Brown Street Fire

A late night blaze left a garage in shambles on Brown Street. It took 21 firefighters about an hour to put out the fire. No injuries were reported. Platoon Chief Val Fontaine says garage fires can be dangerous. The reason being flammable liquids are often present.

Wabasse search to resume Wednesday

The city police confirm that the ground search for Jordan Wabasse will resume on Wednesday.   They'll be searching the banks of the Kam River near the James Street bridge for the missing teen

More wood allocations announced

Two more companies in northwestern Ontario have accepted wood supply offers from the provincial government.  Domtar will use its wood supply for full-time softwood pulp production at its mill in Dryden. Wagner Forest Management Limited has indicated that it will use its wood fiber to build a pellet  manufacturing plant in Ignace.  The business is expected to be up and running by October of 2013 and employ 20 new jobs.   Minister Michael Gravelle made the announcement at the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association Conference.

Milloy annonces literacy cash

83 sites in Northern Ontario will be offering literacy training thanks to the Provincial Government.  Minister of Training and Colleges John Milloy says they'll be offering basic skills training.  2 million dollars will go towards local programs.  Milloy made the announcement at the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association Conference.

Bearskin adds plane

A Thunder Bay based airline is expanding its fleet.  Bearskin Airlines has introduced a new Saab turbo prop 34 seat plane which is being used for its flights between Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario.

Gas creeps toward record levels

Get ready to cry when you fill up next.  Gas prices have spiked again and now sit at just under a buck 40 a litre at many Thunder Bay gas stations.  That's according to the website gasbuddy.com.

45 year old mosiac graces new library

The new Mary J. L. Black Library isn't open yet, but it already has some vivid artwork to display.   The Public Library has re-introduced a mosaic by Ruby Owen called Thunderbird.   It is comprised of 27,000 tiles made out coloured glass, ceramics and rocks, and took over a year and a half to complete

Clean up campaign is on!

The Spring Up to Clean Up event is underway in the city.  It's a collaboration between the City of Thunder Bay and Eco-Superior.   It kicked off with employees of various businesses going outside for 15 minutes and picking up the garbage around their premises. 

Hearing dates set in County Park death

Sixteen witnesses are expected to testify in the preliminary hearing of two teenage girls charged with second degree murder. It followed the death last year of a 16 year old girl who's body was found in the bushes behind Wentworth Crescent. The hearing will determine if there is enough evidence to send the case to trial.   Six days have been set aside for the hearing: August 16th, 17th and 18th as well as September 14th, 15th and 16th.

Thunder Bay Rainy River Candidates discuss election issues

Jobs for Thunder Bay's youth was one of the topics discussed at the Thunder Bay Rainy River Riding all candidates debate.  Liberal Ken Boshcoff says he would use his previous experience to create jobs.  NDP Incumbent John Rafferty says his party would provide incentives to small businesses.; while Conservative Moe Comuzzi-Stehmann says her party's corporate tax cuts will help provide jobs for our youth.

Cocaine seized from Thunder Bay home

Two Jamaican men are charged with a number of drug related offences after a search of a Thunder Bay home.  The Combined Forces Organized Crime Unit seized 441 grams of cocaine and 15 thousand dollars in cash.  The drugs have a street value of 44 thousand dollars.

Area First Nation upset over exploration

Yet another northern First Nation is complaining about mining exploration on its traditional land. The Constance Lake First Nation and its Chief Arthur Moore say they are fed up with not be consulted and are taking legal action. Chief Moore says they are going to court Friday to seek a court order to stop Zenyatta Mining from exploring. No one from Zenyatta has returned our call.

Small quake confirmed in the region

Natural Resources Canada is confirming that a minor earthquake struck near Devlin last month. The 1-point-9 magnitude quake happened around 2 in the morning on March 25th.  Seismic activity is not uncommon to northwestern Ontario, although most of the minor quakes over the past year have been around the Atikokan area.

Infrastructure plan to include Ring of Fire

Saying the north is different, Ontario's infrastructure minister says our region will be taken into account in his 10 year plan. Bob Chiarelli tells municipal delegates in Thunder Bay that it must include the Ring of Fire mining development. He says that will include building roads, the electricity grid and communication links. His infrastructure plan for the province will be released next month.

City receives tbaytel dividends

The city is getting a big contribution from tbaytel.  Over 20 million dollars in dividends is being handed over to the city.  Tbaytel saw record revenues last year exceeding 131 million.

Hat found near the Kam belonged to missing teen

The hat found near the Kam River earlier this year has been confirmed as Jordan Wabasse's.  Thunder Bay Police Spokesperson Chris Adams says the confirmation was done with DNA testing.  Police will be continuing the search next week in the area of the James Street bridge.

Thunder Bay-Superior North Candidates duke it out

 Liberal candidate Yves Fricot may not be the incumbent in this election , but he sure has to defend himself like he is.   At Wednesday nights all candidates debate for the Thunder Bay-Superior North riding,  Fricot was taking heat from NDP MP Bruce Hyer.   It was over Fricot's involvement as a Buchanan Forest Products Company executive during the forestry crisis.  The audience also got into the act,  taunting Fricot over the issue several times.  Conservative hopeful Richard Harvey tried to make his mark by claiming Hyer has not represented the riding effectively.   Scot Kyle of the Green Party also participated.

Cancer Care award for local Dr.

A Dr. with the Northwest Regional Cancer Care in Thunder Bay is one of six winners of the Human Touch Awards. Dr. Kenneth Gehmen is being recognized for the work he's done that made a difference in cancer patients lives.

No junk food in local schools this fall

Thunder Bay students are getting ready to say goodbye to sugary pop and poutine.  The Lakehead Public School Board is putting an end to junk food on their cafeteria menus.  Education Officer Charles Bishop says they're removing their fryers from high schools and installing steam machines instead.  The Provincial Government is imposing the new food and beverage guidelines that will take effect in the Fall.

No ban on two Findley books

Two books by Canadian author Timothy Findley are staying put at public school libraries in Thunder Bay. School board trustees agreed, that a parent's complaint over the book's graphic violent and sexual content didn't  warrant a ban.  The books in question  were "The Wars" and "Not Wanted on the Voyage"