38 Years Ago (1980): Firefighters had a busy night on March 15. At roughly 9:30 p.m. members of the 100 Mile House Volunteer Fire Department attended a scene where a 1976 Valient caught fire at the Chevron gas station on Hwy 97. The interior was completely burned out and the fire was believed to have started underneath the rear seat. Another fire started just as the firefighters got back to the hall. This time it was a shed at the 103 Mile Trailer Court. The fire was contained and there was no further damage.
33 Years Ago (1984): Workers at the Weldwood plywood plant voiced their anger at both the company and their union feeling misguided and misinformed by both over how many jobs would be lost after the company announced it would cease producing plywood in the community. Weldwood also announced it would build a $30 million computerized sawmill and planer mill with a reduced staff.
27 Years Ago (1991): Council spent $8,000 on repairs on the lagoon walls after the dyke burst on March 1 and leaked an estimated six million gallons of near-raw sewage into Bridge Creek. Luckily, an environment report concluded there was no serious damage. However, about 150 residents downstream from the spill questioned the assessment and formed an association and launched a fund to finance legal action against the 100 Mile treatment facility. Members raised almost $3,000 for the cause.
16 Years Ago (2002): School District 27 predicted a $4.2 million shortfall in its 2002-03 budget. The primary causes were increased teacher salaries and Medical Services Plan premiums. “The district lobbied for the provincial government to help fund 7.5 per cent of the teacher salary increase over. “We have to find efficiencies where we can,” said Pete Penner, the chair at the time, “If that means closings schools, that’s a possibility.”
7 Years Ago (2009): The 100 Mile House RCMP with the assistance of the North District General Investigation Section Drug Units and the Williams Lake General Investigation Section seized over 6,000 marijuana plants over a two-week period in March. One residence was searched with 1,359 plants and related equipment seized. “These sophisticated operations are associated to organized crime groups and, as such, demand the highest level of attention from the RCMP,” said Const. Craig Douglass, the media liaison for the North District at the time.
