Local youth athlete to represent Team BC at NAIG
Brooklynn Munch, a Saulteau First Nation member will represent Team BC at the 2023 North American Indigenous Games (NAIG)Â this summer.Â
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Video VIDEO: Winter tires and chains required until April 30th
Even though Spring has officially arrived, drivers are reminded that winter tires and chains are required in northern B.C. until April 30th.
Video VIDEO: Local non-profits still in need of winter clothing donations
Spring seems to be around the corner in the Peace region, but according to Environment Canada, winter is still here at least for another week or two.
Huskies lead NWJHL awards
The Fort St. John Huskies' 2022-23 season is shaping up to be one for the record books.
465 organ transplants performed in BC last year
A total of 465 British Columbians received an organ transplant in 2022, 28 of whom call northern B.C. home.Â
Police defend information flow around triple killing in eastern Ontario
TORONTO — Ontario's provincial police insisted on Wednesday that they had provided timely information to the media and public during their search for a gunman who killed three women but some area residents said they were kept in the dark.
However, for much of the day Tuesday, police offered few details about what had occurred in and around the community of Wilno, west of Ottawa.
"Information in regards to the seriousness of the investigation was released immediately to warn residents by contacting local media and through social media," OPP Sgt. Kristine Rae said Wednesday.
"Investigative information changed quickly. The investigation was very fluid with the goal of capturing the suspect."
Rae offered to release a timeline of police communications to the public, but did not do so.
As the situation began unfolding Tuesday morning, provincial police said little. They tweeted for people to avoid the area of one of the killings, which occurred about 9 a.m. They then tweeted that area schools and a courthouse were locked down and only later said they were searching for an armed suspect and urged people to stay "secure indoors."
Several local residents reached by The Canadian Press on Tuesday as the search for the suspect was underway said they didn't know what was going on.
Mike Harrington, who runs an auto body shop near Cormac, Ont., said he could see about 50 police officers from his home, but no one said anything to him.
Media inquiries yielded information that one person had been killed, information that did not change for hours even though investigators knew quickly that three women had been shot and who they were looking for. It was only toward mid-afternoon that police reported lockdowns — which also occurred in Ottawa itself — had been lifted and a suspect was in custody.
Terry Fleurie, with the local weekly Eganville Leader, said he first heard of the unfolding drama via text from his wife, as word spread among the small-town residents about the identities of the shooter and victims.
"I don't believe they knew it from the police: I believe it was from hearsay or rumours or speculation or people associated with the victims," Fleurie said. "Formal information on the incident was very hard to come by."
Police only released the name of the suspect and victims Wednesday morning, even though numerous media outlets had reported the identities the previous afternoon — in some cases leading to confusion between the suspect and an area man with an identical first and last name.
Ottawa city police, who were involved in arresting the man now charged with three counts of first-degree murder, said it was up to provincial police to provide information because the crimes occurred in their jurisdiction.
Josh Greenberg, who heads the School of Journalism at Carleton University, said provincial police may have felt they had good reason to withhold information but said the decision could have backfired.
"They don't want to compromise their investigation, but they're operating in an environment where people are aware of what's happening and they're communicating with one another," Greenberg said.
"So, in a context where you have a lack of official information, people start to fill in the information gaps on their own and that can place people in greater danger."
One seasoned media relations officer with a big-city Canadian police force expressed surprise at how little information was provided to the public.
Police should have found a way to communicate more details about what they knew, he said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he did not want to be seen to be criticizing colleagues.
"If someone is going around with a gun and people are dead, there's a pretty compelling reason to release what you can," he said. "Is there a threat to the public? If there is, you have to try to explain to the extent you can. If there isn't a threat, then that's equally important. You've got to give people enough information so they can protect themselves."
Colin Perkel, The Canadian Press
Canada beats Tunisia to end volleyball World Cup with five wins, six losses
TOKYO — Canada's men's volleyball team capped the FIVB World Cup with a three-set victory over Tunisia on Wednesday, to finish seventh overall.
Gord Perrin had 14 points, while Nicholas Hoag won game MVP honours with 13 points, in Canada's 25-19, 25-21, 25-17 victory.
Canada finished the World Cup with five wins and six losses.
The Canadians play in a regional Olympic qualifying tournament next week, and so capping the World Cup with a victory was important.
"We're very happy with the win, for us it closes this World Cup on a positive note," said Canada's head coach Glenn Hoag. "We lacked a bit of preparation — we would have liked to maybe do better against the stronger teams — but that will be for the future. For now, we turn our focus to the NORCECA tournament, which is next week, and that's an important tournament for us."
The NORCECA tournament is the first of two Olympic qualifying events. Canada needs a strong showing next week to advance to the final Olympic qualifying tournament.
The United States won its first men's volleyball World Cup in 30 years with a 25-20, 25-21, 17-25, 25-20 win over Argentina.
Maxwell Holt scored 18 points as the U.S. team secured a berth at the Rio Olympics.
"It's a stressful challenge for any coach to qualify for the Olympics," U.S. coach John Speraw said. "I thought our serve was good throughout the tournament and our blocking got better as we went along."
Italy also wrapped up an Olympic spot by finishing second with a 26-24, 22-25, 25-22, 25-19 win over world champion Poland, which lost its first match and finished third.
— With files from The Associated Press.
The Canadian Press
Flames defenceman T.J. Brodie sidelined with broken bone in his hand
Calgary Flames defenceman T.J. Brodie has suffered a broken bone in his right hand and is said to be week-to-week.
Brodie took a shot off his hand in Monday's pre-season game against the Edmonton Oilers.
The Flames say he is expected to miss three to six weeks.
Brodie became Calgary's No. 1 defenceman at the end of last season and played big minutes after captain Mark Giordano was injured in February.
The 25-year-old from Chatham, Ont., does not require surgery, says Flames general manager Brad Treliving.
The Flames open the regular season at home Oct. 7 against the Vancouver Canucks.
The Canadian Press
Conference Board outlook paints bleak picture for Alberta in 2015
CALGARY — Finance Minister Joe Oliver's assertion that there's been no recession in Canada this year is of little solace in Alberta.
A new report by the Conference Board of Canada paints a bleak economic picture of the oil-producing province, which has been hit hard by a halving in crude prices.
The think-tank says low oil prices are severely hampering the province's economy and expects a one per cent contraction in real gross domestic product this year.
It foresees the rough times persisting for the remainder of 2015 as oilpatch layoffs hit home and new home building stalls, but says next year should be better.
It forecasts a provincial unemployment rate of 5.6 per cent in 2015, worse than 4.7 per cent in 2014.
Todd Hirsch, chief economist at Alberta-owned bank ATB Financial, said earlier this week that he's predicting a modest recession this year, with a return to growth in 2016.
---
Follow @LaurenKrugel on Twitter
The Canadian Press
Fahmy’s journey from journalist to ‘terrorist’ to freedom of the press crusader
Mohamed Fahmy has been celebrated as a journalist, denounced as a terrorist and described as a bargaining chip in a notoriously complex power struggle among Middle Eastern countries.
Yet whether he was accepting international awards for his investigative reporting or shedding light on a political maelstrom by voicing his more personal struggles, the 41-year-old has remained staunchly committed to what he views as the bedrock of his chosen field.
"I try in my journey as a journalist not to obsessively take on the role of an agent of democratic change usually embraced by many members of our prestigious fourth estate. But, I still live to challenge governments in their shortcomings through my craft," Fahmy wrote in a message delivered to the advocacy group Canadian Journalists for Free Expression. "It's a cause not worth dying for, but in time it becomes a way of life, even behind bars."
Fahmy's tenacity has played out on a global stage over nearly two years ever since he and two of his Al Jazeera English colleagues — Australian correspondent Peter Greste and Egyptian producer Baher Mohamed — were arrested in Cairo in December 2013.
The trio were accused of supporting the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, a banned organization affiliated with ousted Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi, and fabricating footage to undermine Egypt's national security.
Fahmy himself said the three imprisoned journalists were innocent victims of the "cold war" between Egypt and Qatar, which funds Al Jazeera and had been a strong Morsi backer.
The journalists and their supporters insisted they were simply doing their jobs during a time of violent upheaval.
Fahmy was initially convicted and sentenced to jail time in 2014 after a judge ruled he and his colleagues had been "brought together by the devil" to destabilize the country that Fahmy once called home. A second trial ordered after Fahmy appealed the conviction returned the same verdict and destined him to three more years behind bars before he was granted a presidential pardon on Wednesday.
Among the outpouring of international criticism declaring the trials a sham and calling for the journalist's release, few voices were as prominent or consistent as Fahmy's.
He routinely shouted from the prisoner's box during court proceedings, wrote open letters decrying the case against him and his colleagues, and spoke out against a regime that hampered the pursuit of journalism within its borders.
He voiced his opposition despite holding what loved ones described as a deep affection for his native country.
His wife Marwa Omara previously told the Canadian Press that Fahmy hailed from a family of serviceman and considered himself a "proud Egyptian."
But Fahmy has also put down roots in Canada, the country he moved to in 1991 and plans to return to upon his release.
Fahmy first moved to Montreal where he became an ardent fan of the Canadiens. He also lived for a time in Vancouver before moving abroad to pursue what became an acclaimed journalism career.
His reporting took him to conflict zones in Libya and Lebanon and prompted him to write a book about the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
His work was featured in international outlets including the New York Times and NPR, and a documentary he helped prepare for CNN ultimately garnered international praise. He and his team won the 2011 Tom Renner Investigative Journalism award, a global honour handed out by International Reporters and Editors.
Judges cited the courage and resourcefulness of Fahmy and his teammates as they pursued a difficult story.
"CNN's team faced great personal risk in crossing the dangerous badlands of Egypt's Sinai Peninsula to expose a network of human trafficking and organ sales," they wrote in the award citation.
Fahmy was working as Al Jazeera's Cairo bureau chief when he was arrested, an assignment he told CJFE he accepted as a "personal challenge."
More challenges await Fahmy when he is released from prison, an event only made possible after he reluctantly opted to renounce his Egyptian citizenship. Not the least of those challenges will be dealing with infuriated family members who feel betrayed by his decision, according to Fahmy's brother.
But the journalist has set other tasks for himself too. He told CJFE he intends to "start a debate" on how the Canadian government, which has lobbied for his release, handles similar situations in the future.
Most of all, he said he intends to remain committed to the cause that brought about his ordeal in the first place.
"I have been intrigued lately by a motto I spotted that reads: "Information is Ammunition," Fahmy wrote. "We must unite before more of us become just another statistic languishing behind bars."
— Follow @mich_mcq on Twitter
Michelle McQuigge, The Canadian Press
Video VIDEO: Winter tires and chains required until April 30th
Even though Spring has officially arrived, drivers are reminded that winter tires and chains are required in northern B.C. until April 30th.
Video VIDEO: Local non-profits still in need of winter clothing donations
Spring seems to be around the corner in the Peace region, but according to Environment Canada, winter is still here at least for another week or two.
Huskies lead NWJHL awards
The Fort St. John Huskies' 2022-23 season is shaping up to be one for the record books.
465 organ transplants performed in BC last year
A total of 465 British Columbians received an organ transplant in 2022, 28 of whom call northern B.C. home.Â
Police defend information flow around triple killing in eastern Ontario
TORONTO — Ontario's provincial police insisted on Wednesday that they had provided timely information to the media and public during their search for a gunman who killed three women but some area residents said they were kept in the dark.
However, for much of the day Tuesday, police offered few details about what had occurred in and around the community of Wilno, west of Ottawa.
"Information in regards to the seriousness of the investigation was released immediately to warn residents by contacting local media and through social media," OPP Sgt. Kristine Rae said Wednesday.
"Investigative information changed quickly. The investigation was very fluid with the goal of capturing the suspect."
Rae offered to release a timeline of police communications to the public, but did not do so.
As the situation began unfolding Tuesday morning, provincial police said little. They tweeted for people to avoid the area of one of the killings, which occurred about 9 a.m. They then tweeted that area schools and a courthouse were locked down and only later said they were searching for an armed suspect and urged people to stay "secure indoors."
Several local residents reached by The Canadian Press on Tuesday as the search for the suspect was underway said they didn't know what was going on.
Mike Harrington, who runs an auto body shop near Cormac, Ont., said he could see about 50 police officers from his home, but no one said anything to him.
Media inquiries yielded information that one person had been killed, information that did not change for hours even though investigators knew quickly that three women had been shot and who they were looking for. It was only toward mid-afternoon that police reported lockdowns — which also occurred in Ottawa itself — had been lifted and a suspect was in custody.
Terry Fleurie, with the local weekly Eganville Leader, said he first heard of the unfolding drama via text from his wife, as word spread among the small-town residents about the identities of the shooter and victims.
"I don't believe they knew it from the police: I believe it was from hearsay or rumours or speculation or people associated with the victims," Fleurie said. "Formal information on the incident was very hard to come by."
Police only released the name of the suspect and victims Wednesday morning, even though numerous media outlets had reported the identities the previous afternoon — in some cases leading to confusion between the suspect and an area man with an identical first and last name.
Ottawa city police, who were involved in arresting the man now charged with three counts of first-degree murder, said it was up to provincial police to provide information because the crimes occurred in their jurisdiction.
Josh Greenberg, who heads the School of Journalism at Carleton University, said provincial police may have felt they had good reason to withhold information but said the decision could have backfired.
"They don't want to compromise their investigation, but they're operating in an environment where people are aware of what's happening and they're communicating with one another," Greenberg said.
"So, in a context where you have a lack of official information, people start to fill in the information gaps on their own and that can place people in greater danger."
One seasoned media relations officer with a big-city Canadian police force expressed surprise at how little information was provided to the public.
Police should have found a way to communicate more details about what they knew, he said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he did not want to be seen to be criticizing colleagues.
"If someone is going around with a gun and people are dead, there's a pretty compelling reason to release what you can," he said. "Is there a threat to the public? If there is, you have to try to explain to the extent you can. If there isn't a threat, then that's equally important. You've got to give people enough information so they can protect themselves."
Colin Perkel, The Canadian Press
Canada beats Tunisia to end volleyball World Cup with five wins, six losses
TOKYO — Canada's men's volleyball team capped the FIVB World Cup with a three-set victory over Tunisia on Wednesday, to finish seventh overall.
Gord Perrin had 14 points, while Nicholas Hoag won game MVP honours with 13 points, in Canada's 25-19, 25-21, 25-17 victory.
Canada finished the World Cup with five wins and six losses.
The Canadians play in a regional Olympic qualifying tournament next week, and so capping the World Cup with a victory was important.
"We're very happy with the win, for us it closes this World Cup on a positive note," said Canada's head coach Glenn Hoag. "We lacked a bit of preparation — we would have liked to maybe do better against the stronger teams — but that will be for the future. For now, we turn our focus to the NORCECA tournament, which is next week, and that's an important tournament for us."
The NORCECA tournament is the first of two Olympic qualifying events. Canada needs a strong showing next week to advance to the final Olympic qualifying tournament.
The United States won its first men's volleyball World Cup in 30 years with a 25-20, 25-21, 17-25, 25-20 win over Argentina.
Maxwell Holt scored 18 points as the U.S. team secured a berth at the Rio Olympics.
"It's a stressful challenge for any coach to qualify for the Olympics," U.S. coach John Speraw said. "I thought our serve was good throughout the tournament and our blocking got better as we went along."
Italy also wrapped up an Olympic spot by finishing second with a 26-24, 22-25, 25-22, 25-19 win over world champion Poland, which lost its first match and finished third.
— With files from The Associated Press.
The Canadian Press
Flames defenceman T.J. Brodie sidelined with broken bone in his hand
Calgary Flames defenceman T.J. Brodie has suffered a broken bone in his right hand and is said to be week-to-week.
Brodie took a shot off his hand in Monday's pre-season game against the Edmonton Oilers.
The Flames say he is expected to miss three to six weeks.
Brodie became Calgary's No. 1 defenceman at the end of last season and played big minutes after captain Mark Giordano was injured in February.
The 25-year-old from Chatham, Ont., does not require surgery, says Flames general manager Brad Treliving.
The Flames open the regular season at home Oct. 7 against the Vancouver Canucks.
The Canadian Press
Conference Board outlook paints bleak picture for Alberta in 2015
CALGARY — Finance Minister Joe Oliver's assertion that there's been no recession in Canada this year is of little solace in Alberta.
A new report by the Conference Board of Canada paints a bleak economic picture of the oil-producing province, which has been hit hard by a halving in crude prices.
The think-tank says low oil prices are severely hampering the province's economy and expects a one per cent contraction in real gross domestic product this year.
It foresees the rough times persisting for the remainder of 2015 as oilpatch layoffs hit home and new home building stalls, but says next year should be better.
It forecasts a provincial unemployment rate of 5.6 per cent in 2015, worse than 4.7 per cent in 2014.
Todd Hirsch, chief economist at Alberta-owned bank ATB Financial, said earlier this week that he's predicting a modest recession this year, with a return to growth in 2016.
---
Follow @LaurenKrugel on Twitter
The Canadian Press
Fahmy’s journey from journalist to ‘terrorist’ to freedom of the press crusader
Mohamed Fahmy has been celebrated as a journalist, denounced as a terrorist and described as a bargaining chip in a notoriously complex power struggle among Middle Eastern countries.
Yet whether he was accepting international awards for his investigative reporting or shedding light on a political maelstrom by voicing his more personal struggles, the 41-year-old has remained staunchly committed to what he views as the bedrock of his chosen field.
"I try in my journey as a journalist not to obsessively take on the role of an agent of democratic change usually embraced by many members of our prestigious fourth estate. But, I still live to challenge governments in their shortcomings through my craft," Fahmy wrote in a message delivered to the advocacy group Canadian Journalists for Free Expression. "It's a cause not worth dying for, but in time it becomes a way of life, even behind bars."
Fahmy's tenacity has played out on a global stage over nearly two years ever since he and two of his Al Jazeera English colleagues — Australian correspondent Peter Greste and Egyptian producer Baher Mohamed — were arrested in Cairo in December 2013.
The trio were accused of supporting the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, a banned organization affiliated with ousted Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi, and fabricating footage to undermine Egypt's national security.
Fahmy himself said the three imprisoned journalists were innocent victims of the "cold war" between Egypt and Qatar, which funds Al Jazeera and had been a strong Morsi backer.
The journalists and their supporters insisted they were simply doing their jobs during a time of violent upheaval.
Fahmy was initially convicted and sentenced to jail time in 2014 after a judge ruled he and his colleagues had been "brought together by the devil" to destabilize the country that Fahmy once called home. A second trial ordered after Fahmy appealed the conviction returned the same verdict and destined him to three more years behind bars before he was granted a presidential pardon on Wednesday.
Among the outpouring of international criticism declaring the trials a sham and calling for the journalist's release, few voices were as prominent or consistent as Fahmy's.
He routinely shouted from the prisoner's box during court proceedings, wrote open letters decrying the case against him and his colleagues, and spoke out against a regime that hampered the pursuit of journalism within its borders.
He voiced his opposition despite holding what loved ones described as a deep affection for his native country.
His wife Marwa Omara previously told the Canadian Press that Fahmy hailed from a family of serviceman and considered himself a "proud Egyptian."
But Fahmy has also put down roots in Canada, the country he moved to in 1991 and plans to return to upon his release.
Fahmy first moved to Montreal where he became an ardent fan of the Canadiens. He also lived for a time in Vancouver before moving abroad to pursue what became an acclaimed journalism career.
His reporting took him to conflict zones in Libya and Lebanon and prompted him to write a book about the U.S. invasion of Iraq.
His work was featured in international outlets including the New York Times and NPR, and a documentary he helped prepare for CNN ultimately garnered international praise. He and his team won the 2011 Tom Renner Investigative Journalism award, a global honour handed out by International Reporters and Editors.
Judges cited the courage and resourcefulness of Fahmy and his teammates as they pursued a difficult story.
"CNN's team faced great personal risk in crossing the dangerous badlands of Egypt's Sinai Peninsula to expose a network of human trafficking and organ sales," they wrote in the award citation.
Fahmy was working as Al Jazeera's Cairo bureau chief when he was arrested, an assignment he told CJFE he accepted as a "personal challenge."
More challenges await Fahmy when he is released from prison, an event only made possible after he reluctantly opted to renounce his Egyptian citizenship. Not the least of those challenges will be dealing with infuriated family members who feel betrayed by his decision, according to Fahmy's brother.
But the journalist has set other tasks for himself too. He told CJFE he intends to "start a debate" on how the Canadian government, which has lobbied for his release, handles similar situations in the future.
Most of all, he said he intends to remain committed to the cause that brought about his ordeal in the first place.
"I have been intrigued lately by a motto I spotted that reads: "Information is Ammunition," Fahmy wrote. "We must unite before more of us become just another statistic languishing behind bars."
— Follow @mich_mcq on Twitter
Michelle McQuigge, The Canadian Press
