Wildfire Emergency Response

During a deployment for proactive enforcement alongside Penticton RCMP for the Peach Festival between Aug. 5 and Aug. 9, members of B.C.’s anti-gang unit assisted with emergency efforts as the Bald Range wildfire threatened Summerland and nearby areas. On Aug. 7, officers with the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit redirected their efforts to conduct tactical evacuations, which included safely evacuating elderly residents from an independent living facility.

Enforcement and Seizures

While supporting the local detachment and working alongside the Penticton RCMP crime reduction unit, the anti-gang officers executed enforcement actions that led to significant seizures. Authorities confiscated four firearms along with 16 other weapons, including a baton, a conducted energy weapon, knives, a compound bow, and a crossbow. Police also seized approximately 2.5 kilograms of illicit substances—comprising fentanyl, cocaine, and crystal methamphetamine—as well as one vehicle and around $100,000 in Canadian currency.

MLAs announce split on legislature steps

Delta South MLA Ian Paton and Kamloops Centre MLA Peter Milobar are teaming up to establish a new political party in the coming weeks. Announcing the decision Monday morning on the steps of the B.C. legislature, Paton confirmed he is leaving the Conservative Party of B.C. caucus to sit as an Independent. According to reporting from the Vernon Morning Star and Penticton Western News, Milobar will serve as the interim leader of the new organization.

Dissatisfaction with party leadership

The departure follows internal tension after Kerry-Lynne Findlay won the B.C. Conservative leadership race in May. Because Findlay remains without a seat in the legislature, she requested that at least three sitting MLAs step aside so she could run in a byelection, a request Paton declined. Abbotsford-Mission MLA Reann Gasper announced Saturday that she would step down for Findlay, though a byelection date has not been set. Paton revealed that Findlay offered him an advisory role on agriculture if he relinquished his riding, and that he subsequently resigned from his appointed position as Lower Mainland lieutenant.

Paton cited severe dissatisfaction with party management under Findlay, noting that communications staff attempted to prevent reporters from contacting him directly regarding his agriculture critic portfolio. Comparing the situation to professional hockey players adapting to an unworkable management change, he remarked, “Maybe the new coach isn’t quite working out for us.”

Aiming to offer a fresh alternative

Milobar, who recently resigned from the Conservative caucus, indicated that additional party defections may follow. Both politicians expressed a desire to represent citizens who feel left behind by current options, arguing that ten years of B.C. NDP governance has left the province in “disarray” and that they cannot let the opportunity for change “slip on by.” Their goal is to build a distinct political home for those who currently feel “politically homeless.”

Fatal Emergency Landing Causes Collision

One person has died after a twin-engine plane executed an emergency landing on Foothills Boulevard in Prince George on Thursday afternoon. The incident occurred shortly before 2:30 p.m. roughly 1.5 kilometres north of North Nechako Road, near Highland Drive.

During the landing amidst busy afternoon traffic, the aircraft struck two vehicles. Other motorists attempted to dodge the incoming plane, with one vehicle ending up forced into a ditch. Debris from the crash, including the front fan of a turbofan engine, was scattered across the road, and part of a wing penetrated the windshield of a truck.

Investigation and Road Closures

Foothills Boulevard has been shut down in both directions between Highland Drive and North Nechako Road. Prince George RCMP Cpl. Jennifer Cooper stated that the thoroughfare will remain closed overnight and into Friday, prompting authorities to request that motorists utilize alternate routes.

The RCMP emphasized that members of the public must stay away from the site. Cpl. Cooper noted that curious onlookers have been creating a drain on valuable police resources, forcing officers to guard access points rather than assisting with the active investigation or responding to regular calls for service.

The Transportation Safety Board has taken over the investigation into the cause of the incident. RCMP noted that potential injuries to occupants of the struck vehicles or individuals on the aircraft remain unknown at this time.

Aircraft Details and Local Impact

The aircraft involved appears to be a 1980s Beechcraft King Air 200 registered under Sekani Air Ltd. A video shared on social media, recorded inside the aircraft prior to the crash, indicated that about eight individuals were onboard.

Nearby residents reported hearing the plane overhead immediately before the crash. Emergency responders, including Prince George Fire Rescue, arrived on scene shortly after 2:30 p.m. to manage the response.