Work Continues At Gas Leak Site

Road and repair work continues following the gas line leak that occurred on Thursday at Red River Road.   The city says Red River Road is open at Hill Street, but restricted to local residential and business traffic between Summit Avenue and Rupert Street. The road is expected to reopen fully Saturday, once all work is complete.

Man Busted With Illegal Cigs

A man caught speeding on Highway 17 in the Dryden area is in trouble with the law. Officers stopped a minivan and conducted a search of the vehicle. Police found a large amount of illegal tobacco.   A 45 year old man  has been charged with possession of unmarked cigarettes. He's due in court on August 13th.

House Damaged After Collision

No one is reported to be hurt following a two vehicle accident in the Academy Heights area.   Police say it happened just before 1 o'clock this afternoon at the intersection of Frankwood and Montgomery.  They say after the collision one of the vehicles crashed into a house.   It's the second accident this week that involved a vehicle hitting a house.

Toilet Fundraiser Hits Waterfront

A lone toilet on the outside the Mariners Hall  on the waterfront is causing some curiosity this afternoon.  Turns out the biffy is part of  Cancer Society fundraiser for Relay for Life.  

Road Work Season Here

It's that time of year again.  Construction season is underway in the City and several road projects are underway.  Projects include road and sidewalk rehabilitation, residential paving, sewer and water main repair, along with bridge work and streetlight renewal.

Thunder Bay Resident Helps Out In Africa

A Thunder Bay resident is headed to Uganda for the next six months. Conrad Koczorowski is headed to Africa with nine other Canadians to help improve the health of mothers and their children. This is part of an internship with the African Medical and Research Foundation, with support from the Canadian International Development Agency.

Stats Can Releases Jobless Rate

Thunder Bay's jobless rate went down in May.  According to Statistics Canada, our unemployment rate went from 6.4 percent to 6.  Canada's rate was 7.1 percent.

HWY 17 Fully Open

Highway 17 is finally open to both lanes of traffic near Wawa.  An early morning collision between a transport and a moose caused the highway to be closed to one lane for most of Thursday.

Missing Man Found Deceased

Provincial Police have found the body of a missing Minnesota man in Basswood Lake within Quetico Provincial Park.  The remains of 78-year-old Richard Barber were found yesterday by OPP and the Ministry of Natural Resources.  Richard and his wife Elaine were in the boundary of the park for a canoe trip when their canoe capsized.  Rescue crews were able to locate Elaine and return her safely to Atikokan.

Backhoe Responsible For Gas Leak

It appears a backhoe at a city works site is the cause of a natural gas leak in the city yesterday.  City official Darrell Matson says the sewer and water crew was doing maintenance on Red River Road and Rupert and that the tire of the backhoe hit the gas line.  He says the extent of the damage is not known  The leak forced the evacuation of several homes and buildings in the Mariday Park area for much of the midday and forced the closure of Red River Road.  Drivers are asked to avoid the area of the leak with some of the main streets around the site remain closed.

School Introduces Elders Program

A new program is being introduced in the fall by the Lakehead Public School Board.  It's called Elder in Residence, and it pairs elementary teachers with aboriginal elders who help the teachers prepare courses through the arts according to program expert Crystal Nielsen. The school board gave the public a sneak peak at Kingway Park School yesterday.

Con College Graduation Today

Over a thousand students will be graduating from Confederation College today. Registrar Marjorie Kinnunen says the graduating class is bigger than last years. The ceremony will include graduates from the aviation school, engineering, technology and trades, business, hospitality and media arts.

Backhoe Responsible For Gas Leak

It appears a backhoe at a city works site is the cause of a natural gas leak in the city  today.  City official Darrell Matson says the sewer and water crew was doing maintenance on Red River Road and Rupert and that the tire of the backhoe hit the gas line.  He says the extent of the damage is not known  The leak forced the evacuation of several homes and buildings in the Mariday Park area for much of the midday and forced the closure of Red River Road.

Mariday Park Emergency Is Over

The emergency is over on Red River Road.   Fire Chief John Hay says a natural gas leak at Rupert Street forced the evacuation of some Mariday Park residents for much of the midday today.  He now says however, that the leak has been stopped by Union Gas and that road repairs are underway.  He says all residents whose homes and buildings had to be evacuated can now return. A section of Red River Road had to be closed  during the emergency.

OPP Help Free Man From Heavy Machinery

A 60 year old man is recovering after a scary incident on Wednesday afternoon.  OPP say a man was moving gravel on Sunset Lake Road when his Kubota tractor rolled over and pinned him.  An officer and the man's neighbour helped free the man's leg from under the heavy piece of machinery.

Vehicle Lands In Ditch After Collision

A 60 year old man is charged with careless driving after a collision on Highway 11/17 in Oliver Paipoonge.  The driver of a west bound vehicle on highway 17 crossed the centre line yesterday afternoon hitting another vehicle in the east bound lane.  The collision caused the vehicle to become airborne and it landed on its roof in the ditch.  OPP say no one was injured.

Police Nab More Speeders On Expressway

It appears some people are not getting the message about speeding in construction zones.  City Police issued 76 speeding tickets to drivers on Wednesday for speeding in the construction area on the Harbour Expressway.  Police feel they would have pulled more people over for speeding if it had not been for the other collision related calls that pulled them away from enforcing the expressway.

Natural Gas Leak Update

A major emergency on the City's north side. A natural gas leak in the area of Red River Road and Rupert Street is causing some residents in the Mariday Park area to be evacuated.  The evacuation of local businesses and homes include a day care. Union Gas says they're working on repairing a break in their line.  In the meantime natural gas is still leaking until crews can dig a hole and reach the area damaged by excavation workers.  Red River Road is closed between Pine and Summit.   

Rafferty Not Surprised

Thunder Bay Rainy River MP John Rafferty says he wasn't surprised an Alberta MP quit the Conservative caucus over the Federal Government's lack of transparency.  Rafferty says it's not a shock to see Brent Rathgeber resign after his private member's bill was rewritten by a largely Conservative committee.  Rafferty says there are a lot of unhappy Conservative MPs and notes there's trouble in the ranks.

Natural Gas Leak Causes Evacuations

There's a natural gas leak on the City's North Side.   Fire Platoon Chief David Long says the City's public works department has hit a major gas line in the area of Red River Road and Rupert Street.  Red River Road is closed off at Hill Street.  Long says fire is evacuating some nearby buildings and homes.