Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Air Ontario Crash in Dryden Re-Visited

The worst air disaster in northwestern Ontario history will be relived tonight on television.

The Discovery Channel will take a look at the Air Ontario Flight 13-63 crash that killed 21 of 65 passengers and 3 of 4 crew members on March 10th, 1989.

The plane crashed into a wooded area about 15-seconds after take-off at the Dryden Airport in snowy and icy conditions.

The incident will be the feature of the Discovery Channel's Mayday program at 9 o'clock central.

Aboriginal Student Voices Report Released

The Keewatin-Patricia District School Board is looking for ways of creating a better learning environment for aboriginal students.

Recently, a the board held a forum called Aboriginal Student Voices to get feedback and generate some ideas on how to improve the learning environment in local schools.

Beaver Brae student Will Landon presented a report with five recommendations to the board last night, it included ideas how to help students who are struggling.

The recommendations also include cultural awareness training for new teachers to the board, an aboriginal sports program, and a fundraising program to help students to go on school trips.

Hampton Blasts government for another Flip-Flop

The New Democrats warn property tax payers will be on the hook for the Ontario government's decision to scrap eco fees that were slapped on thousands of household products July 1st.

Kenora-Rainy River M.P.P. Howard Hampton says the government's decision to back off the eco fees is yet another flip-flop by the Liberal government.

There was no public warning that eco fees would be put on thousands of household items on July 1st, and the government faced a major backlash from consumers and retailers.

OPP Investigate Several Drug Busts in Kenora

The OPP's Organized Crime and Drug Units were involved in a number of busts in the Kenora area over the weekend.

In one incident, about 35 thousand dollars worth of drug were seized in a raid of a local home.

Police say they seized 31 grams of cocaine, over 15 hundred grams of marijuana, as well as codeine and oxycodone pills.

52 year old Lorne McGuffin faces charges of trafficking and possession, while 52 year old Lea Cameron has been charged with trafficking, and 57 year old Robert Roy has been fined
with possession.

Two other people were charged with possession of marijuana following separate RIDE
check stops in the Kenora area.

Support Staff Strike at NOSM Continues

Support staff at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine have voted not to accept a tentative deal.

Tuesday's vote was a decisive 76.8-percent against.

Tyler England of Local 677 of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union says the members made it clear that the deal was not good enough.

Turnout for the vote was 94 per cent.

The 150 clerical, technical and administrative workers have been on strike in Thunder Bay and Sudbury since August 16th.

Issues include wages, hours of work and overtime.

Rainy River Resources Expands Exploration Work

Rainy River Resources is hoping to advance its gold exploration program south of Kenora early next year.

Kyle Stanfield, Director of Environment and Sustainability, says the company is working toward applying for some key permits from government by the end of this year.

Stanfield says they'll also hoping to secure permits with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and does not expect any difficulty in approvals.

OPP make arrest in Rec. Center Mischief Incident

A 19 year old Kenora man faces charges in connection to a mischief incident last month at the Rec. Center.

The OPP say that in the early morning hours of September 30th, someone used an excavator from the construction site on Mike Richards Way and bashed a fence at the large ball field and also destroyed one of the bleachers.

When officers arrived, they saw a couple of suspects running away from the scene.

Dylan Parisian has been charged with michief over five thousand dollars.

He scheduled to appear in Kenora Court on the charges on November 15th.