The Chilliwack
Progress Tuesday
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Home gutted by fire Robert Freeman The Progress A house fire on Goldspring Place in Promontory Heights was apparently a fast and furious blaze, according to neighbours contacted by The Progress. “I didn’t see much,” neighbour Tammy Bouwman said. “I just heard the sirens and then came out and looked and saw the smoke. Bouwman said she was hardly out Continued: FIRE/ p10
Firefighters responded to this fully-involved house fire on Goldspring Place yesterday afternoon just after noon. One man was inside at the time of the fire, but managed to escape. Right: Tim Bumby comforts his wife, Julie, after their house went up in flames. JENNA HAUCK/ PROGRESS
Rumours swirl around future of Chilliwack Bruins ■ See related story, page 8 Eric Welsh The Progress With the Chilliwack Bruins entering the stretch drive of the 2010-11 season, the junior hockey world is abuzz with speculation the team is playing its final games in Chilliwack. Rumours are furiously flying that the Bruins have been or will be sold to an ownership group with Victoria interests, and the team
will be relocated to the B.C. capital for the 2011-12 Western Hockey League season. Contacted by the Chilliwack Progress on Wednesday, Chilliwack Bruins co-owner Darryl Porter said, unequivocally, that the team has not been sold, but he didn’t go very far in ruling out the possibility. “If you think back over the entire five years and how our ownership group has behaved, there’s been all sorts of interest from people
in terms of offers and inquiries,” Porter said. “And we just don’t discuss those publicly and we’re not prepared to discuss publicly the conversations that may or may not be going on right now.” Porter stressed that he doesn’t want that to be interpreted as evasiveness. “We can’t keep up with all the rumours that we’ve been hearing over the last few weeks. I bet we’ve had at least 50 expressions of strong interest in our team over the last five years, and we’ve never discussed them in the newspapers,”
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Porter explained. “I just got off the phone with a friend in Chilliwack who said he’s heard rumours that we’re moving to Nanaimo. Last week it was us going to Langley and Langley (junior A Chiefs) coming to Chilliwack. I can’t chase these things, and what we’re saying is we’re not going to play this out in the newspapers. We never have.” The last time these Chilliwackto-Victoria rumours intensified, the Bruins ownership group was more proactive in refuting them and re-assuring the local fanbase.
When asked by The Progress whether the team would be playing in Chilliwack in 2011-12, the answer wasn’t exactly a resounding yes. “I would be very surprised if the Western Hockey League isn’t playing hockey in Chilliwack,” Porter replied. It’s no secret that Victoria has been seeking a WHL team for a long time, led by Salmon Kings (ECHL) owner Graham Lee. It’s also no secret that the WHL would like to get into Victoria Continued: BRUINS/ p9
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