File photo (Image credit: CFJC Today).

By Victor Kaisar

Human Remains

Tkemlúps working to protect north Kamloops site after ancestral remains found Thursday

Jun 14, 2025 | 7:00 AM

KAMLOOPS — Tkʼemlúps te Secwépemc (TteS) says its working to protect a site on the North Shore of Kamloops where ancestral remains were found on Thursday (June 12).

While it did not disclose the location or any more details, Tkʼemlúps asked for the now sacred site to be respected. It also said the site is protected under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the BC Heritage Conservation Act.

“Any alteration or disturbance to the sacred site is illegal and punishable under provincial law,” the Friday (June 13) evening statement from Tkʼemlúps said, noting the site is under 24-hour security. It also asked people to avoid the area so it can complete its important work.

While human remains were also found along West Victoria Street six years ago as crews worked on the Victoria Street West Improvements Project, CFJC Today has been able to confirm that this new discovery was not in the vicinity of the Tranquille Road sewer project worksite, where construction began on Monday (June 9).

In the statement, Kúkpi7 Rosanne Casimir said the RCMP were quick to reach out to Tkʼemlúps te Secwépemc following Thursday’s discovery, adding police are working with the band to “uphold our mutual commitment to respectful cultural heritage management.”

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“Cultural heritage is an important value for TteS and we have a responsibility to ensure that our TteS cultural and traditional practices are being respected,” Casimir said. “Our people have been here since time immemorial and travelled extensively throughout Secwepemcúl̓ecw.”

Tkʼemlúps is urging people to report the discovery of potential remains and/or artifacts to the nearest RCMP detachment as well as to the band.

According to Tkʼemlúps, another site along the South Thompson River where ancestral remains were found in Sept. 2023 has been registered as an archaeological site.