THE
Review
www.keremeosreview.com PM Agreement #40012521
Vol.16 Number 25
See the B section in this issue
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Serving the communities of Keremeos, Cawston, Okanagan Falls and Kaleden
$1.15 including GST
FATHERS DAY AT THE MILL
Sunday was busy at the Grist Mill See page 8
FAMILY FISHING WEEKEND
Photo contributed
A log deck at T.L. Timber in Cawston burns furiously after a suspected lightning strike ignited three fires in the Lower Similkameen last Thursday, June 12.
Lots of angling activity at Yellow Lake See page 8
CONTRACT TALKS FAIL
School year ends with full blown strike See page 3
Lightning strikes Cawston - again By Steve Arstad news@keremeosreview.com It was a storm of very short duration, but the brief thundershower that swept down the Lower Similkameen valley on Thursday afternoon, June 12, kept the Keremeos and District Volunteer Fire Department scrambling to keep up with three fires. At this point, lightning appears to be the most reasonable explanation for the blazes, which began shortly before 2 p.m. Thursday afternoon. A storm cell that brought thunder, lightning and about a 15 minute downpour set the fire department in motion to the first call, which was easily identified as a lightning strike, on the upper elevation of a mountain in the Ashnola valley.
Forestry officials were called to contend with that blaze, but shortly after members returned to the firehall, a second call out had the KDVFD responding to a brush fire in the Willis Ranch Road area, at approximately 3:45 p.m. The fire was burning in scrap brush, tree limbs and tall grass alongside a fenced off farmers field. Fire crews were still at work when the third call came for a fire in the T.L. Timber log yard in Cawston. There, firefighters were faced with a large log deck that was fully ablaze. T.L. Timber had a crew already working the fire, as nearby neighbours and other community members saw the smoke and jumped in to help. “It was a real community effort,” said T.L.Timber Operations Manager Clayton
Hillman. He said the fire began in a small log deck adjacent to a larger one. He had just returned from a road trip and was sitting down to supper around 5 p.m. when a passing motorist stopped to tell him of the fire. “I can’t say enough about the response we had,” Hillman said, “Neighbours, staff and friends, our logging company staff, our own staff, everyone stepped forward to help.” In spite of the initial efforts, the fire eventually spread to three log decks. Crews spent nearly six hours on site, their efforts aided by intermittent rain that became steady as the evening wore on. “We have lots of fire fighting capacity here,” Hilman said, “ we’ve got water trucks, continued on page 3