Monday, October 26, 2009

H1N1 Flu Clinics to start this week

The Northwestern Health Unit says it will begin its high risk H1N1 flu shot clinics this week.

The first group to get the shot will be those at high-risk --people 65 and under with chronic health conditions, and healthy kids between six months and five years old.

Director of Health Protection Arlene Lesenke says other people who should be first up for the
flu shot are health care workers, anyone who lives in a remote or isolated community and anyone in a household, or a care provider of someone who is considered high risk.

The first clinic will take place at the Kenora Rec. Center today from 10 in the morning until 4:00 in the afternoon.

A clinic will also take place at the Norman Community Club on Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Beaver Brae Bronco's Football

A disappointing end to the season for Beaver Brae's football team.

The Broncos lost a 50-13 decision to the Vincent Massey Trojans from Winnipeg Friday afternoon at Pete Fair Memorial Field.

Despite the loss, head coach Chris Penner doesn't feel his team playeda bad game.

Jeff Trudeau kicked two field goals for Beaver Brae, and MarkGramenz scored the Broncos only touchdown on a 24 yard reception inthe end zone.

Beaver Brae needed a Fort Frances victory over Portage La Prairie onthe final day of the season in order to make the play-offs.

Shop Local Kenora

The Kenora Downtown Business Improvement Zone will be able to go ahead with a shop local event next month.

Kenora City Council has given its blessing to the November 12th festival, which will see Main Street South between 1st and 2nd Streets shut down.

The street closure will take effect at 5:00 in the afternoon and run until 9:00.

The only conditions council put on the event was for BIZ to put up and remove any signage, and that burning barrels would not be used.

The intent of the event is to encourage local residents to stay in town to do their Christmas shopping this year.

Native Children's Aid Societies

The Chief of Ontario is being cautious about the government's plans to review the children's aid system in the province.

The native organization is concerned about the impact a 4-million dollar cut in funding will have on the First Nations agencies ability to deliver services.

The Chiefs' child welfare portfolio holder Grand Chief Randall Phillips says native agencies are limited to what they can do to deal with the shortfall.

Phillips says the federal government must also step forward as its also responsible for ensuring native agencies have the funding necessary.

Treaty Three Grassroots Citizens Coalition

The Treaty 3 Grassroots citizens coalition is fighting to provide more accountability to treaty leaders and council.

Spokesperson Calvin Chicago Bouchay says they want to show support to Kenora's homeless population and demand accountability.

The Treaty Three Grassroots citizens coalition held a fish fry fundraiser yesterday afternoonto raise money for the cause.

Kenora Woman Fined

An Ontario woman has been fined five thousand dollars for trying to sneak her American boyfriend across the Canadian border.

53 year old Loris Letain of Kenora, pleaded guilty in June to aiding and abetting a foreign national.

RCMP officers caught her in March 2008 trying to bring her boyfriend, Robert Eugene Crump, into Canada through the Northwest Angle, a remote crossing near the Manitoba/Minnesota border along the western shore of Lake of The Woods.

Lisa White of the Canada Border Services Agency says he departed from Minnesota and went to the crossing where she picked him up.

Crump, who has a criminal record and had unsuccessfully attempted to enter Canada three times before, was sent back to Minnesota that day, and Letain was charged.

Dirty Rainy River

An environmental group is expressing concern with what says is a high quantity of toxic chemicals being dumped into the Rainy River.

Environment Minnesota says a review of most recent data from the U-S Environmental Protection Agency shows Minnesota companies dumped more than 26-thousand pounds of chemical into the river.

Spokesperson Samatha Chadwick say it brings attention to the need for more protection of the state's waterways.

The group says of the chemical dumped into the Rainy, about 20 per cent are cancer causing.

Rainy River flows into Lake of the Woods.

Labor Adjustment Centres Close

The provincial government is defending the closure of some labor adjustment centers in northern Ontario.

Kenora-Rainy River M.P.P. Howard Hampton took the government to task this week for shutting down job centers in the region.

He says it shows the McGuinty Government still doesn't understand the impact of mill closures on communities in the north.

Minister of Colleges, Universities and Training John Milloy told the legislature that the labor centers are reviewed periodically, and whenthey are no longer needed, they are wound down.

Control Board

The Lake of the Woods Control Board continues to draw down the level of the big lake asfreeze up approaches.

Over the past week, the lake went down two inches and is expected to drop another one to three inches over the next seven days.

Outflow from the Norman Dam into the Winnipeg River has also been reduced to about 410 cubic meters per second.

Ontario Cellphone Ban

As of now -- there's NO talking or texting while driving in Ontario.

You can't email, or use portable video games or D-V-D players while behind the wheel, either.

G-P-S systems are allowed, as long as they're secured to the dashboard -- and there is an exception for making 9-1-1 calls.

Police will be using their discretion for the first three months-- but after that the tickets will be expensive.

Stolen Gun

A hand gun, stolen from a Sioux Lookout home, has been recovered in Thunder Bay.

The weapon was recovered following a joint investigation by OPP, the Sioux Lookout Crime Unit and the Thunder Bay Police Guns and Gang Unit.

A 25-year-old has been arrested in relation to the incident.

Police say Alan Friesen faces counts of unauthorized possession of a firearm, possession of a weapon obtained by crime, possession of a firearm in a vehicle, firearms trafficking and dangerous weapons.

Northern Growth Plan

The McGuinty government has taken the wraps off a plan to stimulate Ontario's Northern economy.

The 25-year strategy calls for strengthening the mining industry, creating regional economic zones as well as setting up partnerships between colleges and universities and businesses to train northerners for careers in growing fields.

Improving health-care for aboriginal communities, promoting green technologies and creating an inter-regional transportation network are also included in the proposal.

The next step is consultations, with the final plan expected at a later date.

Twinning Highway

Manitoba's Transportation Department has begun to study the possibility of twinning the last remaining undivided stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway in Manitoba.

Premier Greg Selinger says twinning the portion of the highway from Falcon Lake to the Ontario boundary is not currently in the department's plan.

But he says the idea is being considered, especially since the Ontario and federal governments will soon be twinning the undivided portion to the east of the provincial boundary.