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AUGUST 7, 2015
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Vol. 64, Issue 151
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Divide between East and West Kootenays C AROLYN GR ANT
The addition of Salmo, Nelson and Kaslo, plus their rural areas, to the Kootenay Columbia riding creates a slightly different pic-
ture in the coming election. Numbers from the 2011 election also illustrate that the divide between East and West Kootenay still remains. In 2011, the riding
did not include the West Kootenay communities, and voted 55.9 per cent in favour of the Conservatives and MP David Wilks. The NDP followed with 33.8 per
cent. The remaining vote was split 5.7 per cent Green, 3.3 per cent Liberal and 1.3 per cent other (there was an independent candidate in 2011).
Over in the West Kootenay, the communities of Nelson, Kaslo and Salmo, and rural areas were almost a mirror image of that, with 58.5 per cent support for
the NDP and 30 per cent for the Conservatives. Both areas had identical voter turnout at 61 per cent. The addition of the West Kootenay communities adds 18,000 plus potential voters to Kootenay Columbia. In the 2011 election there were just over 60,000 potential voters in the riding. Taking a closer look at the 2011 results, one can see that Conservative support is generally strongest in the south — Sparwood voted 75 per cent Conservative, Elkford - 69.9, and Fernie rural 72.4 per cent in fa-
vour of the Conservatives. At the northwest of the riding, in Revelstoke, Conservative support was 40.9 per cent, with 43.4 per cent voting NDP. Revelstoke also had the highest Liberal support at 5.5 per cent, and Green support at 8.2 per cent. Kimberley voted 44.8 per cent Conservative, but the surrounding rural area voted 61.1 per cent for the Conservatives. In Cranbrook, Conservative support was at 61.4 per cent and Cranbrook rural at 66 per cent.
Colonies of feral felines abound in Cranbrook
SPCA tackles wild cat overpopulation TRE VOR CR AWLEY
BARRY COULTER PHOTO
Jingles the Clown, aka Bob Scanland, was on hand at the Cranbrook Vendors’ Market in Rotary Park, Wednesday, Aug. 5, to demonstrate that the art of the balloon animal is alive and well and still a huge hit with the youngsters. See more, Page 2.
Unknown man discovered in Invermere identified COLU M BIA VA LL EY PIONEER
During the evening of August 1, an unconscious man was located in Invermere next to his mountain bike. He was taken to Invermere Hospital then flown to Foothills hospital with serious head injuries. The evidence at the scene
leads the investigators to believe that the man was riding down a steep hill. At the bottom of the hill on a curve, the road divides into a Y intersection. The male did not negotiate a turn and ended up in a ditch filled with large rocks. A search of the scene and
of the person found no identification. No missing person reports or overdue persons were received. With the assistance of the media and social media, tips were received that resulted in a positive identification. The injured male has been
identified as Jacob Daniel MacNeil, 25, of Invermere. The Columbia Valley RCMP Detachment would like to thank the media for their assistance as well as the public that took note of this story via social media and provided information.
Looking around Cranbrook, you might not think there is a major feral cat problem. But there is, according to the B.C. SPCA East Kootenay branch. Feral cats are different from your regular housebound feline as they are born ‘in the wild’ and are not domesticated or habituated to human contact. What makes it problematic is the population — or overpopulation — of feral cats in the community, according to Brenna Baker, the SPCA EK branch manager. “It is quite high for our population in the City of Cranbrook, there
are a lot of feral cats. some of them are looked after by people who feed them and other ones are just free roaming and kind of fending for themselves,” Baker said. “There are cat colonies, which means there are groups of cats living together and they’re wild. “There’s the odd domesticated cat in those colonies, but there are very few and what’s happening is they keep breeding and reproducing and it’s getting out of control. “It does cause a nuisance for people when they’re not managed properly.”
See SPCA, Page 3