Student Taken to Hospital Following School Bus Collision

Icy road conditions are believed to be partly responsible for an accident this morning involving a school bus.

The Northwest Student Services Consortium confirms bus KN-13 was involved in a collision with another vehicle on Austin Lake Road this morning just before 8:00.

Other than the bus driver, there was only one other person on board at the time, and the parents took the
student to Lake of the Woods District Hospital as a precaution.

The driver of the school bus was not injured, though both vehicles did sustain some damage.

City Talking to Province About Funding to Repair Broke Water Lines

The provincial government is being asked to provide some financial assistance to the City of Kenora as it deals with an epidemic of broke water lines.

Mayor Dave Canfield says he's met with government officials in recent weeks asking for help.

He's had discussions about the situation with the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Linda Jeffrey,  and says she's been very supportive so far.

The city is worried that it might have to eat into it's capital budget to repair broke water lines if it can't get any additional financial assistance from the federal or provincial levels of government.

Worst Roads Voting Begins Today

Just in time for pot hole season.

The Canadian Automobile Association is once again launching it's
Worst Roads campaign.

Over the next four weeks, Ontario motorists are invited to vote online
for roads or city streets in most need of repair.

You can log onto worstroads.ca to nominate a road in our area.

Health Unit Warns of Stomach Virus

The Northwestern Health Unit says they've noticed a steady increase in a stomach
virus across the region.

Manager of Infectious Diseases Donna Stanley says if you do catch the bug, the best thing to do is keep yourself well-hydrated and drink lots of water.

Stanley notes that if you are sick to avoid day cares, hospitals, and care homes until you have gone 24 hours with no symptoms.

Stanley adds it's important to constantly wash your hands throughout the day to prevent the spread of
any bugs.

Energy East Consultations Today

 Your chance to weigh in on the Energy East Pipeline project.

The first of seven community discussion forums will take place in
Kenora tonight.

The Ontario Energy Board is looking for feedback on the proposed
pipeline, which will take crude oil from Alberta and send it to eastern Canada.

The session will take place starting at 6:30 tonight at the Best Western Lakeside
Inn.

There will also be a similar session for First Nation and Metis this afternoon.

The only other forum in northwestern Ontario will take place tomorrow night in Thunder Bay.

OPP Provide Late-Season Reminder for Sledders

 With the cold weather staying with us, there are still pretty good conditions for
snowmachining.

That's why the Kenora OPP are reminding sledders of the regulations when out and about.

Constable Ronni Grosenick says not everyone can operate the machines.

Grosenick adds it's illegal to operate a snow machine on private property without the owners consent.

Ontario Liberals Election-Ready

The provincial Liberals are ready.

Party faithful gathered in Toronto for the party's annual meeting with Premier Kathleen helping to rally them in anticipation of an upcoming election.

Local candidate Anthony Leek says it was an important meeting to get all the candidates on the same page.

Leek says members of the Liberal's northern Caucus also met where he relinquished his position as regional vice-president to focus on his candidacy.

OPP Seize More Drugs On Highway 17

A traffic stop near the Ontario Manitoba border has landed a BC man in police custody.

Police say they stopped 44 year Kevin Tinker was stopped Friday morning for suspicious driving.

Police inspected the car and found 4.5 grams of marijuana and a large amount of cash.

As a result Tinker was charged with possession of cannabis and possession of property obtained by crime.

He will answer to the charges in Kenora court this morning.

Senior Thistles Finalize Allen Cup Roster

The Kenora Triple A Senior Thistles are ready for the Allan Cup.

The club has named the final roster that will travel to Dundas Ontario for the national championship.

Head Coach Brian Olson says the goalies are the backbone of this team
with Ryan Person and Tyler Gordon back between the pipes.

There are also some new faces on the squad including Nathan O'Nabigon, Matt Miller, and Rick Kozak.

Olson believes this is the best roster the team has sent to the Allan Cup.

The tournament hits the ice April 14th.

City Council Adopts 2014 Budget

Kenora city council has unanimously approved the 2014 municipal budget.

Council held a special meeting this morning to adopt the spending estimates.

The budget includes a four percent decrease in the mill rate, but the average homeowner will
see their taxes go up by about 2.3 percent, or the equivalent of about 43 dollars this year.

Mayor Dave Canfield admits he had to fight hard for the four percent cut in the tax rate.

The 2014 budget also sets aside 4.5 million dollars for phase three of Downtown Revitalization
and 2.2 million dollars for the roads program, 600 thousand dollars to install new L.E.D. street lights,
and 700 thousand dollars to complete the rehabilitation of the Winnipeg River West Branch Bridge.

Water main Breaks Could Affect 2014 Capital Budget

The City's capital budget in 2014 could be a moving target.

All the water main breaks this winter could take a chunk out of the
capital budget.

Operations manager Rick Perchuck says they are hoping the province
will come through with some financial assistance.

Perchuck says if the city does't get any additional funding, they may have to re-evaluate this year's capital plans.

The city says even though snow removal costs have been much higher this winter than usual, they
don't plan to increase that budget for 2014.

Rickford Says Ring of Fire Still a Federal Priority

The newly appointed Minister of Natural Resources says the Ring of Fire remains a high priority for the Federal Government.

Greg Rickford says the dialogue between the Feds and the Ontario government continues.

Rickford already had the Ring of Fire portfolio before the cabinet shake-up, but the new appointment will give him better control of the massive mining project in northern Ontario.

OPP Recover Stolen Vehicle

A 34 year old Winnipeg woman faces theft charges after the OPP pulled over a stolen vehicle on Highway 71.

Police pulled the vehicle over in Nestor Falls because it didn't have any visible licence plates.

A quick check determined the vehicle had been reported stolen in Winnipeg back on February 7th.

Louise Hill has been charged with possession of stolen property.

She made her first court appearance in Kenora on Friday.

PETA Launches Letter Writing Campaign Against Spring Bear Hunt

The animal activist group PETA is asking for people to write the Premier and Minister of Natural Resources to cancel the spring bear hunt.

A limited hunt is being brought back in some parts of northern Ontario for the first time since 1999 this
spring.

PETA representative Ashley Byrne says the spring hunt won't help with bear populations or human bear conflicts.

PETA feels Ontario should enforce strict wildlife feeding prohibitions and provide residents with more information about how to better coexist peacefully with their wild neighbours.

Health Unit Promotes World TB Day

Tuberculosis is still a concern in Canada.

That message from Public Health Nurse Chanda McAuley with the Northwestern Health Unit as she promotes World TB day today.

McAuley says the health unit has a lot of information on the disease.

McAuley says both the active and latent forms of the disease are treatable.

Treaty Three Commemorates Residential School Survivors

Focusing on the future.

Richard Green has helped organize a residential school commemoration today at the best Western Lakeside Inn in Kenora.

Green say he hopes people will remember the challenges people faced while attending the schools.

The commemoration will focus on survivors of all 5 schools located within the Treaty 3 Territory.

It runs from 9 until 6.

Injured Workers Concerned With Proposed WSIB Changes

Proposed changes to how workers compensation will be handed out are coming under fire from the Ontario Network of Injured Workers.

The group says the move will limit workers compensation eligibility if someone has a pre-existing condition.

Karl Crevar says they are currently raising funds to launch a legal challenge.

Crevar notes the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board is acting illegally.

Shopper's Sale to Loblaws Approved

The Shoppers Drug Mart store in Kenora is safe.

The Competition Bureau has approved Loblaws acquisition of Shoppers.

Loblaws is selling 18 Shoppers Drug Mart stores but none are located in northwestern Ontario.

The deal is expected to close on Friday.

Marijuana and Mushrooms Sized by Kenora OPP

Kenora OPP have been arrested 2 people following a drug bust in the city.

On Thursday police stopped a vehicle on highway 17.

Upon investigation police found 400 grams of marijuana and 2 grams of magic mushrooms.

The value of the seized drugs is roughly 9 thousand dollars.

As a result a 17 year old and a 21 year old man, both from Toronto, have been charged with multiple possession charges.

They will both answer to the charges next month in Kenora court.

Ice Roads Starting to Deteriorate

The warmer weather is playing havoc with local ice roads.

Windigo Island says the ice road is passable from the MNR landing
in Kenora to French Portage, but after that there is a lot of slush.

The band says there is still lots of ice on the lake, but
suggests only people with four wheel drives use the
ice roads at this time, due to all the slush.