TUESDAYFEBRUARY 11, 2014
Official newspaper of the Save-On-Foods Oceanside Generals
www.pqbnews.com
BCYCNA
Gold 2012 General Excellence
WINE, BEER, FOOD, FUN
RETURNING LOST DOGS TO OWNERS
Parksville Uncorked showcases B.C.’s best at two resorts
Errington woman starts local version of successful pet-finding organization
A24
A4
PARKSVILLE CRIME
Stabbing downtown Victim suffered collapsed lung and was rushed to hospital CANDACE WU news@pqbnew.com
A 34-year-old man was sent to hospital with a collapsed lung after what police are calling a targeted stabbing in Parksville at approximately 1.30 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 6. According to Oceanside RCMP, the victim, who is known to police, was walking along Corfield Street towards downtown Parksville when he was allegedly approached by two males in their late 20s to early 30s. “This incident was not a random act,” said Oceanside RCMP Sgt. Eric Rochette. According to an RCMP press release, a confrontation ensued amongst the three men, resulting in the victim being punched in the face and stabbed in the back. The victim fled the scene and flagged down a passing driver, who gave him a ride to a nearby gas station. The victim then returned to his residence and reported the incident to police. The male was taken to hospital with a collapsed lung, but Mounties said they expect he will make a full recovery. Police say the victim offered few details of the incident for their investigation. RCMP would like to speak with the driver who reportedly picked up the victim.
SERIES STARTS THURSDAY
Poverty in paradise There are people in this community who are barely getting by. Some live in terror of the coming months because they don’t know how they are going to pay their rent, feed themselves or put gas in their vehicles. Reporter Lissa Alexander is diving into issues related to poverty in this area in a three-part series beginning Thursday, Feb. 13, in The NEWS.
JOHN HARDING PHOTO
An Errington Fire Department volunteer hits the flames with spray from his hose on Sunday morning in a house donated to the department for training exercises. See more photos on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/PQBNews.
FIREFIGHTERS GET VALUABLE TRAINING IN ERRINGTON
Burning down the house JOHN HARDING
editor@pqbnews.com
Chief Troy Bater sent me into the burning building with George Klemm, a man with 40 years experience fighting fires and for that, I was grateful. They named a fire hall in Errington after the guy, so I figured I was in good hands. The Errington Volunteer Fire Department gained some valuable experience Sunday when they were able to burn, and extinguish, a house donated to them by a family who planned to demolish the structure.
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Bater decided to offer this reporter a chance to see what it’s like to fight a structure fire and to see how fire reacts and spreads. A number of volunteers had to take time away from their training to put me in gear and explain how it all worked. I retained some of it. Thankfully, Klemm was not only patient with this interloper, he was descriptive and got me up close and personal with flames and thick smoke. He explained everything in detail while keeping me in grabbing distance, regardless of whether we were standing
g n i k o o b w No Valentine ! s r e v O e Mak
in a smoke-filled room or laying on our sides looking up at fire licking the ceiling. Before I went inside, volunteer firefighters Penny Portman and Chris Bergen got me all geared up. It’s many pounds of jacket, pants, boots, tank, helmet and mask. And they all have clasps and hooks and straps. Portman and Bergen were very patient. Next came the sobering talk from deputy chief Brad Knorr. See PREVENTION, page A3
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