Source Protection Gives Province Plan

With more than 100-thousand people in the Thunder Bay area relying on Lake Superior for drinking water, the Source Water Committee is the first to go the province with a plan to protect it. Chair Bob Hartley for the Lakehead Region says the report still has to undergo a Provincial revue process. Hartley is hoping the plan can serve as a model for the rest of the province in response to the Walkerton tragedy that killed 7 people because of e-coli.

T.Bay Woman On Canadian Paralympic Team

Canadian Blind Sports is nominating a Thunder Bay woman to the National women's goalball team for the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Whitney Bogart made the team today.

SIU Clears Police Office Of Wrong Doing

The Special Investigations Unit is clearing a Thunder Bay Police Officer of any wrong doing in the death of a 67 year old man on Northern Avenue over the May long weekend.  A police officer was following a reported stolen vehicle and a short distance later that vehicle crashed into Martin John Amos' car.  SIU Spokesperson Monica Hudon says the police officer was following the stolen car but didn't use his lights or sirens to try and get the vehicle to pull over.  Hudon says the driver of the stolen car lost control of it while trying to get away from the police.

Lakehead Drinking Water Protection Plan Announced

The Lakehead Source Protection Committee is the first to come forward with a plan to protect drinking water. Lake Superior provides drinking water for over 100,000 people in the Thunder Bay area. Two groundwater wells serve 30 homes in Rosslyn Village. M.P.P. Michael Gravelle says "Ensuring that residents have access to clean sources of drinking water is vital to our quality of life." 36 other provincial source areas are trying to develop their own plans as a response to the Walkerton tragedy.

Six New Forest Fires Reported

Ministry of Natural Resources Fire officials are on high alert heading into the weekend. The warm weather has pushed the forest fire hazard to "High" in most areas and is expected to move to "Extreme." 6 new fires have been reported in the last two days after thunderstorms moved through the region. 5 of those fires were lightning caused, one of them was human-caused and is being investigated. The M.N.R. is reminding everyone to use caution around ignition sources.

Border Cats Lose Tight One In Mankato

The Thunder Bay Border Cats stumbled out of the gate to open the second half of the Northwoods League season. They lost 5-4 on the road last night in Mankato. The two teams play again tonight before Thunder Bay returns home to start a 3 game series against Alexandria.

Chill Vs. Des Moines Tonight

The Thunder Bay Chill will put their 11-1 record on the line tonight on the road against the Des Moines Menace. The Chill, who have already wrapped-up first place in the Heartland division, are coming off a 7-0 win in a friendly game against Springfield on Tuesday.

MS Society Gets Cash

Just in the nick of time.  That's the feeling from the MS Society after receiving almost 12-thousand dollars from the United Commercial Travelers.  President Linda Adamson says they spent their 40 thousand dollar budget for the year back in May.  Adamson adds if they hadn't received the donation they would have been turning clients away.

Ag Minister Says He Gets It

Ontario's agriculture minister says he sympathizes with local dairy farmers. Speaking during a visit to Thunder Bay, Ted McMeekin says many are telling him that they don't want to see the end of milk marketing in the province.  He says the province had received assurances from the federal government that our supply management system is not up for discussion during current trade talks.  McMeekin says he is meeting with other rural leaders and taking their concerns to Queens Park.

Serious Accident On Waterloo

Waterloo Street is now open to traffic. Just before 11:00 a.m. police say a car and a pick up truck collided on Waterloo Street at Arthur. Detective Constable Robert Miller says the drivers of the two vehicles have been taken to hospital. The 83 year old driver of the car is in critical condition in the local hospital. The 66 year old woman driver of the truck was treated and released. Police are looking for any witnesses who may have seen the collision.

City Urges Flood Victims To Apply

The city's new Disaster Relief Program manager is hitting the ground running. Kari Chiappetta says she is focusing on making sure that eligible flood victims apply for and receive the advance cash they are allowed to claim.  The deadline for filing an advance claim is 8 pm on Monday.  Chiappetta says  staff will be on hand at City Hall Monday evening to help.

New Life For Terrace Bay Mill

Michael King

The mill in Terrace Bay will be back in operation. A company from Mumbai, India is spending 250-million dollars to convert the mill in order to export rayon grade pulp for export. Terrace Bay Mayor Michael King says it will create 275 mill jobs, 335 more in the woodlands and a total of 19-hundred jobs. King says they will spend the next two years converting the mill for the new rayon product.

Taranis Develops First Nations Partnership

An area First Nations development agency is teaming up with a Thunder Bay company to bring new training programs to the area. Mike Hummell of Taranis Training says the partnership with Naicatchewenin  Development Corporation introduces his company to an area in need of skilled labour.  Taranis offers programs such as heavy equipment operation and truck driving.

Kenora Woman Dead Following Crash

Police are releasing the name of a Northwestern Ontario woman who died near Sistonen's corner yesterday afternoon in a highway car crash. Three people were airlifted from the scene to hospital but 60-year old Deborah Schneider of Kenora died en route. Schneider was a passenger in the vehicle. Two other men, one from each vehicle were also air-lifted to hospital with minor injuries. Investigators are still looking into whether or not charges will be laid.

Cats Finish First Half With Win

The Thunder Bay Border Cats closed out the first half of the Northwoods League season with a 4-3 rain-shortened win over the Rochester Honkers. Thunder Bay finished the first half with a record of 16-19, 12 games back of the MoonDogs. They begin the second half of the season tonight on the road against Mankato.

Delta Refuses Comment On Report

Mums the word from the Delta Hotel chain to news that it may be the new hotelier for the Thunder Bay waterfront. Spokesperson Sandy Indig would neither confirm nor deny any speculation.
Indig says it's not Delta's policy to comment on any potential developments.

Boulevard Lake Beaches Good

The Health Unit has lifted swimming advisories for Boulevard Lake's main beach and Sunnyside.  An advisory was put in place last week after high levels of e-coli were found in the water.  The test results from new samples of water have come back clean.

Concern Grows After Latest Arson

There's concern that an arsonist is loose on the city's south side after the latest fire on  Empire Avenue which destroyed a garage.  Fire investigator Paul Abernathy says it's just the latest in a string of arson fires in that south side area over the last few months.   Abernathy believes the same person is involved in all the incidents.

Serious Motor Vehicle Collision

Thunder Bay OPP are investigating a serious 2 vehicle collision on Highway 11/17.  Police say the collision took place just after 2 o'clock.  Highway 11/17 west of the Highway 102 Junction at Sistonen’s Corner is closed at this time.  More information will be provided as updates become available.

Condo Office Open

ReSolve Group is pleased with the sale of their new condo buildings on the waterfront.  They opened up their Vue on the Water Condo Presentation Centre today.  Developer Gisele MacDonald says they've sold 28 condo's out of 51.  The condos are going to start to be built this fall and finished by 2014.

Gravelle Talks Ring Of Fire

The Toronto Star is sounding alarms over the proposed Ring of Fire project.  The paper obtained Environment Canada documents that show the project could lead to poisoning as seen in the movie Erin Brokovich.  Minister of Natural Resources Michael Gravelle says the project is going through many assessments.

Mauro Says Province May Try To Recoup Cash

The Provincial Government is going to get back a chunk of the money they provided to Tornado Medical Systems two years ago.  Thunder Bay MPP Bill Mauro says there's a way to recoup the million dollars the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund provided the company.  Mauro says there's loop holes in the contracts businesses sign when they accept money from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund.

City To Welcome Gifu, Japan Delegation

A delegation from Thunder Bay's Sister City Gifu, Japan will be arriving in the City Thursday.  Mayor Keith Hobbs says they hope to see some economic spin offs from the visit.  Thunder Bay will be renewing it's committment to the Sister City program for another 5 years at a special ceremony Thursday night.

Kakabeka Falls In Kraft Competition

Kakabeka Falls is in the running for the Kraft Celebration Tour competion.  The winner gets 25 thousand dollars in cash, a Kraft BBQ and TSN broadcasts from the community.  Online voting starts July 19th.

Pigeon River Border Stats

Traffic statistics at the Pigeon River Border Crossing are down noticeably.  Canada Border Service Agents checked 25-thousand vehicles in the month of May and checked approximately 50-thousand people at the border. Statistics indicate traffic was down 6-percent from a year ago in the month of May. New border laws involving duty allowances did take effect on June 1st.

NOHFC Gives Out Over 1.4 Million Dollars

The Northern Ontario Heritage Fund is providing over 1.4 million dollars to three local businesses.  True Grit President Eric Zakrewski says they're using a million towards their new building in Innova Park.  Digital Engineering will use 390-thousand dollars to renovate their existing building and hire more staff.  Loch Lomond Equipment Sales received 107-thousand dollars from the Province to purchase a new building for their business as well.

Library On The Loose

Thunder Bay Library staff are going to be pounding the pavement this summer. It's part of their new campaign called "Library on the Loose". Spokesperson Lindsey Long says they want staff to get out and meet their neighbours.

Man Identified In Death Near Atikokan

One man is dead following a fatal car crash near Atikokan. Provincial Police say the vehicle, travelling on Highway 11, 2 kilometers east of the Arctic Watershed, crossed the centre line and crashed into a rock cut and burst into flames. Police say 88 year old Jack Tiefenbacher of Fort Frances was the only person in the vehicle that was completely destroyed by the fire. The incident happened just after 7:00 O'clock yesterday morning.

Fire Destroys Garage on Empire Avenue

Fire crews were called into action early this morning. Crews were called out to battle a garage fire at around 4:00 o'clock this morning. The Fire department used 15 personnel from 4 different stations to battle the blaze located on the 500 block of East Empire Avenue. The fire department says the fire started under suspicious circumstances and will be investigating later the morning. Police and Hydro One were also called to the scene.

15 Forest Fires In Northwest Region

Due to over 15,000 lightning strikes over the long weekend, 10 new Fires were reported in the Northwest region, bringing the total number of active fires to 15. The Kenora district saw the most action with 4 new fires being detected. Fort Frances, Sioux Lookout, and Dryden all had one new fire. With the hot dry weather continuing, more holdover lightning fires are expected to be discovered across the region.

Pyatt Becomes New York Ranger

Taylor Pyatt has signed a contract to play with New York Rangers next season, making it his fifth team in his N.H.L. Career. Pyatt joins fellow Thunder Bay native, Marc Staal in the Big Apple. Pyatt had 9 goals and 19 points last season with the Phoenix Coyotes, before adding 4 goals and 6 points with the club in the playoffs.

Border Cats Edged By Honkers

The Thunder Bay Border Cats lost a slug-fest at Subway field last night, 12-11 to the Rochester Honkers. Their 5-game series concludes tonight, starting at 7:05. Tonight also marks the end of the first half of the Northwoods league season.

Chill Paste Competition In Friendly Match

The Thunder Bay Chill are in the midst of a 9-day road trip in the United States. They played a friendly match yesterday against the Springfield Demize, beating the host 7-0. The Chill now travel to Des Moines to take on the Menace on Friday and Saturday, having already clinched the Heartland division title.

Mobile Crane On Its Way

The CEO of the Thunder Bay Port Authority is counting the days until a piece of machinery arrives that will change the way the port does business.  Tim Heney says a new mobile crane should arrive here a week from Thursday and when it does,  it has the potential to change everything  because the port will be able to unload ships from shore and make the port more competitive.

OPP Probe Fatal Crash

Thunder Bay OPP are investigating a fatal traffic accident on the Trans Canada Highway. They say this morning around 7 o'clock a vehicle travelling on Highway 11, 2 kilometers east of the Arctic Watershed, crossed the centre line and crashed into a rock cut and burst into flames. That's all police are saying about the incident at this time and won't be releasing any information about who died or how many people were in the vehicle at the time.

Missing 11 Year Old Girl Found Safe

Thunder Bay Police says a missing 11 year old girl is now back at home. Constable Julie Tilbury says Trinity Payash was found after a missing person's notice was issued to the local media.

Refugee Advocate To Receive High Honour

A Thunder Bay woman's volunteer work with refugees over the last 30 years is being recognized in a big way. Elizabeth McWeeny has been named as a member of the Order of Canada. McWeeny calls it an honour and an irony. She says it's heartening to see the Governor General naming a refugee advocate to the Order while the government of Canada is passing a "destructive" refugee law. McWeeny will receive the honour during a ceremony to be held at a later date.

Border Cats Lose

The Rochester Honkers defeated the Border Cats last night 3-2 at Subway Field.  Thunder Bay plays again at home tonight at 7:05.

Road Work On Schedule

The May 28th city flooding put a halt to a number of ongoing projects in the city.  Project Engineer Rick Harms says scheduled road construction here in the city burned up a number of rain days as they waited for the water to clear.  Harms says they are back on schedule.

Campbell Talks Budget

Kenora-Rainy River MPP Sarah Campbell is refuting comments that the passing of the provincial budget solidified the closing of the area's tourist information centres.  PC Critic Vic Fedeli said last week there was no effort by the NDP in committee to overturn the closure decision.  Campbell says there wasn't that opportunity.  Campbell claims she was also denied a chance to comment on the budget and the tourism centres because of the antics of the Conservatives in the legislature.

 

Liberals in Kenora Rainy River Rally

Provincial Liberals are looking to have to bigger presence in Ontario's rural areas.  President of the Kenora-Rainy River Liberal Riding Association, Anthony Leek says it will be a benefit to this area.  Leek says the party is embarking on an outreach campaign aimed at gathering more input at the grassroots level.

Aids Thunder Bay Name Change

Aids Thunder Bay wants to change their name.  The move is part of the organizations 3 year strategic plan. Executive Director Lawrence Korhonen says it's because they offer more than just AIDS service.  Korhonen hopes they'll have a new name by this time next year.

Deck Fire On Mayflower Drive

Thunder Bay's Fire Department is reporting a deck fire last night at a home on Mayflower Drive.  Crews were called to the home to put out a fire on the vinyl siding on a deck.  It was quickly put out and the cause is believed to be a cigarette.  No one was hurt.

Hydro One Power Outage O'Connor Area

Hydro One is working on a small power outage in O'Connor Township this morning.  About 20 people are without power after the company's equipment failed after last night's storm.  Power is expected to be restored soon.

Big Contract Extension For Jordan $taal

A great wedding present for Jordan Staal from the Carolina Hurricanes a week after his local nuptuals.   The Team has awarded him with a 10 year contract extension worth a 60 million dollars.

Wasn't That A Party!

Canadian nationalism shines in Thunder Bay. Canada Day proved to be another success as the city presented festivities at the new-look waterfront for the first time. Marina Park was swarming with people as many marvelled at the glamour which has taken over Prince Arthur's Landing.  The evening wrapped up with a fireworks display.

Chill Clinch

The Thunder Bay Chill are in the playoffs again.   They clinched a berth with a 3-2 win over St. Louis.

Borders Win On Canada Day

The Thunder Bay Border Cats were 7-4 winners over the Rochester Honkers in front of a Canada Day crowd of 825.  The two clubs are back at it tonight at Subway Field starting at 7:05.

And The Winner Is......

The Rotary Club's Canada Day house lottery is in the books for 2012.   The winner of this year's house is Bernadette Danco of Atikokan.

Chill on fire

The Thunder Bay Chill will be back in the Premier Development League playoffs for the sixth year in a row. The Chill locked up their spot in the post-season after a 1-0 win over the St. Louis Lions last night. With a record of ten wins and only one loss, the Chill are first place in the Heartland Division and are five points ahead of second place Real Colorado. The Chill will take on the Lions again in St. Louis today, and can clinch the Heartland Division with a win.

Cats win second straight

The Thunder Bay Border Cats doubled up on the Rochester Honkers 4-2 last night at Subway Field. The Cats pulled off the win in front of a season-high 1,322 fans earning them a record of 14 wins and 17 losses. The Border Cats will play game two of their five game series this afternoon against Rochester at 1:35 from Subway Field.

Cats crush Beetles

The Thunder Bay Border Cats avoided a three game sweep Friday night in Alexandria by beating the Beetles 17-7. The Cats hit seven runs in the 5th inning and added four more runs in the 7th inning as their first half record improved to 13-17. The Border Cats take on the Rochester Honkers tonight at Port Arthur Stadium at 7:05.