OPSEU Opens Talks with Province

The possible privatization of the some government services is on the table as the government employees union in Ontario begins contract talks with the province today.

Neil MacDonald represents workers in northwestern Ontario and says they want to make sure such services are protected.

MacDonald also hopes the needs of the north will be looked after during this round of bargaining,.

Kenora High School Hockey Teams Open Season with Wins

The NorWOSSA Hockey Season is now underway and it was a good start for all three Kenora high school teams in action last night.

Thomas Aquinas teams swept Sioux Lookout in their season openers.

The T.A. boys got by the Warriors 8-2 at the Kenora Rec. Center last night.

Tanner Kapera and Rory Keith had a pair of goals in the victory.

In Sioux Lookout, the Saints girls cruised to an 11-0 win over Queen Elizabeth High School.

Kylee Neniska, Lexi Williams, and Tess Derouard each finished the game with 2 goals and an assist.

The Beaver Brae Boys hockey team was in Red Lake and romped to an 8-1 win over Red Lake.

Easton Gautier scored a pair of goals for the Broncos in the victory.

T.A. Student Mayor for the Day

There will be a new face at the council table this afternoon.

Kenora's latest mayor for the day will preside over today's Committee of the Whole Meeting.

Maya Boivin is a student at Thomas Aquinas and feels job-shadowing the mayor is a great opportunity.

Boivin adds that she will also be taking a number of tours of city run facilities, including the Operations Building, the Waste Transfer Center and City Hall.

Two Killed in Collision on Highway 17 East

Two Kenora residents are dead as a result of a collision on Highway 17 east.

The OPP say the accident took place around 7:00 last night in the area of Little Joe Lake, about 50 kilometers east of town.

75 year old John Marsholok and 71 year old Irene Marshalok were killed in the crash.

Police say a 2003 Buick lost control and drove into the path of an on-coming Dodge Carvan.

The 60 year old driver of the Caravan was taken to Lake of the Woods District Hospital for treatment and later released.

The Trans-Canada was closed for several hours while the wreckage was cleared and OPP Technical Traffic Investigators looked into the cause of the crash.

Wabigoon Water Tops in NWO

Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation has claimed first place in the 18th Annual Drinking Water Taste Test.

Water Plant Operator Marcel Shabaquay represented the community, who was presented with a trophy and an iPad 3.

Second place went to Red Lake and Fort Frances came in Third.

The water was judged on taste, colour, odour, and chlorine residue.

Campbell Welcomes Bone Bike to Queen's Park

A prop used by the Canadian comedy troupe Kids in the Hall now sits in the Queen's Park office of Sarah Campbell.

A gas-powered bike with fake bones, used in the 2010 series "Death Comes to Town," was given to the Kenora-Rainy River MPP after the Kids went looking for places to store it.

Campbell, a fan of the Kids, considers the Bike a piece of Canadian history.

Northwest Women's Business Awards this Week

Calling all female business owners.

The Enterprising Women Business Awards is being held this week in Thunder Bay.

PARO is behind the event and Spokesperson Stacia Kean says they want to inspire others to start their own company.

Paro is an organization that helps women become their own bosses.

The Awards Ceremony will take place November 15th.

Concern Raised about Methadone Programs

A social worker from Toronto says the overuse of Methadone is doing serious harm to First Nations people across Northwestern Ontario.

Bridget Perrier says the use of the drug, which helps addicts kick drugs like oxycontin, is only causing a more serious problems because it's simply transfering one addiction for another

Perrier claims doctors are over prescribing the drug and no one is supervising the patients.

Wynne Outlines Liberal Leadership Goals

The more the merrier.

As many as six people are expected to be in the race to replace premier Dalton McGuinty by the end of the day.

Kathleen Wynne is considered one of the front-runners and she's not concerned that so many people are interested in the province's top job

Wynne spoke to CJRL news about her aspirations.

She says she understands some of the frustations of northwestern Ontario residents, but says the job

of the premier is to help create some unity in the province. 

Eric Hoskings is expected to be the latest to enter the race today, while Gerrard Kennedy entered the race yesterday.

The leadership convention will be held the weekend of January 25th

Red Lake OPP Catch Copper Thief

Provincial Police have charged a copper thief in Red Lake.

Last week,a business owner contacted police and said that a man was seen on the premises and removing material that containted copper.

A search warrant was executed and police located the suspect a short time after at his home, where they found a total of 860 lbs of copper wiring as well as an insecure firearm. .

Police say 79-year-old Gerard Desmarais has been charged with possession of property obtained by crime, theft under $5000, unsafe storage of a firearm and unauthorized possession of a firearm.

Highway 17 East of Kenora Open Again

Both lanes of Highway 17 east of Kenora are open again.

The Trans-Canada was closed around 9:00 last night due to a two-vevhicle

collision about 56 kilometers East of Kenora.

The highway was closed for about four hours before the OPP were able to

open one lane around 1:00 this morning.

Both lanes were finally re-opened around 5:00 this morning.

OPP Technical Traffic Investigators were dispatched to the scene to look into

the cause of the crash. 

There has been no indication if anyone was injured. 

Secondary Teacher Work to Rule Actions

The routines of thousands of Ontario secondary school students could see some changes today.

Ken Coran, president of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation, says talks with the province have failed to reach an agreement, and as a result, OSSTF members at 20 school boards across the province will begin job actions today.

The sanctions were to begin last week, but were postponed for five days to give talks with the McGuinty government one last shot.

Coran's release this morning doesn't specify what sanctions teachers will impose, however, they could withdraw from extracurricular activities such as coaching, suspend parent-teacher meetings, and stop submitting student attendance records.

The job action does not currently include the school boards in Kenora

Glenn Murray's Provincial Energy Plan

A new energy consumption plan is in the foreground for Glen Murray.

Murray says that Ontario's power concerns started decades ago and say he likes the plan that Calgary uses based on community voice.

He adds that the plan would allow every city to have its own energy plan.

Murray is one of five people in the race to replace premier Dalton McGuinty.

School Bus Updates

School buses are running in Kenora.

First Student says that all buses are running on time, with the exception of back roads which may be a little behind.

In Vermillion Bay buses will not be going down Blue Lake Loop Rd this morning.

In Rat-Portage school buses are cancelled for the day.

Provincial Funding for Northwestern Police Forces

The provincial government is helping out two Northern Ontario police services.

Nishnawbe-Aski Police has receieved 100,000 dollars to fund it's "Firefly" project, which includes a training oppertunity for all front-line officers, health care professionals, teachers, and community leaders in NAN communities.

The Thunder Bay Police Service also received 97,000 to fund a new website.

The funds come from the Proceeds of Crime Front-Line Policing Grant.

Remembrance Day Service At Beaver Brae

Remembrance Day is this Sunday, but students at Beaver Brae Secondary School got a chance to pay tribute to our veteran's at a special assembly today.

The Kenora Scottish, an aboriginal drummer and singer, and the Beaver Brae Drama Club were all part of the Remembrance day service.

The classic poem, "In Flanders Field" was also recited in the morning assembly.

This is just one of many remembrance day services that will be takin place in the Kenora area.

On Sunday, the Royal Canadian Legions in Kenora, Keewatin and Redditt will also be holding services.

Each service is scheduled to start at 10:30, followed by a moments silence.

Afterwards veterans will also be moving onto local cenotaths, to lay wreaths in memory of soldiers who died in action.

Colorado Low on the Way

Another major storm is heading our way.

A Colorado low is expected to dump between 10 and 15 centimeters on northwestern Ontario.

Bill Laidlaw from Signal Weather Services says its looking like a pretty snowy weekend.

Laidlaw says much of the precipitation will fall as either ice pellets or snow pellets, or possibly even freezing rain.

Forest Industry on the Rebound?

The Forestry Products of Canada Association is calling on the government to support a resurgent forestry industry.

Executive Vice President Catherine Cobden says that the forestry sector is changing, and they are preparing to hire 60,000 people by 2020.

Cobden adds the forest industry is developing new products. 

Cobden says they are also looking to improve their environemental performance by 35 percent.

Youth Engagement Grants Available

An opportunity for local youth to raise awareness about the dangers of tobaccoo use.

The Northwest Tobacco Control area network is encouraging high schools and community groups to apply for the 2012/2013 youth engagement grant, worth up to one thousand dollars.

Coordinator Jennifer McFarlane says the grant is for projects that promote a tobacco-free lifestyle.

McFarlane says things done in the past are health fairs, tobacco-free sports tournaments and much more.

OPP Officer Charged in Connection to Fatal Accident

The Ontario Special Investigations Unit is charging a Kenora police officer in connection with a fatal collision back in September.

Constable Troy Bender has been charged with one count of dangerous driving causing death.

Back on September 23rd around 2:00 in the morning, a marked OPP cruiser was involved in a collision with the semi tractor trailor unit at the intersection of the Redditt Road and the Kenora By-Pass.

The female prisoner in the cruiser, 42 year old Gloria Assin was killed as a result of the accident.

The director of the SIU Ian Scott has laid the charge and the officer will make a first court appearance on December 20th.