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Review Vol.17
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Number 2
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Thursday, January 8, 2015
Serving the communities of Keremeos, Cawston, Okanagan Falls and Kaleden
Family heirlooms destroyed in fire Tara Bowie Review Staff
Tara Bowie
No one was home at the 10th Avenue residence when fire broke out Tuesday.
A Keremeos couple watched a workshop full of tools and family heirlooms go up in smoke Tuesday morning. The fire broke out in a 10th Avenue workshop owned by Jane Slash Brodie and Jim Skerl while no one was home. Son Mackenzie Smith said he was out for breakfast with his mom at a local diner and the pair returned home around 11:30 a.m. Skerl was out walking the family dog. “You could see a small amount of smoke from the driveway when we pulled in. I ran around to the workshop doors and they were warm and that’s when I called 911,” he said. The workshop was divided with half of it being used as a seamstress shop and the other half as a wood shop and storage area. “All things considered, that it could have been where they sleep or the whole house, this could be much worse,” he said. Keremeos firefighters were dispatched by 911 at 11:34 a.m. and arrived soon after. They quickly got water onto the fire. Several firefighters used fans to remove the smoke in the building through an open door at the side. Crews were on scene for several hours putting out hot spots. Smith was relieved the fire was put out as quickly as it was but knew many sentimental and valuable items would be destroyed. “A lot of Jim’s stuff was in there, some things he got from his mom. There will be smoke damage and water and then ice on the stuff that made it through the fire. It’s awful,” he said. At press time the cause of the fire was unknown.
Extreme weather creates challenges for village Review Staff
The holidays were a distant memory Monday morning as residents and business owners started the big digout after mother nature dumped more than a foot of snow on the area. Mayor Manfred Bauer said he’d shovelled his driveway twice by early afternoon and knew he’d be back out again clearing more snow. “I barely made it into the office. I almost
didn’t make it back home,” he said. “It’s pretty obvious we are experiencing some extreme weather here.” After several staff members had to be picked up to get to work Monday, Bauer decided to cancel that evening’s council meeting. “There wasn’t anything pressing scheduled. The snow is creating a challenge everywhere. This is some severe weather,” he said. Village crews were out in full force
throughout the day and night clearing streets as quickly as possible. A contractor was hired to help as more snow and freezing rain was expected Tuesday. “The public works crew has put in long hours over the last couple of days on snow removal,” Laurie Taylor, CAO for the village wrote in an email to the Review. “The village has hired a contractor to help with the snow removal and as of this morning it looks like we are starting to win the battle. We appreci-
Are you ready? Brian Pawluk CFP Financial Advisor 6235 Main St., Oliver 250-485-0005 1-888-314-1131 brian.pawluk@edwardjones.com
ate the patience of the residents during this unusual snow event.” RCMP Cpl. Mike Gallagher was pleasantly surprised Tuesday to find there had been no major collisions during the extreme weather system. “There were a few minor things, some people in the ditch, that kind of thing, but people got out and didn’t really need our assistance,” he said. continued page 10
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