Kenora Borealis Presents Road Race Cheque

The Kenora and Lake of the Woods Regional Community Foundation is a little bit richer thanks to the Mother's Day Road Race.

Today the Foundation was given a cheque of $5,000 dollars by a representative of Kenora Borealis.

Jennifer Findlay is one of the race organizer and says it's great to see the event get even bigger with more families making it an annual tradition along with more corporate support.

Findlay next year they are aiming for over 450 participants.

Ornge Helicopters Cleared for Take-off

Ornge Air helicopters in Kenora and Thunder Bay are back in service.

On Friday, the organization temporarily took its five helicopters offline.

The move follows a fatal accident involving an Ornge air ambulance helicopter in Moosonee.

Four people including two pilots and two paramedics were killed when the Sikorsky S-76 chopper
went down shortly after take-off.  

Beaver Brae Hands Out Academic Awards

Beaver Brae honored its best and brightest at its annual Academic Awards Assembly.

The top students in Math, English, Sciences, and Drama were singled out for their efforts.

This year, a new award was handed out from the Science Department.

The Triple Threat Award goes to a student, or students who excel at Biology, Chemistry
and Physics.

The inaugural honor went to twin sisters Kaitlyn and Stephanie Sparkman.

Teachers and students also paid tribute to a number of staff who are retiring.

Melne Moore and Sylvia Bishop were given a standing ovation after serving in the
Beaver Brae front office for decades.

Teachers Bill Broten and Jim O'Hearn were also given a standing ovation for their years of service
at the high school.

Youth Arrested Following Break-In

A 15 year old youth has been arrested following a break-in to a business on Railway Street.

The OPP say the break-in took place early Monday morning.

Police say they were notified by the business that someone had entered
their store and stole a quantity of cash.

One suspect was identified by a security camera and later arrested.

He was in Kenora Court yesterday for a bail hearing.

Governments Defend Pimachiowin Aki

Manitoba and Ontario are defending the decision to commit more than 15 million dollars to get UNESCO recognition for a large stretch of boreal forest along the inter-provincial boundary.
 
Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger says having Pimachiowin Aki
designated a world heritage site will attract tourists to the remote
area.
 
He says it will also make it easy to protect from development.
 
Michelle Nowak of Ontario's Natural Resources Department says the
site could fill a gap in boreal forest representation in the world heritage system.

Teen Killed in Eastern Manitoba

A teenager who was mistaken for a bear outside a tent has been shot and killed in a remote area of northeastern Manitoba.
   
RCMP say four males were camping at Namay Falls on the Bloodvein River over the weekend when one of them was woken up by what he thought was a bear close to the tent.
   
He fired a shot only to discover he had hit one of his camping buddies.
   
RCMP say the victim is a 17-year-old from Steinbach.

Police say they will not release the dead teen's name.

NOMA Raises Energy Concerns

Energy continues to be a major concern for the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association.

NOMA President Dave Canfield says a huge issue is the future of the Thunder Bay generating station.

Canfield says NOMA wants the province to commit to keeping the Mission Island Generating Station in Thunder Bay open and convert it to gas.

He adds the province and energy companies are finally starting to realize the large amount of power that will be needed when the mining sector booms.

Water Levels Continue to Rise in Kenora Area

The Lake of the Woods Control Board is continuing it's battle against high water levels.

Rick Cousins with the control board says outflows at the Norman Dam will be increased again this week.

Cousins says that water levels below the damn are expected to rise around 2 feet in Darlington Bay, and Minaki can expect to see an increase around 16 inches.

Cousins is hoping that the wet weather has come to an end as water levels are above normal throughout the region.

Sandy Lake Man Arrested on Murder Charges

A 34-year-old man faces second degree murder charges in the May 12th death of Uriah Kakepetum in Sandy Lake First Nation.

Kakepetum died at the Sandy Lake Nursing Station and a post-mortem exam determined he was the victim of a homicide.

An investigation was launched by Provincial Police and the Nishnawbe-Aski Police Service.

Police arrested Leslie Fiddler of Sandy Lake First Nation yesterday.

Fiddler is due in court today.

Firefly Approves New Anti-Bullying Campaign

A new national anti bullying program will focus on young people helping each other.

Details of the new program were announced on Parliament Hill yesterday.

Here in Northwestern Ontario, Firefly CEO Karen Ingebritson says it sounds like a great program.

Ingebritson says it's still too early to know exactly how it will work, but is confident it will promote anti-bullying in the region.

Sleepy Driver Causes Accident

A Prince Edward Island man is lucky to be alive after falling asleep at the wheel on the Trans Canada Highway near Upsala on Sunday morning.

Police say the 30 year old nodded off around 6:30 and woke up when the vehicle hit the gravel shoulder and it rolled in the ditch.

Police say the driver and passenger were not injured.

The man has been charged with careless driving.

Victims of Red Lake Crash Remembered

The victims of a fatal float plane crash in Red Lake are being remembered as caring, community minded people.

Brenda and Jim Beauchene died when their float plane crashed into the Bruce Channel Thursday evening.

The Beauchene's were prominent figures in Phoenix, Arizona but were both born in Canada.

In an e-mail to the newsroom, Brenda's cousin Sue Beaudry stated that the two were headed to the tourist camp they had just purchased.

Jim was a plastic surgeon specializing in hands.

She says when Brenda contacted her this spring, she was wanting information as to how Jim could maybe help out in the community offering his medical services.

She says they both were community oriented.

The couple leaves behind identical twin daughters and a son.

New Gold Takes over Rainy River Resources

New Gold says its committed to continuing the work started by Rainy River Resources in the development of a new gold mine south of Kenora.

The Vancouver-based mining company announced last week it would be taking control of Rainy River in a friendly
take-over bid.

President Bob Gallagher says they intend to do a thorough review of the project, but have no plans to shelve it.

Gallagher says they'd being eyeing Rainy River for almost two years before putting forward a bid for the company.

4th Annual Boobie Nights Surpasses Goal

The 4th annual Boobie Nights was a record breaking event.

Organizer Angela Kuchma says they easily surpassed their goal and raised over 61 thousand dollars.

The money will go to the hospital foundation with the goal of purchasing a new digital x-ray to go along with the new mammography machine.

Boobie Nights was sold out for the second straight year.

Wet Weekend Reduces Fire Hazard

All the rain this past week may not have been good for people wanting to spend some time outdoors, but it was good for the forest fire situation.

The Ministry of Natural Resources says there were no new fires reported in the region over the past five days.

The forest fire hazard has also dropped to low right across the Kenora District.

In fact, the Kenora area saw almost 39 millimeters of rain over four days.

That was not the highest total in the region.

Ear Falls was hit by almost 60 millimeters, while Dryden is bailing from 55
millimeters of rain.

Rickford Comments on Senate Spending Scandal

Kenora MP Greg Rickford says they are making adjustments in wake of the Senate expense scandal.

It follows word that the Prime Minister's former chief-of-staff gave senator Mike Duffy 90 thousand dollars to cover inappropriate expenses he was required to pay back.

Rickford says the Conservative government is now working to make things right.

He says they will be clearly outlining the kinds of expenditures, such as travel, that senators can claim in the
future.

UNESCO Decision on Pimachewan Aki to be Delayed

More questions are being raised about a plan to get international recognition for a big stretch of forest along
the Manitoba-Ontario boundary.

Millions of taxpayer dollars have been spent on trying to have the remote area called Pimachiowin Aki, declared a UNESCO world heritage site.

But Manitoba Opposition Leader Brian Pallister says he's not sure the money is worth it.
 
In the meantime a UNESCO advisory body is recommending that a ruling on declaring the forest a heritage site be delayed at least a year while issues concerning usage of the land by local First Nations are sorted out.

Campbell Re-News Calls for Lower Clinic Rents

The MPP for Kenora-Rainy River is standing up for the Mary Berglund Community Health Center in Ignace.

In the Ontario Legislature last week, Sarah Campbell called on the government to take immediate action to lower the rent, which she says is crippling the medical clinic.

She says rent is over 200 thousand dollars a year, more than three times higher
than similar clinics in other communities across the region.

Campbell adds that the Ministry of Infrastructure and Ministry of Health have been slow to take action to ensure that services and staffing levels aren't cut.

Former Hockey Player Talks Mental Health

A former member of Canada' national women's hockey program is talk about mental health.

Kendra Fisher had to walk away from the program over a decade ago after being diagnosed with severe anxiety disorder.

Fisher says its important she talk about her experience.

Fisher was in Kenora, Dryden, Sioux Lookout and Fort Frances last week talking to area students.

Bodies Located In Red Lake Crash

The bodies of 2 people killed in a float plane crash in Red Lake have been recovered.

The victims have been identified as 59 year old Jim Bueachene and 58-year-old Brenda Beauchene of Phoenix, Arizona.

Their bodies were found at the bottom of Red Lake Saturday evening.
The Beauchene's died when their float plane went down in the Bruce Channel shortly after takeoff Thursday night.

The Transportation Safety Board is on scene continuing their investigation.