FILM STAR | Vernon’s Larry Kwong breaking NHL colour barrier in 1948 subject of new documentary [A3]
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Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2014
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3202 29TH Street, Vernon • 250-545-0627
Fire rips through Coldstream mill JENNIFER SMITH Morning Star Staff
Employees weren’t five minutes into their morning break when dark smoke started seeping from one of the kilns at Coldstream Lumber Tuesday. Vinton Rickett, a forklift driver at the Ricardo Road mill, was quick to alert everyone to the blaze. “I saw smoke and yelled fire,” said Rickett, who has no idea how the fire was sparked since the kilns were shut down and, thankfully, no one was in the building at the time. There were also reports of an explosion and electrical breakers blowing. As smoke continued to pour from the structure, workers actively fought the fire with small hoses until firefighters arrived. “One of our initial attack crew was taken to hospital with smoke inhalation,” said Rickett. The call, which came in before 9 a.m., drew firefighters from Coldstream, Lavington, Lumby and BX-Swan Lake, as well as
JENNIFER SMITH/MORNING STAR
Firefighters battle a blaze at Coldstream Lumber Tuesday morning. For a video of the fire visit www.vernonmorningstar.com B.C. Ambulance, Terasen Gas and assistance, including an excavator, from the District of Coldstream. “With a fire like this, with this much fuel, in midAugust, with it being this dry, there’s no point in taking any chances,” said Coldstream
Fire Chief Shane Code. “We just needed to put a lot of big water on a big fire.” Initially the fire was contained to the building, but was spewing smoke which was visible from Vernon. “It was the ugliest colour smoke you’ll ever see,” said
one witness. Coldstream Lumber employee Cal Scheske recalls seeing: “Lots of flame and lots of smoke coming from out of our kiln which is not a good thing. “It’s definitely scary,” said Scheske. “I’ve worked in
mills all my life and it’s the first fire I’ve ever seen in a mill.” As Scheske and the other employees stood on scene watching the firefighters battle the blaze, there were some concerns about how the damage would impact
their jobs. But Scheske is confident any interruption will be temporary. “We’ll probably be up and running in no time.” While the heat of the blaze melted the front of the giant white canopy, fire crews managed to quarantine the fire to the kiln building. But there were concerns of collapse, as one wall had fallen down. No cause of the fire is known at this time as the blaze remains under investigation. “It’s too early to tell, the workers couldn’t tell us anything,” said Code. As firefighters battled the blaze throughout the day and continued to monitor the site into the night, Code is grateful for the assistance of all, including B.C. Ambulance. “They’ve done a great job of taking care of folks and making sure that our firefighters are rested and hydrated and make sure that the workers who were on scene are treated and assessed.”
Four arrested after shots fired ROGER KNOX Morning Star Staff
ROGER KNOX/MORNING STAR
A Vernon RCMP officer searches for suspects following reports of shots fired near Polson Park Tuesday morning.
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Four people are in police custody after a firearms incident in Vernon Tuesday. Vernon RCMP received numerous reports of shots fired in the area of Polson Park at around 8 a.m. “Our officers immediately set up containment in the area,” said Vernon RCMP spokesperson Gord Molendyk. “Witnesses reported there were multiple people involved and several shots fired. Our officers requested the assistance from our helicopter and our dog teams to search for suspects.” One person, a Vernon man,
6425 Hwy 97 N, Vernon BC bannisterhonda.com 250-545-0531 • 888-545-0531
was arrested and taken into custody near Polson Park. Molendyk confirmed shots were fired but he was not aware of any firearm or firearms being found. During the early stage of the investigation, RCMP in Kelowna were made aware of the events in Vernon from their counterparts. That led police in Kelowna to keep an eye out for a suspect vehicle, a green Chevrolet Cavalier. It was spotted by officers in Kelowna on Highway 97 near Mills Road just after 11 a.m., then again just before noon by Kelowna plainclothes officers in the 1000 block of Glenmore Road. Through a combined effort
between the Kelowna RCMP street enforcement team, general duty patrol officers, RCMP air services and police service dogs, the vehicle was stopped and three individuals in the car were taken into police custody without incident. The trio arrested are a 34-yearold Vernon man, a 23-year-old man from Surrey, and a 28-yearold Toronto woman. All three suspects were arrested for possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and remain in police custody. There have been no reports of injuries relating to the gunshots. It is believed all parties are known to each other. The incident remains under investigation.
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