50 years ago: A new level in the Mineral King Mine at Toby Creek was reached. A limestone formation 1,300 feet deep was found as expected, and work was underway to connect the new formation with existing levels.
45 years ago: The valley’s first big centennial celebration, the Windermere Community Association’s Ice Carnival, was an outstanding success. Following the opening ceremonies, there was a bonfire, fireworks and games, although ice skating races had to be cancelled due to warm weather.
35 years ago: A 13-year old Radium youth found a box filled with unknown objects in an old building. These objects turned out to be dynamite caps. After taking the caps home, the youth scraped out some of the powder, which he then placed on a cement wall and attempted to burn. The boy suffered serious burns to his face and was lucky to escape with no damage to his eyes.
23 years ago: The tap water in Edgewater was finally safe to drink. There had been a “boil water” order in effect for almost a year, and the order was lifted thanks to the installation of a water chlorination system paid for by the Edgewater Water Improvement District. Edgewater Elementary had been having water brought in twice a week for local students to drink.
20 years ago: A Calgary-based developer was “unfazed” by opposition to a proposed “beaches” subdivision at the site of the Coldstream Campground in Windermere. The developer expected to spend about $15 million building the 12-acre lot. Opposition came in the form of the Lake Windermere Preservation Society protesting the waste permit that had been issued to the developer.
15 years ago: The future of Radium Elementary was uncertain. The 40-student school was facing an “educationally unsound” situation, and the forecast was that the number of students would continue to decline. The school cost $300,000 to run, not including custodial and electrical costs.
10 years ago: Hundreds of concerned valley residents gathered outside the Invermere and District Hospital to protest possible budget cuts to the hospital. More than 400 people turned out for the last-minute protest, which was organized just 24 hours after word spread the CEO of the Interior Healthy Authority was coming to visit.
5 years ago: East Kootenay MLA Bill Bennett resigned from his ministerial post after a “profanity-laced email.” Bennett sent an email to a constituent calling him “dumb,” and a “self-inflated, pompous, American know-it-all.”