55 YEARS AGO:
Attendees at a meeting about mosquitoes were told that the Fisheries Department would allow controlled spraying of mosquito areas with DDT provided there was an organized group to provide information and maps and other pertinent materials.
After receiving the required information, the Fisheries Department would authorize spraying with possible restrictions where salmon areas could be affected.
A review of the previous year’s mosquito program in the North Thompson told a story those listening were all too familiar with. The valley has problems of difficult access, much bush cover, lots of water laying in pools (10,000 acres of it) and a sparse population.
50 YEARS AGO:
The regional district meeting for Thompson-Nicola area showed increasing concern for pollution control. John Harwood, are A representative, said if pollution bylaws were to be formulated then her though approval should be given to hiring a person to enforce the pollution rules in the area. He said he was appalled by what is coming out of burners as he drives to Kamloops.
Clair Methot made a motion that approval in principle should be given to hiring an inspector when a set of bylaws are in existence, but received no support for the meeting.
Harwood was asked to continue with investigation into bylaws and costs.
45 YEARS AGO:
Clearwater was now on the map — at least as far as philately was concerned. Mr. and Mrs. Bill Anderson travelled to Spokane, Washington to the 17th annual Inland Empire Philatelic Society where Bill entered a display.
Much to his surprise, the judges gave him the first prize gold award. There were 178 entries from all over western United States and British Columbia competing. Bill received the prize gold award from the judges following some very tight decisions for his display of Canadian Coil-Stops and Starts in which he was considered by many to be one of the foremost specialists in Canada. His collection of Canadian coils was amongst the biggest known.
40 YEARS AGO:
Commenting on his recent appointments as NDP critic on economic development and small business, Kamloops-Shuswap M.P. Nelson Riis noted:
“I am delighted with the challenge presented by this double appointment since these two areas are of immediate and immense concern to so many Canadians. The bleak economic forecasts for the Canadian economy in the coming year ought to encourage the consideration of real policy alternatives. We are dealing with people’s hopes and dreams, and must recognize that our future will be significantly influenced by decisions made in these two areas during this parliament.”
35 YEARS AGO:
Trustees of School District 26 had their tentative budget returned by the Ministry of Education with the request they comply to the minster’s directives or provide his office with additional information. The accompanying letter informed trustees their budget did not conform to the minster’s guidelines, and submitted a list of more questions.
Trustee Ed Shook proposed a motion that would defer a decision on the budget until the next regular meeting. Speaking to his motion, he said he feels the minister’s letter offers options rather than demands.
He believed the ministry was having second thoughts and that some sort of compromise may be possible.
30 YEARS AGO:
Local anglers were being asked to cooperate in a program to clear up some of the mystery surrounding the large rainbow trout, which apparently spawned in the Barriere River at about this time of year. “For years they thought they were steelhead,” local conservation Officer Frank Richter told the Times, “then they did some scale samples and found they were not.”
Steelhead trout are rainbow which spend part of their life in the ocean, usually gaining extra size in the process. Apparently the scale samples showed that the 10 to 12 pound Barriere fish never leave fresh water. Fisheries officials suspected the fish go to Kamloops lake to get their size, but have never been able to prove it.
25 YEARS AGO:
Eight people from two families were taken to Dr. Helmcken Memorial Hospital in Clearwater by ambulance as the result of a two-vehicle accident just north of Blue River. Police reported a southbound 1992 Toyota Camry carrying an Edmonton family went out of control on the slush-covered highway and crossed the centre line, hitting a northbound 1991 Mercury Topaz carrying a family from Port Coquitlam.
Clearwater RCMP, Clearwater Ambulance, Blue River Highway Rescue, Blue River Ambulance, and Valemount Ambulance all attended the scene.
20 YEARS AGO:
A recent announcement that a new ambulance station was going to be built next to the hospital in Clearwater may be a good sign for the long-awaited multi-level health care facility, said Carol Schaffer. Nevertheless, the anticipated completion date for the new health facility had been pushed back again, she said, to January of the following year.
Schaffer was the North Thompson representative to the Thompson Health Region board. Plans for the health facility had completed the value analysis stage, she said.
The project was waiting for its certificate of approval from the Ministry of Health.
15 YEARS AGO:
Mad River Bridge on Highway 5 between Vavenby and Avola was scheduled to be demolished and replaced with a new and improved bridge. “The Mad River Bridge was badly damaged by ice flow in January,” said Krueger, MLA for Kamloops-North Thompson. “This new structure is needed as the old one is damaged beyond repair. The structure will include flares for oncoming traffic which will increase visibility and safety for motorists.”
10 YEARS AGO:
RCMP in Clearwater seized an estimated $90,000 from a vehicle travelling From Alberta to the Lower Mainland. Around 3 p.m. a vehicle approached a check stop and while the officer was obtaining the driver’s license and registration an odor of marijuana was noted. Initially, the driver was checked with respect to consumption of marijuana and his ability to operate a motor vehicle but this quickly changed to a Controlled Drugs and Substance investigation. Two subjects were arrested and a search of the vehicle resulted in finding a bundle of cash in the glove compartment along with a small quantity of marijuana. Inside a suitcase in the trunk officers found two more bags of cash. Police would conduct a Proceeds of Crime investigation. The two suspects, a 50-year-old female and a 46-year-old male were released on bail and would appear in Clearwater court at a later date.
5 YEARS AGO:
The District of Clearwater had once again received a clean bill of health plus a pat on the back from its auditors. Speaking during a town council meeting, Mario Piroddi of BDO Canada praised the municipality for its light debt load, which at $260 per person was much lower than the B.C. average. He also praised the DOC for having adequate reserve funds and then using them to complete capital projects rather than going into debt.
1 YEAR AGO:
Spring was here and this may have been most obvious at Aveley Heritage Sheep Ranch, where lambing had been in full swing for a couple of weeks. Close to 300 baby lambs had been born already, which made it a peak time for the ranch’s self-guided lamb tours, where people could cuddle newborns, bottle feed orphan lambs, and potentially see a lamb birth.
