Kenora OPP Honor Veterans

Retired OPP officers in Kenora were given some special access today as part of OPP Veterans Day.

The detachment invited the 45 veterans in the city to tour the new forensic identification unit.

The President of the OPP Veterans Association Bob Arbour was also in town for the tour and offered his praise saying officers and the community will benefit greatly with in now in operation.

Arbour added it was a great experience for retired officers to see how policing has changed.

3rd Annual Street Fest A Huge Success

The Thomas Aquinas Arts Council has ended the school year in style.

The 3rd annual Street Fest held earlier today had a great turnout with almost every student in the school board attending at some point throughout the day.

Director of Music Darcy Ura says the day couldn't have gone better due to the beautiful weather.

Street Fest is one of the 3 big events held every year by the Arts Council.

Three Local High School Soccer Teams At OFSAA

A busy day for local high school soccer teams.

The provincial championships begin on three fronts.

The Thomas Aquinas boys squad is in Timmins for the OFSAA Single
A championships, and will play two round robin games today.

Meanwhile, the Saints girls team is in Hamner, near Sudbury for
the All-Ontario Single A championships.

The Thomas Aquinas girls will also play a pair of games today.

Beaver Brae's girls team is in Tecumseh near Windsor and will hit the field
this morning at 11:00 against St. Martin High School from Mississauga in
the OFSAA Double A championships.

The Broncos will also be back on the field at 2:00 this afternoon.

RN Program Being Brought Back

Back by popular demand.

Lakehead University and Confederation College will be again joining forces to offer LU's Bachelor of Science Nursing Program through the College's regional campuses.

An information session June 13 from 3:30 to 5 at the College's Lake of the Woods Campus in Kenora.

You can call the campus to register or for more information.

Recycling Services in Minaki Expanding

The residents of Minaki are going to have more time to recycle this year.

Doug Johnston from Minaki on the River says they started a recycling program last year that was quite successful.

Johnston says they are hoping to make it even better this year by extending recycling hours beyond just the weekends.

The recycling bin will available every second week for seven days at a time.

He says the two main goals are to promote recycling and take some pressure off the local landfill.

Liver Cancer Rates on the Rise

There's some positive findings in the Canadian Cancer Society's latest statistics.

Over the past 30 years, the death rate for all main cancers has declined.

However, Senior Manager of Research Luba Slatskova says they are seeing an increase in one of the most deadly forms of cancer, which is liver cancer.

She says rates have doubled for women and tripled for men.

Slatskova says the survival rate is only 20 percent, compared with 63 percent in other cancers.

OFIA Applauds Changes in Endangered Species Act

Another step in the process for forestry companies in the province.

Last week changes were made to the Endangered Species Act which eliminate duplicated rules that affect forestry companies.

Ontario Forest Industries President Jamie Lim says it's a victory for companies who constantly working on their forest management plans.

Lim says it's now easier for companies to ensure their management plans are working.

The changes come after 6 years of lobbying the government.

Health Unit Warns Against Lyme Disease

As the deer come into city limits, they also bring another health hazard.

The Northwestern Health Unit is advising the public to protect themselves from Lyme Disease, which is transmitted through deer ticks.

Public Health Inspector Kurt Casey says the tick must be on the person for 24-hours for the bacteria to enter the body.

Casey recommends picking up a Tick Kit at any one of the health units.

Airplane Passenger Arrested for Trafficking

A 25 year old woman is facing charges for trying to smuggle painkillers into Northwestern Ontario.

Canada Border Services says that she was nabbed at the Thunder Bay International Airport after returning from a trip to the United States.  

They say she had over 140 hydrocodone pills which she did not have a prescription for.

Early Morning Fire Damages Boat

An early morning fire has caused extensive damage to a boat moored at the Harborfront docks.

The fire was discovered just after 4:30 this morning in front of the Whitecap Pavilion.

Kenora's Fire and Emergency Services Department was on the scene shortly afterwards, but the blaze had already caused extensive damage to the
interior of the aluminum boat by then.

Its unclear what caused the fire.