NOSM employees could strike

Labour unrest for the Northern Ontario School of Medicine in Thunder Bay and Sudbury.  Clerical, administrative and technical staff have voted 97-percent in favour of a walkout if contract talks break down.
Overtime, workload, sick leave and job classification are the issues of contention.

Bending Lake Iron Ore plan approved

The provincial government is approving a plant that will breath new life into the former Steep Rock Mine near Atikokan. Bending Lake Iron Ore Group is proposing a processing facility for ore from a planned mine at Bending Lake while Brett Resources would use it to dump tailings from a nearby gold mine. Henry Wetalainen of Bending Lake Iron Ore says approval allows their plans to enter the environmental assessment process. Wetaliainen estimates the project will cost about 900-million dollars and create about 700 construction jobs and another 300 when up and running.

Treaty Three critical of SIU report

Grand Council Treaty #3 continues to be critical of the OPP response to a shooting incident in downtown Kenora.  The Ontario Special Investigations Unit released a report into the shooting of 39 year old Grassy Narrows resident last week clearing an OPP officer of any wrong-doing.  Grand Chief Diane Kelly says she's disappointed with the finds in the report and also the policies and procedures of the OPP.  Kelly says if she can't get answers from the OPP Commissioner or Ontario's Solicitor General, she will file a complaint with the Independant Police Review Director.

More active fire season

The 2010 forest fire season appears to be more active than in previous years. However, Debbie McLean of the Ministry of Natural Resources says it's only because those previous years were very slow in the Thunder Bay District. She says last year by this time there were 35 fires while this year there have been 54. In the region there have been slightly over 323 fires

Outbreak over

The respiratory outbreak at Roseview Manor is over. All visitation restrictions that had been in place on the Primrose Wing have been removed.

Combined Forces Drug Unit make two busts

The Combined Forces Crime Unit made a big bust in Geraldton yesterday. Officers search a home and seized over 400 grams of hash, 39 grams of marijuana, and 202 oxycodone pills which have a street value of over 25 thousand dollars. A 53 year old Geraldton man is facing a number of charges. Meanwhile the Unit has charged a 55 year old Thunder Bay man after discovering a grow op last week. Officers found over 60 thousand dollars worth of marijuana in a house on Francis street last Wednesday and have charged the home owner with unlawful production of marijuana.

Cascades damaged by vandals

The Cascades Conservation Area has been hit by Vandalism for the second time in recent memory. Over the August long weekend someone tried to set fire to the interpretive panels. The Panels were installed last week to replace the ones that were destroyed over a year ago. The new panels received some minor smoke and fire damage to the corners.

The midway is going up

The midway for next weeks Canadian Lakehead Exhibition is now being set up. That's earlier than usual according to CLE President Lawrence Timko.  He says that gives those in charge the time to set up the rides, get them inspected properly and licenced from city hall making everything go smoothly.  The CLE starts on Wednesday

American visits to NWO on the decline

Tourism officials are pointing to the Canadian border as a contributing factor to the decline in American visitors to Northwestern Ontario.  Executive Director of Ontario Sunset Country Gerry Cariou says Americans with prior drunk driving convictions are continually being turned away at the border at a huge cost to the tourism industry.  Cariou feels enforcement of the rules appear to be more pronounced at the Fort Frances and Rainy River crossings than anywhere else.

NWO MNR help out B.C.

Another 100-Ministry of Natural Resources firefighters are making their way to British Columbia. There will now be over 200-MNR personnel in that province as well as Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Information Officer Debbie MacLean says more personnel will be provided if called upon. 75 of the 100 fire personnel that left yesterday are from Northwestern Ontario.

Rafferty weighs in on forestry report

Natural Resources Canada has released new numbers regarding Canada's forest industry.  They show significant job losses over the past 4-years.  Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP John Rafferty says the report is discouraging.  Rafferty says part of the blame falls on the Harper government for failing to provide any significant support towards the industry.

Gravelle announces funding for forestry company

Wincrief Forest Products is getting some financial help from the provincial government. Northern Development, Mines and Forestry Minister Michael Gravelle announced just over 1.2 million dollars for the facility near Kenora. The modular home construction facility has been open for just over a year and is a partnership between Moncrief Construction and Wabaseemung First Nation.

HMS Bounty says goodbye

The HMS Bounty is gone. After entertaining thousands of people, the famous tall ship left Thunder Bay for Green Bay, Wisconsin this morning. Kerry Berlinquette organized the visit and says the response exceeded all expectations and the public cooperated. Ship officials say they counted about 55 hundred visitors.

Red River Ward has another candidate for council election

Recent Lakehead University grad Jay Stapelton has added his name to the race for City Council.  Stapelton is running as a councillor in the Red River Ward and says he's concerned about the city's financial situation. Stapelton says he would put an end to construction costs running over budget.  Stapelton filed his nomination papers this morning at city hall.  Incumbant Brian McKinnon is also running for the Red River ward.

Police make an arrest after an early morning break and enter

Thunder Bay police have arrested a man after he broke into a house and made off with a car and a credit card. Police say a 71 year old woman woke up just after midnight and found a man in her house. He then fled in the victims car and used her credit card to purchase fuel. Charged is 35 year old Kelley Joseph Lacaria. Officers recovered the car along with other stolen property at around 6 o'clock.

Bearskin Airlines taking over flight to Minneapolis

Thunder Bay travelers may still have a daily flight to Minneapolis. Delta Airlines has announced they are cutting their flight from Thunder Bay to Minneapolis this fall and Bearskin airlines is reportedly stepping up to the plate to take over the route. Vice President Cliff Friesen says the company has begun the process and is in discussions with Delta.

Superior Fine Papers gets vandalized

Superior Fine Papers was the victim of some heavy vandalism yesterday morning. Thunder Bay Police say a guard called police around 3 in the morning after hearing glass breaking. Officers searched the area and found tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage. Police Spokesperson Chris Adams says it appears one of the assailants may have injured himself during the break in. Adams says a blood trail was found at the scene.

Concerned citizens voice their displeasure

There were plenty of people giving Horizon Wind a piece of their mind at last night's open house.  Neebing area resident Barbara Smith says she's disappointed Thunder Bay Council didn't put a stop to the wind farm project.  Smith says she's lived in Thunder Bay for eight years and are planning to move because they feel council isn't addressing their concerns about the horizon wind project.
Meanwhile,  Councillor Linda Rydholm was impressed with last night's turn out of over a hundred people.  Rydholm wants to see the wind power company answer the public's concerns.  Council is currently waiting for the company to answer some of their questions before they proceed with approving the location of the turbines.

Horizon Wind Park holds two meetings this week

Horizon Wind Farm expects to hear from Thunder Bay City Council by the end of the month. The final two public consultation sessions are being held this week. C.E.O. Tony Zwig says they're taking the concerns of the public seriously. The wind power company President says if they hear of any legal wrong doings they will take that into consideration and make changes to their wind park proposal. Zwig adds they'll be providing the province with the data gathered from the public meeting as part of its review process.

Meanwhile, There was at least one man in favour of the project. Reiner FIcker says people need to hear both the pros and the cons of the wind farm. Ficker adds the project will bring money to the municipality of Neebing and that would be greatly appreciated.

Go Green Fair coming to Thunder Bay

Earthwise Thunder Bay wants its residents to be more environmentally friendly. The city group is holding its first "go green expo" this fall. The event will feature workshops and exhibits from local green companies. For more information log onto www.earthwisethunderbay.com

McKellar Place spots open for seniors

The Northwest Community Care Access Centre is accepting applications for its transitional housing for seniors.  75 spots are available at the seniors apartment in McKellar Place.  St. Joseph's Care Group President Tracy Buckler says tenants of McKellar Place will be guaranteed a supportive housing apartment at the Centre of Excellence for Integrated Senior Services.  The McKellar Place spots are partially funded by the Northwest Local Health Network.

Caribou Ride happens Sept. 12th

One of the city's newest charity events is back on again. The second annual Caribou Ride for the Northern Cancer Fund is set for September 12th. Organizer Bob Stewart says 350 cyclists will be riding 20 and 50 kilometre routes.   Stewart says the goal is to raise over 20 thousand dollars.  Pictured left to right:  Dave Pinner, Bob Stewart and Jeff Hupka

Final two open houses for Horizon Wind Farm

Horizon Wind's big wigs will be in town tonight. The final two open houses for the proposed Big Thunder Wind Park are being held tonight and tomorrow. Project Co-ordinator Nhung Nguyen and C.E.O. Tony Zwig will be mingling and talking with people in attendance.

High interest in Bounty

Thousands of people are lining up today to get a first hand look at the HMS Bounty at Pier 3 of the Thunder Bay Marina. The tall ship is attracting interest from both locals and visitors. In fact, the first person in line was Steve McLean of Chicago. He says he and his family delayed their trip just to take a look at the ship which is docked here until Thursday. Tours take place until 8 pm this evening.

City police had a busy night

There was another armed robbery at a city Mac's mart this morning. Police say just after midnight a man held up the north May street store. No one was hurt and the man was last seen running east bound down the lane behind the store.

Police also had to 2 women who got lost in the Shuniah mines area. Police say the women were walking a dog at around 9:30 when they got lost and called police with a cell phone. Officers located the women just before midnight.

Bounty sails into Thunder Bay

There's excitement among ship lovers in Thunder Bay. The HMS Bounty sailed into the harbour Tuesday as people watched from vantage points at Hillcrest Park and Marina Park. Captain Robin Walbridge says it was a great trip here. He says the Great Lakes system is his favourite place to sail. The Bounty is open to the public from noon until 8 Wednesday.   It's docked at Pier 3 at the Marina.  Here's the sound of the Bounty cannons as they were shot off at the Marina by the crew.

Powered by Podbean.com

Power to South Side should be restored by 5:30

There are still several hundred Thunder Bay Hydro customers without power on the south side. 
It follows a lightning strike around quarter to one this afternoon.  Hydro's Eileen Dias says the outage was substantial.  Customers affected are in the Arthur, Piper, Selkirk and Marks street areas and should have all power restored by 5:30 this afternoon

Storm blasts south side

City crews were busy Tuesday afternoon cleaning up damaged caused by a storm during the lunch hour. A city worker says evidence shows that tree limbs were downed by lightning. Top: Tree destroyed at Vickers and Donald Streets. Middle: Tree limb knocked down at Miles Street at Paterson Park. Bottom: Tree hit on Arthur Street

Kenora OPP taser two people

It's not something that happens everyday in Northwestern Ontario. Kenora OPP Constable Dave Cain says they used a stun gun on two people following the Friday night Harbourfest Concert. Police tasered two crowd members who they believe were preventing officers from breaking up a fight on the harbourfront. Cain says charges will be laid against the two people.

Power outage hits south core

Power was out to a large area of the south downtown core this afternoon. Thunder Bay Hydro says it was due to a lightning strike at around quarter to one. Hydro spokesperson Eileen Dias says at the height of the outage there were 3 thousand customers without power. That number was reduced to 500 by 1:35. They expect all power will be back by 5:30 pm.

Brian Stevenson era: Day one

Brian Stevenson is getting used to his new surroundings. Stevenson is the new president of Lakehead University and today was his first day on the job. Stevenson says he has 5 major goals including keeping costs in check, improving connections between LU and the community, achieving academic excellence in teaching and research, developing a strategy to promote the institution to more students from other countries and connecting to the community. As for wireless internet access at the university, Stevenson says he will consult with the community starting next month and make a decision from there.

NAN receives money for youth program

Thunder Bay area youth will learn life skills thanks to 120 thousand dollars in provincial funding.  Nishinawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Stan Beardy says they'll be using the money to offer lifeskills to the Girl Power Wolf Spirit Warrior Program.  Beardy adds the program helps increase self-esteem, foster healthy relationships, and promotes healthier lifestyle choices.

Best brings money for health promotion

Six Thunder Bay area community groups will be sharing over 474 thousand dollars in provincial funding. Ontario's Minister of Health Promotion Margarett Best was in Thunder Bay for the last three days and announced the funding this morning. The Nishinawbe Aski Nation will be utilizing 120 thousand dollars for its "Girl Power Wolf Spirit" program.

Festa makes its mark

There's nothing like a spaghetti eating contest at an event that celebrates Italian culture. In this case it's the Festa Italia which was held at the Italian Cultural Centre on Algoma Street over the weekend. Hundreds showed up to have some food along with enjoying music and entertainment.

Early morning robbery

Thunder Bay police say a robbery took place in the area of Dease and Mackienze this morning.

A 50 year old man—who suffered a bloody nose from the incident— told police he was approached by two young males. They starting punching him and then took his wallet.

Police searched the area but no suspects were found.

The World Junior Baseball Championships a complete success

The Medals were handed out and the final speeches were said and as the dust settled, Thunder Bay can stand proud after a very successful tournament.  Organizer Warren Philp says ticket sales went well beyond what was expected and all the teams and International officials had nothing but good things to say about the tournament and Thunder Bay.  Philp says the volunteers did a tremendous job and all the fans should give themselves a pat on the back for showing the world how great Thunder Bay is.  Jeff Halverson says he was hoping to sell between 20 to 25 thousand tickets and ended up selling over 45 thousand which was a very pleasant surprise.

Chinese Taipei takes the gold

It was a story book ending for Chinese Taipei at the World Junior Baseball Championships. They managed to literally weather the storm in rain delayed 8-4 win over Australia to take their country's second Gold medal. Rain forced the start of the game to be pushed back by an hour and a half and Australia came out of the gates scoring 4 runs, including a 3 run homer after 4 innings to take a 4-2 lead but then mother nature stopped the game again for over an hour. When play resumed Taipei regrouped and scored 4 runs in the bottom of the 5th and never looked back capturing the gold.

Australia takes the Silver, which is their country's best ever showing at this event. Prior to this year, they had won 5 Bronze medals. Team Manager Tony Harris says they wanted the Gold but he's very proud of his team.

Canada falls to Cuba for Bronze

It was a disappointing end for team Canada at the World Junior Baseball Championships. Canada fell 8-2 to Cuba in the Bronze medal game at Port Arthur stadium this afternoon. Canadian starting pitcher Rob Thomas kept Cuba off the board for the first 4 innings before giving up a three run homer in the 5th inning which proved to be the winning runs. Canadian designated hitter Philip Diedrick had another strong day at the plate going 3 for 4 and score one of the Canadian runs. Diedrick says Cuba is a great team and he's proud how his teamates performed. Diedrick hit over 500 for the tournament.

Canadian Manager Greg Hamilton says they had a chance to play for Gold but just couldn't come up with timely hitting. Hamilton says they finished ahead of some very good teams so you can't be too disapointed with finishing 4th.

Elsewhere today Korea beat Italy in the 7th place game 3-1 and the US crushed the Netherlands 18-2 for 5th place. Australia takes on Chinese Taipei for the Gold.

Man assaulted last night

Thunder Bay Police say a man was assaulted by three men asking for money around 3:30 Sunday morning on West Arthur street.
According to police the man says he was pushed to the ground and beaten after telling the three men that he didn't have any money.
He says he got to his feet and ran to a phone after one of the men pulled out a knife and demanded money again. The three men then fled the scene. The man who was assaulted was treated at Thunder Bay Regional Hospital and released. He says his attackers had their face covered by bandanas and were all around 5'8 and 180 pounds.

No Gold for Canada

Team Canada's quest for Gold at the World Junior Baseball Championship has ended.  They fell 3-1 at the hands of Chinese Taipei infront of a packed house at Port Arthur Stadium.  The story of the game was the Chinese Pitcher, Lo Kuo Hua, who pitched a complete game three hitter and struck out ten. Canada's designated hitter Philip Diedrick says they had a chance in the 8th inning with runners on 2nd and 3rd with 1 out but couldn't capitalize.  Canada's Manager says its disappointing not to be playing for gold but bronze is still worth playing for. 


Chinese Taipei will now take on Australia in tomorrow's gold medal game at 4:30 at Port Arthur Stadium while Canada takes on Cuba in the Bronze Medal game.  Game time for Canada is noon at Port Arthur Stadium.  Australia punched their ticket to the final by beating Cuba 2-1.

Elsewhere France beat the Czech Republic 8-5 in the 11th place game, Venezuela got past Panama 7-5 in the 9th place game, The Netherlands advanced to the 5th place game with a 8-5 win over Italy and the US is also in the 5th place game after doubling up South Korea 4-2.

Long weekend safety blitz underway

The long weekend has begun, and so has the holiday safety blitz by the Ontario Provincial Police. Officers are on the lookout for impaired and aggressive drivers, unfastened seat belts and drivers talking on cell phones that aren't hands-free.

According to the OPP 16 people died on Ontario highways, trails and waterways over Canada day weekend.

Canada is off to the semi finals

Canada bucked the trend of losing to the underdog in the quarter finals. They beat team Italy 11-1 in 7 innings to advance to the semi finals on the shoulders of a homer night from right fielder Rowan Wick. Canada also got a solid outing from starting pitcher Jonathan Paquet who allowed one run in 6 innings of work and struck out 9. Canada will now take on Chinese Taipei in tomorrow's second semi final. The opening pitch will go at 7:00 at Port Arthur Stadium. Team Canada Manager Greg Hamilton says they got solid pitching and a strong night at the plate and says the added confidence is important moving forward.

In other action today, Cuba knocked off the US 3-2, Australia managed to upend Korea 5-4, Chinese Taipei advanced to the semi finals with a 4-2 win over The Netherlands, France lost to Panama 5-3 and Venezuela topped the Czech Republic 9-6.

Cuba shocks the US

One of the heavy favourites at the World Junior Baseball Championships will be going home without a medal. Cuba downed the US 3-2 on the shoulders of a complete game 9 hitter from their starting pitcher Luis Omar. The US managed to come back and tie the game twice but an RBI single by Cuban third baseman Lazaro Hernandez brought home the winning run. The States managed to get runners in scoring position in the bottom of the inning but to no avail. Cuba will now move on to face the winner of tonight's game between Korea and Australia, while the US will take on the loser. Both of those games will go tomorrow.

Comuzzi-Stehmann seeks Tory nomination

There's a Comuzzi getting back into politics. This time it's Maureen Comuzzi-Stehmann , the niece of former Conservative MP Joe Comuzzi. Comuzzi-Stehmann is seeking the federal Tory nomination for the Thunder Bay-Rainy River Riding.  She says that the election of Greg Rickford in the Kenora riding provided the incentive for her to get into politics.   No date has been set for the nomination.

Gilbert bids goodbye

Today is Fred Gilbert's last day as president of Lakehead University. Brian Stevenson officially takes over Sunday.  Gilbert says he has no real regrets to speak of and adds he's had a wonderful 12 years  in Thunder Bay.   Gilbert says his proudest accomplishment is improving LU's reputation.  Where once the school was considered as a last chance university, he turned it into an institition that now attracts top scholars from Thunder Bay and the rest of the province. Vic Krasowski's interview with Dr. Fred Gilbert can be heard on the link below

Powered by Podbean.com

OPP warn of counterfeit cheques

A fake cheque scam has made it's way to the community of Geralton. OPP say it's an old con game that sees you get a cheque in the mail which you are asked to cash. Police say through a series of bank transactions it usually ends up that the person cashing the cheque is left with no money and a hefty bank loan.

Question quota fizzles

It appears getting city councillors to cut down on their questions at meetings could be a challenge. As part of a trial phase they must only ask 3 questions of presenters or administration per round of questioning. It's designed to help shorten meetings, but last Mondays meeting went passed 1 o'clock the next morning.

HMS Bounty set to Arrive Tuesday

Keep a close eye on the harbour Tuesday because you'll get a chance to see the HMS Bounty's arrival. Coordinator Kerry Berlinquette says it should arrive Tuesday afternoon and you can get up to the hour updates on when it will arrive at http://www.bountyarrival.webs.com/.  The public will be able to tour the ship Wednesday from noon to 8pm for three dollars per person.

ER ca$h is here

The Regional Health Sciences Centre is getting 1.9 million dollars from the provincial government to make emergency room improvements. Rhonda Crocker-Ellacott says the hospital must use the money to help reduce ER wait times. The provincial standard is 8 hours for complicated cases and 4 hours for less serious ones. Crocker-Ellacott says they manage to hit the targets over 90 per cent of the time. She says where the hospital has a challenge is getting ER patients admitted to the hospital within the 8 hour goal.

Thunder Bay OPP officer awaiting sentence for harrasment

A Thunder Bay OPP officer will be sentenced in September after harrassing a woman on the internet. Constable Claude Montfort pled guilty in March after a two year investigation. Both the crown and the defense are calling for a sentance without incarceration. Montfort received a medal for bravery after he helped rescue people trapped in a burning vehicle near Marathon.

OPP officer cleared in Kenora

The SIU has cleared a Kenora police officer who shot a knife wielding woman last month. The officer shot the woman after she started walking towards her with the knife pointed in the officers direction. The SIU says the officers didn't use excessive force in the situation.