Monday, June 18, 2012

School Safety Zone To Be Looked At

City Council is asking it's staff to look into creating a school safety zone around Dennis Franklin Cromarty High School.  Mayor Keith Hobbs brought the issue up on behalf of the school.  The reduced speed zone is proposed for the Edward Street corridor between Churchill Drive and Riverview Drive.

Landscaping Guidelines Approved


City Council is moving ahead with a new landscaping policy for four routes through the City.  Council approved a long term plan for the complete corridors of May Street, Arthur Street, Red River Road and Simpson Street.  City Councillor Paul Pugh says the plan doesn't mean they'll be spending money immediately on the project it's just a long term vision for the routes that connect Thunder Bay from the North to the South sections of the City.

City Ready In Wake Of Flood Watch


The City is on alert monitoring for city-wide flooding risks after the Lakehead Region Conservation Authority issued a flood watch.  City staff are ready to deploy pumping equipment and resources if needed.  
Another flood update will be held by the City at noon Tuesday.

Motorcycle Ride For Dad

This year's Motorcycle Ride for Dad is being deemed a success.  The Sunday event brought in just over 47 thousand dollars for the Northern Cancer Fund.

This Old Barn Open Again

A restaurant in Murillo is now open after being forced to close last month for health concerns. The Thunder Bay District Health Unit says it's investigation into This Old Barn is now complete. They say people who ate at the establishment became sick from well water contaminated with the Norovirus. The owner has upgraded to a new water treatment system.

LRCA Issues Flood Watch

The Lakehead Region Conservation Authority is putting Thunder Bay and 5 surrounding townships back on flood watch.  The LRCA is issuing the warning because of the heavy rainfall expected in the next two days.  We could see as much as 25 to 50 millimetres of rain in the coming days.

Assault By Chocolate

The battle between anti abortionists and pro-choice supports in Thunder Bay is alive and well. On the weekend a group of out of town pro-life advocates were at Bay and Algoma showing graphic pictures when they were accosted. City police Constable Julie Tilbury says it appears someone poured chocolate milk over the heads of the demonstrators. A 36 year old man was arrested and charged with four counts of assault. The person has been released from custody with a promise to appear in court. No name has been released.

Madder Has Regional Plans

The president of Confederation College is talking about expanding the number of courses currently available at its satellite campuses throughout the region. Jim Madder says they are looking at a number of programs that could be provided to communities outside of Thunder Bay. Madder has just returned from touring northwestern Ontario for a series of graduation ceremonies.

Cops Nab Theft Suspects

Forest Street residents are urged check their vehicles. Police were alerted to the suspicious behaviour of three young men at around 3:30 a.m. this morning. Police located property believed to be taken from various vehicles and arrested two 19 year olds and an 18 year old. Anyone in the Forest Street area who is missing items from their vehicle is being asked to call the police and help with trying to identify the property.

Prespare For Alot More Rain

The Lakehead Region Conservation Authority is giving us a heads up on how much more rain to expect over the next day. In it's Flood Outlook Statement the Authority says we received anywhere from 12 to 30 millimetres over the weekend. An additional 50 millimetres is possible tomorrow along with up to 25 millimetres if thunderstorms form. 

Master Storm Drainage Study To Be Recommended

The City is now looking at long-term solutions to address flooding. Mayor Keith Hobbs says they are going to recommend the development of a master storm drainage study with the initial focus on the hardest hit areas by the recent flood, such as McKellar and Northwood wards. City Manager Tim Commisso adds that they will also be recommending a review of residential drainage assistance and flood prevention programs based on what they've learned from larger centres, such as Toronto.

Power Outage In Oliver-Paipoonge

There's a small hydro outage in the Oliver-Paipoonge area. According to Hydro One a handful of customers on Veley Road are without electricity and may not get their power back until 10:30 a.m. this morning. The cause of the outage is not known.

10 Fires Burning In Region

There is good news on the forest fire front. It was another quiet weekend with no new fires to report in northwestern Ontario. The forest fire hazard remains low for all of northwestern Ontario. There are currently 10 active fires in the region. All of these fires have received substantial rain fall in the last 24hrs and are showing minimal fire behaviour. No problems are anticipated with any of these fires at this time. There have been a total of 197 fires in northwestern Ontario this year, burning a total area of just over 1400 hectares.

Police Investigate Death of A 51 Year Old Man

Ontario Provincial Police in Dryden and Treaty Three Police Service are conducting a joint investigation into the death of a man from Wabigoon Lake First Nation. The body of 51 year old Stanley Shabaquay was found Thursday morning. A post mortem examination was conducted on Friday but police have not released any further details.

45 Marijuana Plants Seized And Couple Are Charged

Provincial Police working in Atikokan have busted two people for trafficking marijuana and broken up what appears to be a grow operation. Police conducted a search on Thursday and found 45 marijuana plants and a number of marijuana related items in a home. A man and a woman were arrested and face trafficking charges. They will appear in court on July 26th.

Cats Crush Huskies

The Thunder Bay Border Cats crushed the Duluth Huskies 10-0 yesterday on the road. The Cats are now 9 and 10 on the year and finish off a 2 game series against Duluth tonight before returning home for five in a row, starting with Waterloo tomorrow at Subway field.

Chill Sweep Winnipeg

The Thunder Bay Chill are in first place in the Heartland division, thanks to a weekend sweep of Winnipeg. The Chill posted a 1-0 win yesterday to improve to 7 and 1 on the season.

Keating Jr. And Caland Combine To Win Better Ball Tourney

Walter Keating Jr. and Barry Caland shot a - 3, 69 yesterday at the Fort William Country Club to win the Mallon's Better Ball Tournament. The two paired together for the first time to win the District Golf Association tournament by two shots. Other flight winners included Murray Young and Steve Latta in the second flight and Mike Vale and Joe Adcock III won the third flight.