MNR carries out spot checks on Lake of the Woods

An enforcement of fishing and camping regulations on Lake of the Woods has resulted in 26-charges and another 39-warnings.

Patrols conducted included the southern part of the lake toward Morson, Nestor Falls and the mouth of the Rainy River.

Over one hundred resident and 260 non-resident anglers were checked.

Charges included having too many fish, fishing without a license and fishing with an extra line.

At least one charge was laid for camping without a permit.

Blood Donor Clinic Today and Tomorrow

Time again to roll up your sleeves to give the gift of life.

Canadian Blood Services is holding a two-day clinic at Thomas Aquinas High School starting this afternoon.

Spokesperson Harvey Heather says they are hoping for a good turn-out.

The blood donor clinic starts at 4:30 and runs until 9:00 this evening and then again from

9:30 to 12:30 tomorrow.

 

Three Thousand Hydro One Customers without Power

Over three thousand customers of Hydro One are still without power this morning.

Crews have been dispatched to a number of areas north and west of the City of Kenora to deal with a number of outages.

Residents of Pellatt, LacLu, Ingolf, and Shoal Lake are affected, as are about 400 Hydro One customers in the Sioux Narrows areas.

Hydro One says it could be tomorrow night before all the homes affected will have their electricity back on.

Storms result in power outages for Kenora Hydro

Last night's wild storm caused an extensive outage for Kenora Hydro customers.

Power went off around 6:00 and wasn't restored until just after 11:00.

Kenora Hydro says a number of trees were knocked onto power lines and that cut electricity to several areas of the city.

Despite the severity of last night's storm, Kenora's Parks Supervisor Barb Manson says damage seems to be fairly minimal.

Manson says the high winds did managed to free the Portage Bay pedestrian bridge from its moorings.

Dufresne's Launches Charity Challenge

Dufresne is marking its 25th Anniversary in Northwestern Ontario and Manitoba by helping local charities.

CEO Mark Dufresne says the company has launched the 1-Million dollar charity challenge.

Dufresne says they hope to help up to 50-charities.

The deadline to apply is August 8th.

Free Family Fishing

Its time to get your family hooked on fishing.

Licence-free fishing began on July 2nd across Ontario.

Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters Spokesperson Alesha Caldwell says the free fishing week lasts 9-days.

Anglers are reminded to follow the conservation rules.

Two injured in Pikangikum accident

A Pikangikum woman is in critical condition in Winnipeg Hospital after her and a friend were struck by a vehicle in the First Nation community.

Police say the two women were walking on Fishhouse Road when a car hit the two.

OPP say 19-year-old Mordina Turtle has been charged with impaired operation of a vehicle causing bodily harm.

Pickle Lake Wild Fire Continues to Grow

The forest fire burning 9-kilometres away from New Osnaburgh First Nation has grown in size.

The blaze is now over 78-thousand hectares in size and is not under control.

However, crews are doing a good job keeping it away from the community.

There were 4-new fires in the District yesterday.

There are 17-active fires, 4 of which are not under control.