OPP Release Name of Accident Victim

The OPP have released the name of a woman killed in a single vehicle accident
in downtown Kenora over the weekend.

She has been identified as 76 year old Wanda Delorme.

Police say a post
mortem conducted yesterday shows that she died as a result of
injuries she sustained after the vehicle she was driving ran into a concrete retaining wall
below the parking lot of the Shopper's Drug Mart.

The OPP says she was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the collision.

Coney Island Water Line Up and Running

It took longer than expected, but the Coney Island Water Line is back up and running.

The City of Kenora says its completed the necessary flushing and testing
of the summer water service and Coney residents can now connect to the line.

The city had hoped to have the water line up and running by the May Long Weekend, but parts of it were still frozen, after an unusually cold spring.

Outflows Being Increased from Norman Dam

Water levels on Lake of the Woods are rising more quickly than expected.

Over the past week, the lake has gone up about nine inches.

As a result, the Lake of the Woods Control Board has approved daily
increases in outflow from the Norman Dam into the Winnipeg River.

Yesterday, outflows were increased by 50 cubic meters per second, and
a similar increase is being planned later today.

More increases are planned this week, which will mean water levels on the Winnipeg River could  rise by as much as two feet below the Norman Dam.

Beaver Brae Teacher Gets Textbook Credit

A teacher from Beaver Brae is offering her knowledge to students outside of Kenora.

Nancy Wagenaar was consulted in a new Environmental Science textbook.

Wagenaar says it was published by well-know publisher, McGraw Hill.

She says the textbook coincides with the Beaver Brae Envirothon team earning a top ten placement in the province.

Transit Proposals Draw Ire of Local Politicians

A proposal to raise gas taxes and the GST in Ontario to pay for mass transit in the Toronto area is getting the cold shoulder in northwestern Ontario.

Yesterday Metrolinx suggest a five cent a liter increase in the gas tax and a one percent increase in the GST to help ease traffic congestion in the Golden Horseshoe area.

Kenora-Rainy River MPP Sarah Campbell says the government needs to see the issues facing the entire province not just the GTA.

Campbell says the government needs to find ways to fund infrastructure that's fair for everyone.

Kenora Mayor Dave Canfield says the province has already made gas prices too high and doesn't need
another increase.

Study Looks At Aboriginal Business

The Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business is looking at Aboriginal Economic Development Corporations in the province.

President J.P. Gladu says their report highlights the value of Economic Development Agencies in First Nation Communities.

Gladu says the findings show that aboriginal business opportunities are growing.

And he suggests
EDC's are a great way to drive revenue in these communities.

Wildlife Collisions on the Rise

A rash of motor vehicle crashes in the region involving wildlife has prompted a warning from provincial police.

Constable Anne McCoy says drivers need to be alert.

McCoy says deer, otters, bobcats, raccoon's and even a rabbit have been responsible for some of the recent collisions.

Motorists are asked to slow down and be aware of animals.

Drug Bust on Big Trout Lake

A Weagamow man faces two counts of possession charges following a drug investigation.

Provincial Police received a report of a man flying into Big Trout Lake First Nation with an unknown quantity of drugs.

Police say 41 year old Lawrence McKay has been been arrested.

He was allegedly caught with over 3-thousand dollars worth of drugs.

Saints NorWOSSA Soccer Gold

A clean sweep for the Thomas Aquinas Saints at the NorWOSSA soccer championships.

The T.A. girls needed overtime to beat Red Lake 3-1 yesterday afternoon in Sioux Lookout.

Gilly Derouard scored on a penalty shot in extra time, while Emma Wehner added an
insurance goal for the victory.

Meanwhile, Patrick Van Bellingham and Ryan Landon eached scored twice en route to
a 5-2 victory over Rainy River in the gold medal game.

The Saints girls will host the NWOSSA finals this Friday and Saturday, while the T.A. boys
will hit the road this weekend for their NWOSSA championship series.

Young Sharks Make and Impression in Thunder Bay

A strong showing for some of the younger members of the Kenora Sharks Swim Club at the Thunder Bay International Swim meet this past weekend.

10 year old Braden Martin led the way with 10 first place finishes, while 11 year old Gabe Mastromateo collected eight gold.

JC Drygasuk had five second, and two third place finishes. 

Joe Morrison and Callum Galusha, both 12, came in 1st and 2nd respectively in the 800 Metre Free.

Ethan Belrose, 9, who only started swimming last September, and just advanced to competitve swimming in April, came home from his first "away" meet with a bronze medal in the 50 Metre Free!


On the girls' side, Kate Kroeker, 10, won two 1st's, two 2nd's, and three 3rd places.


Natalie Peterson, 11, came 1st in the 200 Breast and also received three 2nd place and two 3rd place finishes.


Alison Stoliker also had a strong weekend picking up five first place finishes and four seconds.

Both the boys' and girls' 12 and under relay teams showed well with the boy's "A" team taking 1st in both the 200M Free, and the 200M Medleys.

The boys' "B" team came in 3rd in the 200M Free. The girls' "A" team came in 3rd in the 200M Medley, and 2nd in the 200M Free. The girls' "B" team took 3rd in the 200M Medley.


The Sharks finished second overall in the standings, behind the host Thunder Bay Thunderbolts.

Kenora OPP Make Drug Bust on Bypass

Another major drug bust for the Kenora OPP.

Officers say they stopped a vehicle on the Kenora By-Pass near the Redditt  Road intersection for speeding early this morning.

Following a short investigation, police decided to search the vehicle and found about 25 pounds of marijuana.

The OPP say the pot has a street value of about 200 thousand dollars.

27 year old Matthew Hill from Calgary appeared in Kenora Court today on a charge of possession for the purpose of trafficking.

Kasabonika Lake Evacuates Due to Flooding

A remote northwestern Ontario First Nation has declared a state of emergency due to flooding.

Emergency Management Ontario says a partial evacuation of the Kasabonika Lake First Nation is underway.

About 150 vulnerable residents and their caregivers are being taken to Hearst and Greenstone.

Officials say rangers and volunteers have filled 25-hundred sandbags to protect vulnerable homes from flooding.

Roughly 866 people live on the reserve.

Update on Car Accident in Downtown

Kenora OPP have confirmed that an occupant of the car that drove up the Shoppers Drug Mart parking lot on Saturday evening has died.

Police say they are awaiting the results of post-mortem before releasing any information on the victim.

The accident took place on Saturday afternoon when a car driving on First Avenue South hit the embankment by Shoppers Drug Mart and ended up on top of the retaining wall.

Police had traffic rerouted through downtown for over 3 hours as they cleared the scene.

We will have more details has they are released.

Fire Hazard Edging Up

The forest fire hazard is moderate to high with some areas tipping up into the extreme range.

There were 4-new fires in the northwest region over the weekend.

Three of the fires were in the Dryden area.

5-fires continue to burn but no problems are anticipated.

Beaver Brae Earns Eco-School Status

Things are looking green at Beaver Brae High School.

Environmental Science Teacher Nancy Wagenaar says the secondary school just received recognition for their ecological intiatives.

Wagenaar says a lot of work went into the eco-accreditation.

She says the process included school activities, school yard greening and the mechanics of the school to promote energy savings.

Private School to Open in Quetico Center?

The education community is buzzing with word that a private high school is about to open at the former Quetico Center near Atikokan.  

It's the brainchild of Toronto's Michael Heaton who says he's shooting  for a September opening.

Heaton says tuition for the new school will be 39 thousand 500 dollars a year.

He
hopes to open the school  with an about 30 students.

NW Business Center Closes Dryden Office

The Northwest Business Center is losing one of its offices in the region.

The business Center which has an office in Kenora, is closing its Dryden office due to money issues.

However, Manager Diane Schwartz-Williams says all is not lost.

She says they will continue to offer programs through their Kenora office, using virtual technology.

Schwartz-Williams says there's an opportunity to reopen the Dryden office down the road, but there needs to be some funding.

Fire Destroys Motorhome on Trans-Canada

A scary incident for a motorist on Highway 1 in Manitoba over the weekend.

The Falcon Lake RCMP says a motorhome, towing a car, caught fire and went up in flames near the Pinegrove Rest Area around 10:30 Saturday morning.

The Mounties say the fire gutted both vehicles.

Police say both occupants managed to escape unharmed.

The cause of the fire appears to have been mechanical in nature.

Deadline for Big Game Tags Nears

Attention hunters, you can still apply for the 2013 Big Game Draws.

Ministry of Natural Resources Spokesperson Michelle Nowak says residents in Northwestern Ontario can hunt moose or antlerless deer.

Applications for moose can be made till May 31st and antlerless deer till July 2nd.

For more information you can log onto:

 www.ontario.ca/hunting or call 1-800-288-1155.

NorWOSSA Single A Play-Offs Begin Today

The NorWOSSA Soccer play-offs will be taking place on two fronts this week.

Starting this morning, the Single "a" championships will be taking place in Sioux Lookout.

Both the Thomas Aquinas boys and girls teams will be in action.

The Saints girls are up first with a semi-final game at 9:00, while the T.A. boys will play their semi-final at 11:00.

The NorWOSSA Double A play-offs will take place in Dryden on Wednesday.