Ah, the end of another year.
For many, that means eggnog and other libations. For others, it means present giving and receiving. For plenty of us, it’s time a of enjoyable overeating, and then vowing to lose weight.
But for newspapers, the changing of another calendar year means recapping 12 months of news stories.
To do that, we’ve looked at images and stories that stood out from the rest. We’ve looked for themes and recurring events. We’ve recalled tragedies and triumphs, and everything in between. The result of that searching is in the following pages.
But we’ve also looked into our reader statistics online, and found that what we felt were highlights weren't as popular online.
The following is is a list of the stories that ranked the highest in our online community, with links to the original stories.
Body of fallen hang glider found
The top read story of 2012 was also one of the most tragic.
Lenami Godinez-Avila was only 27 when she and her boyfriend decided to try hang gliding. They purchased a tandem trip with hang gliding pilot Jon Orders as part of their anniversary celebration.
Godinez-Avila somehow fell out of the harness, slipping out of her instructor’s grasp and to her death on Mt. Woodside.
Orders was taken into custody, and then reportedly swallowed a memory card from his camera. He was charged with obstruction of justice for that act. This is sure to be a story that people follow throughout 2013, as Orders’ trial is set to begin in the spring.
Fire burning in Chilliwack
The second most read story in Agassiz was actually a story that affected people in Chilliwack. When a hydro substation exploded in rural Chilliwack, power was blown out throughout the city, including at our sister paper, The Chilliwack Progress.
The smoke could be seen right here in Agassiz, and we quickly leapt into action to assist the Progress in making sure readers had access to the most up-to-date information regarding the incident.
Women attacked in Agassiz at night
Tied for third in our most read list were two very different stories. The first is about two women who were attacked on New Year's Eve — a rare act of random violence for this community.
The second was about a woman who fell into a deep hole while walking with her husband in Harrison Highlands.
Jones boys making changes
It's really not often an entertainment story reaches such high numbers in online statistics. But when it comes to a story that combines musical legend Charlie Young, with social media guru/musician Trevor McDonald, obviously an exception is made.
If you haven't been out to see the Jones Boys in the Copper Room lately, this holiday season is a great time to see what you're missing.
Lake spills into the lagoon
The power of water was on display this year when the lagoon breached at Harrison Lake and reached right to the public washrooms and playground.
Other top stories of the year, in order, were:
• Charges recommended for RCMP involved in fatal crash
• New Year’s Eve blaze in Agassiz suspicious
• Bargain Shop announces intention to buy Agassiz Fields
• Sasquatch returns to Harrison Hot Springs
• Agassiz man dies at scene of collision
• Valley farmers protest heavy-handed measures to protect fish