McDonald's fire appears accidental

It appears arson is being ruled out as the cause of a McDonalds Restaurant fire in the city. The blaze started in a garbage bin at the Memorial Avenue location on Monday afternoon. Fire inspectors say that there is no indication that the fire was deliberatly set. The exact cause remains a mystery though

Terrace Bay Pulp set to re-open within weeks

A date has now been set for the re-opening of Terrace Bay Pulp. Thunder Bay's Buchanan Forest Products owns the facility and company lawyer Yves Fricot says the latest court decision means the plant can open August 16th.

Outbreak hits seniors home

There's a sickness outbreak at a north side seniors home. The Health Unit says that only the Primrose Wing at Roseview Manor is affected. Admissions, transfrers and discharges have been cancelled until further notice.

NDP health critic takes our temperature

The NDP are criss-crossing the country getting information on health care. Halifax MP Megan Leslie says as the party health critic she is trying to find out ways to change the system, and getting advice from people in Thunder Bay.  On Tuesday,  Leslie spent time with seniors and aboriginals.

Famous WW II bomber visits city

A Lancaster bomber from World War Two is in Thunder Bay this week. The public will be allowed to see it at the Confederation College School of Aviation from noon until 5 Wednesday . Pilot Leon Evans says the aircraft always creates a buzz where ever it goes.  He says it's because it's the only Lancaster left in the world that is still flying.  Evans says the plane is an important part of this country's war history.

Vets on hand to view the Lancaster

One of the many veterans on hand to greet the Lancaster when it arrived in Thunder Bay was 92 year old Jack Lourie. He says he flew 30 bombing missions over Germany in the Lancaster in 1944. Lourie calls the plane very reliable and a joy to fly.

We could see a light show in the sky today

Thunderstorms could cause a delay for tonight's Team Canada game against Panama tonight. Environment Canada's Geoff Coulson says right now intense Thunderstorm activity is passes south of town but it could move north. Coulson says if they do develop into severe storms they will bring heavy rain and potential damaging winds. On the positive side Coulson says by the weekend we should be back to the sunshine and warm temperatures.

There won't be a strike at Superstore

Employees of the Thunder Bay Real Canadian Superstore voted to accept a new 5 year contract with Westfair Foods.  The union representing the workers says 98 percent of employees voted in favour of the new deal.  The contract covers over 300 full time and part time employees.

Another break in at a house were people were sleeping

Four teens have been arrested by the Thunder Bay police after breaking into a house this morning. Officers say the group broke into a house on the 500 block of Piccadilly Ave and were scared off when the home owner woke up. 3 boys and a girl were arrested with the help of the K-9 Unit and will appear in court today.

Morning News Recap

There was three games at the World Junior Baseball Championships yesterday.  The US pounded Chinese Taipei 10-0 after seven innings to improve to 3 and 0 at the tournament.  Italy downed France 14-8 and Korea just got past the Czech Republic 4-0.  Korea was coming off a tough loss against Canada on Sunday.  Tonight Canada battles Panama at Port Arthur Stadium.

In the Northwoods League the Border Cats fell to St Cloud  6-0.  The Cats are in St. Cloud again tonight for the second of a three game sereis.

Wind farm saga plods along

The city of Thunder Bay is taking the next step in the Horizon Wind Farm project.  Following yet another post midnight meeting, councillors have approved a submission to Horizon Wind on the proposed turbines for the Nor' Wester Mountains.  The submission is part of the provinces evironmental process. There are several areas that are being questioned, from input by the Fort William First Nations to the affects on the Loch Lomond ski area.   Development Services Manager Mark Smith says Horizon's proposal is incomplete in those areas and more.

More wind farm debate at City Hall

A new consultant hired by opponents of the Horizon Wind Farm, is critical of a draft environmental document by developers of the wind turbines.  In a sometimes rambling presentation to councillors,  Michael McLeod said there are gaps in the draft report and the documents are incomplete on a number of issues.  Councillor Rebecca Johnson says what she heard from McLeod and his assistant was  nothing new

Councillors struggle with street name

A short stretch of road at Prince Arthur's Landing is getting a new name. Five hundred metres of it will be called Sleeping Giant Parkway. After two hours of debate, city councillors turned down administration's recommendation that a large section of roadway in Marina Park be changed to Sleeping Giant Parkway. It also recommended that as much roadway as possible on the Thunder Bay waterfront be given that name. Meantime local Navy representatives are hoping for some recognition for navy veterans. HMCS Griffon Lieutenant-Commander John Bell says if a street can't be named, then there should be some way to honour navy vets at the new look waterfront.

Eye in the Street program could see future expansion

There could be some expansion of the Eye in the Street program, but just not now. Charles Campbell runs the program for the city and says that the latest report to councillors did not recommend any changes. He says that's because the current construction taking place on the city's south side is putting any possible expansion on hold until work is complete. Campbell says he will be back before councillors in the near future with another report with recommendations on that issue.

Councillors hear the latest $ update

City councillors are now up to date on the latest financial figures. The Treasurers report was present Monday evening. The biggest question on the minds of some councillors was why the District Social Services Board and the District Health Unit were subjected to a new accounting policy and weren't included in the statements. The statements also indicate that the total value of everything the city owns, including TBayTel and the Public Library, is 865 million dollars

City recognizes young man

Michael Robinson is the latest recipient of the city's Exceptional Achievement Award. Robinson was selected as the youth representative for Ontario at the G/8G/20 summit.

Fire at Memorial McDonald's

Fire firefighters were called to a blaze at the Memorial Avenue McDonald's at around 3:15 Monday afternoon. A fire official says the blaze started in the rear garbage bin and spread to the building itself causing some damage to the roof area. There is no cause or injuries to report

Baseball ticket sales soar

The World Junior Baseball Championship in Thunder Bay is a hit. Organizer Jeff Halverson says the first 3 days generated 15 thousand in ticket sales and, depending on how well team Canada does, it could reach 40 to 60 thousand.  Halverson credits Media Sponsors like Northwoods Broadcasting for the success.

Korea bounces back to blank Czech's

The Korean team at the World Baseball Championship is back in the win column.   They bounced back from yesterdays loss to Canada at Port Arthur Stadium with a 4-0 victory over the Czech Republic.

Top Japanese diplomat visits Thunder Bay

The Deputy Consul-General for Japan is in Thunder Bay for a short visit this week. Nobuaki Yamamoto says as part of his stay he's visiting with Lakehead University President Fred Gilbert to strenghten his country's ties with the institution. He says he'd like to promote contacts and cultural promotions between LU and universities in Japan. He started his visit by watching a young baseball team from Gifu Japan play a local team