST and even Okanagan Lake,who are feeling thetoeffects of allheavy this percipitation. IT’S PEDESTRIANS have had cope with rain this week, local creeks, and even Okanagan Lake, are feeling the effects of all this percipitation. is also closed until further notice. is also closed until further People are warned that notice. water levels rise that unPeople aremay warned expectedly water levels and may children rise unexpectedly and children
and pets, in particular, shouldpets, be kept from and in back particular, the banks of creeks which should be kept back from maybanks be slippery or subject the of creeks which to erosion with high water. may be slippery or subject to erosion with high water.
LEASING IS BACK! RATES AS LOW AS 0.9%
ONLY Cadillac Dealer IN THE OKANAGAN VALLEY SINCE 1977
JACOBSEN EXCELLENCE
www.jacobsen.ca • 250-860-7700
Boaters are advised to watch for flare oating debris Boaters advised to that may enter the lake as watch for floating debris a result the runoff. that mayofenter the lake as ajsteeves@kelownacapnews.com result of the runoff. jsteeves@kelownacapnews.com
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the Okanagan Connector of the Coquihalla Highthe Okanagan Connector way and the Coquihalla itof the Coquihalla Highself, he way andsaid. the Coquihalla itsaid it was very self,He he said. dryHe in the for saidOkanagan it was very Mayinuntil black storm dry thethe Okanagan for cloudsuntil moved in Tuesday. May the black storm Unfortunately, he clouds moved in Tuesday. said,Unfortunately, it’s difficult to prehe dict how much will said, it’s diffi cultrain to precomehow in the next few dict much rain days will because depends come in itthesimply next few days on where the storms debecause it simply depends velop, but the he storms did expect on where dethere would velop, but he be did another expect dump would before be Sunday or there another so when it’s expected dump before Sundaythis or system to break so whenwill it’sbegin expected this up and dissipate. system will begin to break Deputy emergency up and dissipate. program Deputy coordinator emergency Brian Moore,coordinator also adprogram ministration offi cer adfor Brian Moore, also the Kelowna Fire Departministration officer for ment, said there were a the Kelowna Fire Departcouple of reports of light-a ment, said there were ning strikes Tuesday in couple of reports of lightthe Black Mountain area, ning strikes Tuesday in but Black fire fighters couldn’t the Mountain area, find fianything, it’s exbut re fighterssocouldn’t pected the rainsoputit’sthem fi nd anything, exout. the rain put them pected out.Mission Creek is rising Mission and the Creek regional is disristrict and has the again closed disthe ing regional Mission Creek Greenway trict has again closed the underpassCreek at the Casorso Mission Greenway Road Bridge. underpass at the Casorso Greenway Road Bridge. users are advised to use caution Greenway users and are cross Casorso Road only advised to use caution and when it is safe, and motorcross Casorso Road only ists areit asked watch for when is safe,toand motorgreenway users crossing ists are asked to watch for the road in the area. greenway users crossing The trail the south the road in theon area. sideThe of Mission Creek at trail on the south the Gordon DriveCreek Bridge side of Mission at the Gordon Drive Bridge
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The Okanagan, particularly around Mission The Okanagan, parCreek, isaround under Mission a high ticularly streamflow advisory, of Creek, is under a as high mid-Wednesday, followstreamflow advisory, as of ing a series of rainstorms mid-Wednesday, followthat a swept the ing series ofthrough rainstorms valley Tuesday and Wedthat swept through the nesday.Tuesday and Wedvalley Downpours of rain nesday. drummed on hard surDownpours of rain faces and on left hard poolssurof drummed water on roads, as well as faces and left pools of swelling waterways water on roads, as welllike as Mission waterways Creek, which swelling like peaked at flows of 58 Mission Creek, which cubic metres per second peaked at flows of 58 early Wednesday—a onecubic metres per second in-three-year event, onereearly Wednesday—a ported Des Anderson, in-three-year event, secretion head public safety ported DesofAnderson, secand protection at thesafety Mintion head of public istryprotection of NaturalatResource and the MinOperations. istry of Natural Resource The severe thunderOperations. storm issued The warning severe thunderby Environment storm warning Canada issued ended Wednesday, after by Environment Canada thunderstorms and overended Wednesday, after night showers eased thunderstorms and up. overMission night showersCreek easedstarted up. to rise late Tuesday evenMission Creek started ing,rise andlate went from evenflows to Tuesday of 23 cubic metres per ing, and went from flows second to 58 on Wednesof 23 cubic metres per day. to 58 on Wednessecond day.With additional rain forecast, runoff from With and additional rain the veryand large Mission forecast, runoff from Creekverywatershed still the large Mission working watershed its way into still the Creek creek and down to the valworking its way into the ley bottom, Anderson ancreek and down to the valticipated would conley bottom,it Anderson antinue rising. ticipated it would conOkanagan tinue rising. Lake has Okanagan Lake has
sion Creek watershed there was 25 sion Creeka further watershed millimetres of rainfall, there was a further 25 with some snow in that, millimetres of rainfall, Tuesday. with some snow in that, “The more rain we get Tuesday. the “The less room thereweisget in more rain Okanagan Lake for northe less room there is in mal snowmelt runoff,” exOkanagan Lake for norplained Anderson. mal snowmelt runoff,” explained Anderson.
McCurdy Rd.
HW Y
STAFF REPORTER
also been rising and by Wednesday it was 35 also been rising and by centimetres above normal Wednesday it was 35 for this timeabove of the year, centimetres normal and just 18 centimetres for this time of the year, from just full 18 pool,centimetres a level it and doesn’t reach from fullgenerally pool, a level it until the middle of June. doesn’t generally reach said untilAnderson the middle of June.the ministry has said been the reAnderson leasing as much as posministry has been resible from lakeas system leasing as the much posdownstream since the besible from the lake system ginning of May. downstream since the beA complicating issue ginning of May. is that there are already A complicating issue issues the south of the is that inthere are already valley where issues in the high southgroundof the water where has flooded fields valley high groundalong the water has Okanagan flooded fiRivelds er and along the Osoyoos Okanagan Lake Rivhas and risen Osoyoos above its target er Lake levelrisen for this timeitsoftarget year, has above in part because the Simlevel for this time of year, ilkameen River the is Simalso in part because very high and has isbacked ilkameen River also up into Osoyoos Lake. very high and has backed WithOsoyoos the rainstorms, up into Lake. it’s expected rise again. With thetorainstorms, “We’re to risedischarit’s expected again. ging“We’re as much as possible discharfrom asOkanagan Lake, ging much as possible balancing that withLake, refrom Okanagan leases from Osoyoos balancing that with reLake. Flows Okaleases from from Osoyoos nagan Flows Lake are close to Lake. from Okathe design capacity of nagan Lake are close to the channel, at 53 methe design capacity of ters per second,atin53 a chanthe channel, menel per designed ters second,to in ahandle chan60 metres per to second of nel designed handle flow,” he explained. 60 metres per second of High flows in flow,” he tributary explained. the High Southtributary Okanagan flowsare in contributing even more the South Okanagan are runoff to the swollen river contributing even more due to tothetheheavy rainfall, runoff swollen river he noted. due to the heavy rainfall, And, high in the Mishe noted. And, high in the Mis-
the
Judie Steeves STAFF REPORTER Judie Steeves
★ Leathead Rd. Hwy 33w