Rain Dampens Fire Hazard

Widespread thunder storms and heavy down pours have put a damper on the forest fire hazard across northwestern Ontario.

The Fire hazard is now considered "Low" across the Northwest region.

A number of fires were called "Out" in the last two days, including Kenora Fire #36, which had grown to 588 hectares in size on Falcon Island on Lake of the Woods.

There are now 15 active fires in the region.

Stanley Cup to Return to Kenora

The Stanley Cup will be coming home to Kenora this summer.

Mike Richards and the Los Angeles Kings put an emphatic finish on the NHL finals with a 6-1 shelling of the New Jersey Devil's to win the best-of-seven series 4-2.

Richards had a pair of assists in the game.

Richards now adds his name to the Stanley Cup along with the Calder Cup, the Memorial Cup, the World Junior Hockey Championships, and an Olympic Gold medal.

Jonathan Quick was named the Conn Smythe Trophy Winner as the play-off MVP.

Several Areas Still without Power Following Sunday Storm

Some residents in the Longbow Lake area are still without power today following yesterday's storm.

Hydro One says less than 20 customers are still waiting for their electricity to be restored.

Hydro is expected to be restored later this afternoon.

Several other areas in and around Kenora are also without electricty today, including some customers in the Silver Lake area and around the Whitefish Bay First Nation and just north of Clearwater Bay.

Hydro One says high winds damaged some of its power lines in the area.

Iron Ore Project gets a boost

A $900 million mining development is in the works for Northwestern Ontario.

The construction of the iron mine in the Wabigoon area is expected to begin in 2015, where close to 1,000 workers will be hired to construct the mine site.

President and CEO of Bending Lake Iron Ore Group Henry Wetalainen seems confident about it and

says they have a Chinese company interested in becoming a major investor in the project.

Bending Lake hopes to have the mine in full production in 2017.

Interpretive Forest Planted at Discovery Center

The Discovery Center is showing off its newest exhibit.

An interpretive forest was unveiled on Friday behind the building on Lakeview Drive.

Heather Paterson is Kenora's Tourism Development Officer and says the forest gives visitors an idea of some of the plant life in the area.

The city received 15 thousand dollars from the TD Green Streets fund for the interpretive forest.

The total project will amount to about 60 thousan dollars over two years.

Battle for ELA Continues

The battle to keep the Environmental Lakes Area open east of Kenora isn't over.

A meeting took place last night Knox United Church talking about the importance of the outdoor laboratory.

The public meeting was billed as "Closing the ELA-What's at Stake", and  featured a number of guest speakers including Thunder Bay-Superior North M.P. Bruce Hyer.

Relay for Life sets record in Kenora

A record breaking weekend for the Canadian Cancer Society.

The Relay for Life in Kenora raised a total of 110 thousand dollars over 12 hours.

That's the best ever total.

Hundreds of people walked the track at Lakewood School Friday night and early Saturday morning.

All totalled, Relays for Life generated 375 thousand dollars in four separate events in northwestern Ontario over the past two weekends.

Severe Weather over the Weekend

There are reports of a tornado touching down in the Rainy River district.

Emergency officials say it happened last night in the Stratton area.

There are no reports of any damage or any injuries.

David Rogers of Environment Canada says a system was prime for severe weather.

Because of the funnel cloud report, much of the district was briefly placed on a tornado watch.

Kenora was also a victim of the intense weather system getting 82 millimeters of rain.

Sod Turning for Habitat for Humanity This Morning

A milestone for Habitat for Humanity in Kenora.

A sod turning ceremony will take place this morning for the first ever build in the city.

So far Habitat has raised about 44 thousand dollars in cash, plus even more worth of "in-kind" donations.

The sod turning will take place at 10:00 just off Mellick Avenue.

Actual construction will begin on June 18th.

Saints Enjoy best ever showing at OFSAA

The Thomas Aquinas boys soccer team is back home after its best ever showing at the provincial championships.

The Saints finished with a record of two wins, a loss and two ties.

The only loss was a costly one, coming in the Quarter-final round.

T.A. lost 2-0 to the eventual gold medalists, Kings Christian from Halton.

Meanwhile, Beaver Brae's girls team won its final game at the All-Ontario Double A championships, finishing with a 1-3 record at OFSAA, but out of the play-offs.

Saints Advance to OFSAA Quarter-Finals

Its a landmark day for the Thomas Aquinas boys soccer program.

For the first time ever, the Saints have qualified for the play-offs at the All-Ontario Single "a" championships.

The Saints earned a berth into the quarter-final round with a 2-2 draw with St. Patrick Secondary School from Toronto.

Patrick Van Belleghem scored on a penalty kick late in the game to secure the tie, while Tristan Argue added the other goal.

T.A. finishes second in its pool with a record of two wins and two ties  and now plays Kings Christian in the quarter-final round this afternoon.

Meanwhile, Beaver Brae won't be playing in the second round at the OFSAA double A championships.

The Broncos are winless in three games, after losing 3-0 this morning to St. Paul from Mississauga.

Beaver Brae plays one final game in the round robin this afternoon against Lester B. Pearson from Burlington.

Thomas Aquinas Boys Win Again at OFSAA

The Thomas Aquinas boys soccer team controls its own destiny at the All-Ontario Single "a"

championships.

The Saints need a win or a tie this afternoon to move onto the quarter-finals at the OFSAA

tournament in Windsor.

This morning T.A. won its second game with a 2-1 win against Walkerton District High School.

Patrick Van Belleghem scored both T.A. goals, giving him three in three games.

Thomas Aquinas has one more game in the round robin against St. Patrick Secondary School from
Toronto.

Meanwhile, Beaver Brae won't be playing in the second round at the OFSAA double A championships.

The Broncos are winless in three games, after losing 3-0 this morning to St. Paul from Mississauga.

Beaver Brae plays one final game in the round robin this afternoon against Lester B. Pearson from Burlington.

New Tourism Web Site Launched

There's no place like home for Waysaya Wild Adventures.

The tourist group has recently launched their website, waysayawild.com.

Tour Advisor Bruce Fallen says there was a specific idea in mind when the site was being created.

Tourists will be able to see the northern way of living, such as fishing and local communities.

Thunder Bay declared a disaster area

Thunder Bay, Conmee and Oliver-Paipoonge are now disaster areas and are elibigle for funding from the provincial government.

The announcement was made in Thunder Bay yesterday by Municipal Affairs Minister Kathleen Wynne.

Thunder Bay Mayor Keith Hobbs calls it a great start.

The three areas will share in up to 16 million dollars in disaster relief funding

Sioux Narrows Embraces Grey Power

Officials in Sioux Narrows/Nestor Falls say they're not surprised that the community has the oldest population in the Kenora District.

A recent StatsCan report showed the number of people 65 or older in the town was 24.3 percent.

Town Planner Jeff Port says Stats Can last year also showed Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls was also the fastest growing community in the region, which he attributes to more seniors deciding to

declare their cottages their primary residence.
Port says Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls move to approve condo developments is something that he sees as a positive for the aging population in his community.

Louisiana Man Drowns in Quetico Provincial Park

A tragic drowning in Quetico Provincial Park.

Provincial Police say two men were on a canoe trip in Carp Lake, about 70-kilometres south of Atikokan.

OPP say the men were fishing in their canoe when one of them suffered a medical emergency.

The canoe capsized and the victim couldn't be kept above water by his friend.

The survivor managed to swim to shore and call for help.

27-year-old Jacob Jones of Ruston, Louisiana has been identified as the victim.

OPP say Jones wasn't wearing a life jacket at the time.

Relay for Life Takes Center Stage Tonight

Another major fundraiser for Cancer patients and research tonight.

The annual Relay for Life will take place at the Lakewood School track.

Amanda Witta is the co-chair and says one of the most inspirational moments is the lighting of the luminaries.

The Relay will start around 7:00 this evening, with the luminaries being lit starting around 10:00.

Hospital Finishes Fiscal Year in the Black

Despite increasing costs, Lake of the Woods District Hospital managed to record a small surplus this past year.

The hospital was 80 thousand dollars in the black in the 2011/2012  fiscal year.

Vice President of Corporate Services Cindy Gasparini admits it wasn't easy to balance their books.

Gasparini says the outlook for the year ahead isn't very rosy.

They are expecting only a modest increase in spending of just 0.4 percent from the province.

Richardson Acclaimed as Chair of Hospital Board

Not a lot of suspense in the election of the hospital board's executive last night.

Fred Richardson was acclaimed as chair for another term.

He admits these are challenging times to be a hospital in Ontario.

New board member, Dorothy Monteith was also acclaimed as vice chair.

There were a couple of departures from the hospital board as both Joan Reid and Dale Munro have resigned.

Adam Pringle and Theresa Stevens were selected to replace them on the board. 

Forest Fire Activity Picks up

There are 20 active forest fires in Northwestern Ontario.

The Ministry of Natural Resources is reporting three new fires which started yesterday.

The Sioux Lookout District has the most fires with 9, there are 5 in the Red Lake area and one each burning in the districts of Dryden, Fort Frances and Kenora.

Information Officer Debbie McLean says if the rain in the forecast holds true, the fire hazard rating will drop to low for the South and Central portions of the region, but remain high to extreme in the North.

Campbell Speaks Out Against Energy Retailers

There's a call to ban the door-to-door sale of hydro or natural gas.

Kenora-Rainy River MPP Sarah Campbell says contracts signed at the door are both misleading and costly for consumers.

Campbell says she's received hundreds of complaints about these companies across her riding and

is urging the provincial government to ban the practice of selling energy contracts door-to-door.

Northern Rendez Vous Coming to Kenora

Call it a British Invasion.

Next week, about 100 M.G.'s, Minis, Triumphs and Astin Martins will be cruising the streets of Kenora.

Tom Struthers is one of the organizers of the Northern Rendezvous and says Kenora is the perfect location for the event.

Struthers says the only open event to the public, is a car show on Saturday, June 16th under the Harborfront Tent.

Saints Unbeaten At OFSAA

Thomas Aquinas boys soccer team remains undefeated at the All-Ontario single "a" championships in Windsor.

The Saints played to a 1-1 draw against Glengarry District High School yesterday afternoon.

Ryan Landon scored the lone goal for T.A.

T.A. now has a win and a tie after two games.

Thomas Aquinas is back in action this morning at 8:30 against Walkerton.

Meanwhile, Beaver Brae's girls soccer team is still searching for its first win at the All-Ontario double "a" championships.

The Broncos dropped its second game in a row yesterday at the OFSAA finals.

Beaver Brae was edged 2-1 by Holy Trinity from Bradford yesterday and fall to 0-2.

Their next game is this morning at 8:30 against the St. Paul Wolverines

Dryden Police Warn of Another Scam

Once again, if it seems too good to be true...it probably is!

Police in Dryden say a local woman received a letter from the World Global Lotto Commission in Spain.

The letter stated that she had just won the Spanish Sweepstake Lottery and that her banking information is needed to transfer the funds.

Police remind residents to never divulge banking information to someone you don't know.

Saints Win, Broncos Lose at OFSAA Soccer

A big upset for Thomas Aquinas to start the All-Ontario Single A soccer championships in Windsor.

The Saints blanked the second ranked team in the tournament, the host team from Ecole Secondaire Lajeunesse 1-0 this morning in their first game.

Patrick Van Belleghem accounted for all the scoring and the defense did the rest to preserve the shut-out.

T.A. is back in action at 12:30 against Glengary District High School from Eastern Ontario.

Meanwhile, a tough loss for Beaver Brae's girls soccer team in St. Thomas.

The Broncos dropped a 1-0 decision to the top team in the tournament, St. Michael from Stratford.

Beaver Brae is back in action against Holy Trinity from Bradford.

Grassy Man Charged with Second Degree Murder

A 19 year old Grassy Narrows man faces second degree murder charges in connection to the death of his brother.

Toby Meeseewaypetung was arrested following an altercation at a home
on Grassy Narrows Monday afternoon. 

The OPP say they were called into investigate the death of 22 year old Kiefer Meeseewaypetung.

A post-mortem exam was done Tuesday at Lake of the Woods District Hospital but the cause of death has not been released.

Kiefer's brother Toby has been charged with second degree murder and assault with a weapon.

He's due to appear in Kenora Court tomorrow to answer the charges.

New Course for Thomas Aquinas

Coming to a high school near you, a new high performance class for athletes.

Thomas Aquinas is launching a Personal and Fitness Activities course this fall.

Clint Fenelon will be one of the teachers and says it takes phy-ed to a whole new level.

Fenelon says interest is already very high, with as many as 50 students ready to

sign up.

He says they will be offering the course for students from grade 9 to 12. 

Relay for Life gets a Boost

The Relay for Life in Kenora got a bit of a kick-start yesterday.

The Executive Director of the Lake of the Woods Hospital Foundation shaved her head as a fundraiser.

Jess Rheault promised to cut off her locks if she was able to raise at least 45 hundred dollars.

She's already topped that amount with 53 hundred dollars raised.

The Relay for Life gets underway tomorrow night at Lakewood School.

Fire situation starts to Heat Up

The forest fire hazard continues to rise in Northwestern Ontario.

Seven new fires sparked yesterday, and all were caused by lightning.

Six of the blazes were in the Sioux Lookout District and one was reported in the Fort Frances area.

The fire hazard is listed as "Extreme" in the Southwest portion of the region and "Moderate" in most other sectors.

Aboriginal Affairs Minister Promises to Meet with Grassy Residents

The provincial government is being urged to help residents of Whitedog and the Grassy Narrows First Nations still grappling with the effects of mercury poisoning.

A study released this week suggested that 59 percent of residents who were assessed in 2010 are still showing signs of mercury poisoning.

Kenora-Rainy River M.P.P. Sarah Campbell adds that money set aside years ago isn't helping everyone who has been affected.

Aboriginal Affairs minister Kathleen Wynne has promised to meet with Grassy Residents, who have made the trek down to Toronto. 

OPP Release Name of Man Killed in Emo

The name of the man killed in a collision with a train Tuesday in Emo has been released.

20 year old Matthew Boven of Emo was killed when his vehicle was hit by a CN freight train.

A post mortem was scheduled to be conducted at Lake of the Woods district hospital yesterday.

Broncos, Saints play this morning at OFSAA Soccer Championships

Members of the Beaver Brae and Thomas Aquinas boys soccer teams are in Southwestern Ontario today for the All-Ontario championships.

The Broncos girls are playing in their fourth consecutive OFSAA Double A finals, this year in St. Thomas.

Beaver Brae's first game is this morning against the top ranked team in the tournament, St. Michael from Stratford at 7:30. 

Meanwhile, the Saints boys team are in Windsor for the Single A championships. 

They will take on the number two seed in their first game, Ecole Lajeunesse from Windsor at 8:00 this morning. 

Rec. Center Airs Game Four of Stanley Cup tonight

The Kenora Rec. Center will be awash in Silver, black and white tonight.

Stanley Cup fever takes over the Thistle Rink, where game Four will be broadcast live.

Meagan Derouard is helping organize tonight's festivities and says they
will have a large screen TV at their disposal.

CBC is also planning to have a camera in the House as local residents
show their support for hometown hero Mike Richards. 

Doors open at 6:00 with the game set to start at 7:00.

Admission is 5 dollars for adults. 

Former Paramedic Raises Concerns About ORNGE

A former Ornge paramedic says no one would listen to his
complaints about the air ambulance service because of what he called its ``Mother Teresa'' image.

Trevor Kidd says he quit Ornge in 2009 after the death of a
teenager from northwestern Ontario.

Kidd told a legislature committee Ornge ``robbed'' her of any
chance of surviving by not properly staffing their aircraft or
sending them in a timely manner.

He says he raised red flags about Ornge with journalists and others, but to no avail.

More unlocked Vehicles Broken into

Its a simple message, but one many local residents are ignoring.

The OPP say they have been more reports of unlocked vehicles
being entered and personal property being stolen.

Last night, two homeowners in the Minto and Nairn Avenue area of
town complained their vehicles were entered.

The OPP say they have also had several recent reports of sheds,
garages and other outbuildings being entered. 

RCMP Investigating Assaults in West Hawk Lake

(Police Searching for identity of these suspects)

The RCMP are investigating an assault that took place in West Hawk Lake over the weekend.

Police say five men were walking to their rented cottage from the West Hawk Bar
when they were attacked by four people.

All five required medical attention and three had to be taken to hospital for treatment.

The RCMP says upon further investigation is was determined that all involved had been at the West Hawk Bar earlier in the evening, where minor altercations between the two groups broke out.

Anyone with information about the assaults is asked to contact Manitoba Crimestoppers or the Falcon Beach RCMP.

Another Good Year for the Hospital Foundation

Lake of the Woods District Hospital is 443 thousand dollars richer
thanks to the Hospital Foundation.

The Foundation held its 20th annual general meeting last night and announced the transfer.

Donna Wallace is the past chairperson of the board and says they had an extremely good fundraising year, topping last year's efforts by about 80 thousand dollars.

Wallace says the big push right now is the purchase of a digital mammography unit.

So far the Foundation has raised about 30 percent of the one million dollar price tag. 

Salvation Army Ramps Up efforts in Thunder Bay

The Red Cross is ramping up it's presence in Thunder Bay's East End.  

Spokesperson David St. Georges says they are starting to take over operations at St. Peter's Church and plan some expansion of their help

In other flood related news city officials want to get in touch with flood victims who have asked for help, but have disappeared.

Fatal Accident in Emo

Tragedy in Emo.

Provincial Police say a vehicle was struck by a CN freight train just before noon yesterday.

The crash occurred at a controlled railway crossing.

A lone male driver was pulled from the vehicle and transfered to Hospital.
He later succumbed to his injuries.
The name of the victim will be released pending notification of next of kin.
OPP and CN Railway Police are investigating but note that the lights at the crossing were working properly.

Fire Crews Returning from Northeastern Ontario

Seventy percent of our firefighters, equipment and aircraft are back home after spending several weeks fighting forest fires in Northeastern Ontario.

Ministry of Natural Resources Information Officer Debbie MacLean says the return of crews is a good thing because the fire hazard is starting to inch up locally.

She says the recent spell of warm weather is really starting to dry out our forests. 

MacLean says the hazard is high in the southwest portion of the region.

Scientists Oppose Closure of ELA

Scientists from around the world are sending an open letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper in which they protest Ottawa's decision to cut funding for the Experimental Lake Area

The unique open air laboratory is made up of 58 lakes just east of Kenora.

The Harper government has announced it will no longer fund the program and is trying to shift the research to universities or other groups.

Without further funding, the program is scheduled to shut down next March.

Impaired Driving Charges up In 2012

Two more people have been charged with drinking and driving in Kenora.

That brings the number of impaired driving charges to 34 so far this year, an increase from 27 during the same time period the year before.

Inspector Dave Lucas of the Kenora Detachment says that leaves them no choice but to increase enforcement.

The OPP say in one incident over the weekend, they pulled over a vehicle in the Park Street area because the car looked like it had been in an accident.

Saints Honor their Top Athletes

A big night for a grade 10 student from Thomas Aquinas.

Patrick Van Belleghem took home a number of awards from the annual Saints Sports Banquet, including senior male Athlete of the year.

Erica Lindquist and Emily Bernie shared the honors at Senior Female Athletes of the year.

Sandy Davidson Hunt was the male junior athlete of the year, while Jilly Derouard was named the top junior female athlete.

Ministry of Labor Called in to Investigate Boating Fatals

The Ministry of Labor has been called in to help investigate a fatal boating accident on Lake of the Woods.

Two American men died Saturday night in Ash Bay after the boat they were in ran into a rock face.

The anglers were staying at a local fishing resort and were fishing with a guide at the time.

The deceased have been identified as 71 year old Robert Foster of Frankfurt, Michigan and 71 year old James Saney of Sylvania, Ohio.

A 62 year old Kenora man remains in Winnipeg Hospital in stable condition.

Local School officials Asked to Cut costs

Local school officials say they are ready to work with the Ministry of Education to find cost savings.

Directors of Education and school board chairs took part in a conference call with Ministry officials last week.

Phylis Eikre is director of Education with the Kenora Catholic District School Board and says broader consultations will begin in the fall.

Eikre says no-where in the discussions did ministry officials talk about the need for forced amalgamations.

Three Summer Businesses Being Set up

The creative minds of three high school students has resulted in three new businesses popping up in the North West.

Jennifer Brown, Ryan Milne and Shawnee Morrisseau will soon be opening their own business through the provincial government's Summer Company Program.

Small business Advisor Stephanie Armstrong says they offer the program each summer.

They will be given up to three thousand dollars and business training to help them get going.

Effects of Mercury Poisoning Still being Felt

A report says two First Nations communities devastated by mercury poisoning nearly 50 years ago are still feeling its impact.

The report is from Masazumi Harada, a Japanese expert on the subject.

The communities of Grassy Narrows and White Dog were ravaged by mercury poisoning in the 1960s when the Dryden paper mill began dumping toxins into the English-Wabigoon River.

Harada has been to the communities several times since the mill stopped dumping mercury in 1970.

He says his most recent examinations in 2010 found 59 per cent of the people he assessed were still showing signs of poisoning.

Thunder Bay sets up Flood Fund

Thunder Bay City Council is moving a half-million dollars from their savings to a new flood relief fund.

Money in the fund will be used to cover cleaning up the homes of flood victims and covering their insurance claims.

City Manager Tim Commisso says no Provincial or Federal funds will flow until the Province declares Thunder Bay a disaster area.

Meanwhile, the Provincial Disaster Relief team came to the City yesterday to asses the flood and decide if it's a disaster area.

Alarmed For Life in the North End

Don't be alarmed it you see a couple of fire trucks cruising through your neighborhood tonight.

Kenora's Fire and Emergency Services is going door with its Alarmed for Life campaign in the north end of town.

Fire fighters will be visiting homes on 2nd, 3rd and 4th Streets north.

They be knocking on doors between 6:30 and 8:30 checking to make sure each home has a working fire alarm on every floor.

Boobie Nights Raises Record Amount

Organizers of Boobie Nights say they exceeded their own expectations this year.

The fundraiser generated 53 thousand dollars Saturday night, which will go to the Lake of the Woods Hospital Foundation.

Bill Scribilo from Century 21/Reynard Real Estate says they sold out early.

Boobie Nights this year raised about 20 thousand dollars more than last year, and proceeds will go towards the purchase of a new Digital Mammography Unit for the Hospital.

Richards a win away from Stanley Cup

The Los Angeles Kings are on the brink of their first Stanley Cup.

Jonathan Quick made 22 saves, and Mike Richards had an assist as the Kings beat New Jersey 4-nothing, to take a 3-0 lead in the Stanley Cup final.

 

The Kings can cap the series with a win tomorrow night on home ice.

 

The Kenora Rec. Center will be broadcasting the game live on a big screen TV

starting at 7:00.