Recent drownings in Okanagan stark reminders of water safety

It was a tragic Thursday afternoon in the Okanagan, when a 65-year-old man drowned while swimming just steps from his lakeshore home.

Despite what RCMP call the best efforts of witnesses and emergency crews at the West Kelowna beach, the man’s death is the fourth fatal water-related incident in the Okanagan since Father’s Day.

Boat owners unhappy with city’s $25M transformation plans for Lachine marina

The Lachine marina could soon be no more.

Montreal city officials plan to spend more than $25 million to turn the decades-old spot into a waterfront park that will be open to the public as of next year.

Finding Willy: Missing Weyburn dog safe after month on the run from drones, quads, traps

For the past month, volunteers in Weyburn, Sask., have been part of a search, even bringing in a drone, to track down an escaped rescue dog.

The pup, however, had his pursuers barking up the wrong tree — until Wednesday, that is.

Wheat Kings prospect Rylen Roersma taking full advantage of unconventional off-season

It’s not the off-season that Rylen Roersma would have drawn up for himself, but he’s making the most of training for what he hopes will be his first season in the Western Hockey League with the Brandon Wheat Kings.

JPMorgan Treasury Trading Chief Robert Allen Is Placed on Leave

JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s head of U.S. Treasury trading, Robert Allen, has been placed on leave, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

The move was linked to the firm’s decision to put some of his colleagues who focus on interest rates on leave earlier this year, Business Insider reported earlier Friday, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter. The bank is examining Allen’s messages and whether he may have violated any company policies, the publication said.

An email sent to an address listed for Allen bounced back and there was no answer on his mobile phone.

Banks have been looking more closely at electronic messages on a variety of platforms in recent years, sometimes putting careers on hold as they try to ensure staff aren’t engaging in misconduct or using unmonitored apps for business. Earlier this year, JPMorgan dismissed a credit trader who allegedly created a WhatsApp group and used it to discuss market chatter with colleagues, people with knowledge of the matter said at the time.

Mali President Urges Calm After Violent Protests Rock Capital

Mali’s President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita sought to ease tensions Friday after violent protests calling for him to resign left several people injured in the capital Bamako.

Keita said in a statement that he regretted the “human and material losses” after protesters looted the parliament building and occupied the state broadcaster ORTM causing it to go off air for several hours.

Discontent with Keita, 75, has simmered for months over his failure to address a security crisis, the Covid-19 pandemic and tension over a March parliamentary vote. Protesters, known as the M5 movement, are calling for political and judicial reforms or for Keita to step down.

Keita, who was re-elected in 2018, said Friday that he was prepared to continue talks with the protesters and to do “everything in his power” to solve the country’s political crisis.

Police release video of Edmonton nightclub shooting in effort to have suspects identified

Police have released surveillance video of a shooting at a downtown Edmonton nightclub earlier this month in hopes that someone will be able to identify the suspects involved.

Ambani’s Jio Receives $4 Billion Payment For Stake Sales

Jio Platforms Ltd., the digital services business controlled by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, has completed the sale of 6% of its shares for about $4 billion.

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund closed a deal for a 2.3% stake for 113.7 billion rupees ($1.5 billion), according to an exchange filing from Jio’s parent, Reliance Industries Ltd. Silver Lake purchased 2.1% of the shares. The other investors were L Catterton and General Atlantic.

The transactions — announced earlier this year — helped Reliance declare itself free of net debt ahead of its goal. Jio Platforms had earlier also sold about 10% stake to Facebook Inc.

All told, Jio has now sold about 25% of its shares to buyers including Facebook and U.S. private equity firms KKR & Co., and Silver Lake.

Hong Kong Reports at Least 20 New Virus Cases, SCMP Reports

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Hong Kong confirmed at least 20 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, the South China Morning Post reported, citing a medical source.

It was not yet known how many of Saturday’s cases were locally transmitted, the SCMP said. On Thursday, the city recorded 34 locally transmitted infections, the most in a single day since the pandemic began.

In response to the surge, the government over the weekend reintroduced social restrictions that cap restaurant capacity at 60% and limit eight people to a table. The rules will be in place for two weeks, unless extended.

German Infection Rate Rises Slightly While Death Rate Steady

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Germany’s coronavirus cases rose by 331 while the death rate held steady, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

• Deaths increased by 6 to 9,063, a smaller increase than most days since the beginning of March. The death rate remained at 4.55% for the fourth day in a row.
• The reproduction factor — or R value — rose slightly to 0.80, according to the latest estimate by the Robert Koch Institute, Germany’s health body. The 95% confidence interval means the number is somewhere between 0.65 and 0.99, both under the key threshold of 1.0 which is seen as crucial to preventing a second wave of infections.
• The RKI also provides a seven-day R value, which is seen as being less influenced by fluctuations. The value was 0.90, up from 0.86 on Thursday.