MNR Lays Fines

A Thunder Bay man is pleading guilty to firing a weapon while on a road.  Eugenio Berardi is banned from hunting in Ontario for a year and was fined fifteen hundred dollars under the fish and wildlife conservation act.  Berardi was contacted by The Ministry of Natural Resources early November for shooting a deer on Silver Falls Road near Kaministiqua.

NWO Man Dead In Snowobile Accident

A 43 year old Ear Falls man is dead following a fatal snowmachine accident 3 kilometres north of that community last night. OPP say that Robert Boucha was in a group of three snowmobilers travelling along a hydro line trail when he came into contact with a guide wire.

Police Seize Drugs

Thunder Bay Police are laying several drug related charges on a man and woman following a search of a home on Chippewa Road on Wednesday. That afternoon police found over 300 grams on marijuana, 100 ecstasy tabs, 4-ounces of crack cocaine and 2-ounces of powder cocaine for a combined street value of over 60-thousand dollars. 26-year old Richard Martin and 29-year Clara Girard will appear in court March 2014.

Hospital Receives Substantial Rebate

The hospital is receiving $597 554 from Thunder Bay Hydro, as part of its Retrofit Program. The program offers incentives for businesses that install new equipment to reduce energy consumption. Anne-Marie Heron is Executive Director of Operations at the hospital and says the money will go towards covering costs associated with the hospitals newly installed equipment. Heron adds that the hospital will see a twenty-two percent reduction in energy consumption on a yearly basis. Those savings will then be passed on to patient care. The hospital is expected to save 5 288 093 kilowatts annually. Enough to power 550 homes.

T.Bay Company Joins International Corporation

YULEYS Protective Footwear of Thunder Bay is being bought up by a bigger international company. They'll now be part of HexArmor of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Business Manager Nicole Reid says she's excited to bring her product to an established corporation. The deal means the US company can extend their line of safety equipment beyond gloves to include footwear.

200 Customers Still Without Heat

200 homes are still without heat in the community of Longlac. Union Gas Spokesperson Dave Sword says they're relighting pilot lights throughout the afternoon.  Yesterday some 800 customers were without heat causing the municipality to declare a state of emergency.

Hunters Nabbed In Licence Scam

Don't try to fool the MNR. A Thunder Bay man and his hunting partner from Slovakia have been fined close to 3 thousand dollars for a licencing violation. The Ministry of Natural Resources says that the man from Thunder Bay pretended to be the Solvakian in order to obtain a hunting licence for his friend. The incident happened sometime last year. 

Crews Investigate Morning House Fire

Thunder Bay Fire crews are currently investigating the cause of an early morning house fire at 707 John Street. Platoon Chief Larry Warner says one woman was inside the home at the time, she is being treated in hospital. The blaze is believed to of started in the basement. The two adjoining homes are not believed to of sustained any damage from the fire.

Westgate High School Open

School is back on today at Westgate High School following a water main break that closed the building on Thursday.  However, Westgate will be under a temporary boil water advisory.  All drinking fountains will be out of service, but bottled water will be available for students and staff.  Due to the boil water advisory, the school's cafeteria will be closed today. All buses will run as usual.

Bob Barker Praises Mayor

The former host of The Price Is Right is hoping Thunder Bay City council will reverse it's decision on allowing the province to conduct a spring bear hunt in the region.  Bob Barker is speaking out against the hunt this week calling it a slaughter.  He agrees that any councillor who voted for it should be voted out in the next election.  When told by our newsroom that Mayor Keith Hobbs is against the hunt as well, Barker replied that the mayor has a friend in Hollywood.

Province Monitoring Longlac

Thunder Bay Superior North MPP Michael Gravelle says his thoughts are with the residents of Longlac, Ginoogaming and Long Lake 58 First Nation.  Those communities are impacted by Union Gas' failed regulating station.  Gravelle says the Province is actively monitoring the situation through the Office of the Fire Marshal and Emergency Management. Warming centres have been established at the Geraldton High School, with transportation being provided for affected residents.

Longlac Without Heat & In State Of Emergency

Union Gas' regulating station in the Greenstone area isn't working today most likely because of the severe cold weather. Most of Longlac is now without heat impacting around 800 customers. The municipality has declared a state of emergency. Spokesperson Dave Sword says it's going to take a while before heat is restored hopefully homes can start to be re-lit this afternoon.  Union Gas is requesting people clear a path to their meters and the Municipality suggests keeping your water running so pipes don't freeze.  Mayor Ron Beaulieu says a warming centre has been opened at the Geraldton High School with transportation being provided.  Those residents with electric heat or a wood stove are welcome to stay in their homes, those who don't can stay overnight if they need to at the warming centre.

FedNor Unveils New Program

The Federal Government is launching a five year initiative that will help french language speaking communities in Northern Ontario. The economic development initiative will help foster local and regional business opportunities. FedNor will supply 4 million dollars to the program over the next 5 years.

Collision on South Water Street

Traffic is back to normal following a two vehicle collision at the intersection of South Water Street and Pearl. An SUV rear ended a pick-up truck and one person was sent to hospital as a precautionary measure.

Pot Smell In Kenora

There's a strange smell coming from the OPP Detachment in Kenora and it's not potpourri. The local evidence lockup is filled with marijuana from recent drug busts and the odor is wafting throughout the building.  Inspector Dave Lucas says unfortunately they can't dispose of the pot until they get the green light. Lucas says ideally he'd like to build a metal, outdoor storage lock-up unit, where the smell wouldn't affect their work space.

Plane Crash Factors Revealed

Darkness and low-intensity runway lights are to blame in a deadly plane crash near Pickle Lake. The Transportation Safety Board says a small private plane came in at 6-times the normal rate of descent and hit the ground on the night of October 16th, 2012. The TSB says the aircraft entered a steep descent and struck the terrain about one nautical mile east of the Pickle Lake airport runway. Two pilots and one of the two passengers on board died in the crash.

Man Faces Trial In Cutfeet Death

A 36 year old Thunder Bay man is going to trial to face a second degree murder charge. Shawn Henderson is accused in the stabbing death of 30 year old Travis Cutfeet in the spring of last year.   Cutfeet was walking along May street in the late afternoon at the time.  A trial date will be set in Superior Court.

Hobbs Says Chiarelli Doesn't Get It

Thunder Bay Mayor Keith Hobbs isn't happy with the outcome of their recent meeting with Energy Minister Bob Chiarelli.   Hobbs says the Minister just doesn't understand their concerns about the proposed plan for the Thunder Bay Generating Station.  Hobbs says they'll try to hammer their point through again at another meeting that's planned between the region's Energy Task Force, the Ontario Power Authority and the Provincial Government.

Hudak Discusses Johnson Dismissal

Ontario's Conservative leader Tim Hudak is addressing the firing of PC candidate Tamara Johnson in Thunder Bay-Superior North. During a news conference in Toronto today Hudak didn't talk about the details of the dismissal, nor did he  mention Johnson by name, but says candidates have to be on the same page.   He says he wants all PC hopefuls and caucus members focused on the issue of bringing jobs back to the province and nothing else.  Johnson was fired on the weekend following comments made on social media about businesses in the Fort William First Nation.

Good Roads Brings Good Things

Thunder Bay's delegation from the Ontario Good Roads Conference is back from Toronto.  Councillor Brian McKinnon admits they've brought forward the same issues to the Province year after year and says that's because repetition is key.  Council spoke to cabinet ministers about a variety of projects including the next phase of the Golf Links Road reconstruction and the proposed Youth Centre.  McKinnon as well as Mayor Keith Hobbs have said they feel funding will come for some of the projects they presented on during the two day conference.