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City encouraging people to swim at Toronto’s beaches this weekend

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Torontonians seeking relief from the heat this weekend have a wide choice of city beaches at which to swim. Eight beaches are flying the blue flag this summer.

The temperature is forecast to reach a high of 26 degrees Celsius Saturday and a sticky 31C Sunday. See the full forecast here.

This summer will mark the first year Bluffer’s Beach ranks among the city’s blue flag beaches — a designation handed out by Environmental Defence indicating a beach is safe to swim at.

The other blue flag local beaches include: Kew-Balmy Beach, Woodbine Beach, Cherry Beach, Ward’s Island Beach, Centre Island Beach, Gibraltar Point Beach and Hanlan’s Point Beach.

Marie Curtis Park Beach, Rouge Beach and Sunnyside Beach have not received the blue flag designation.

City officials take daily water samples at beaches every day between June and the end of August. The samples are tested for E. coli and if the levels exceed the provincial standard, Toronto Public Health posts warning signs.

View Toronto’s blue flag beaches in a larger map


Missing Brampton family found safe: police

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Police said a mother and her three children, who were reported missing last week, have turned up safe.

Jacqeline Davis and her three kids hadn’t been seen since Aug. 27, after leaving on a road trip for Calgary. Police issued an appeal Sunday for tips on the family’s whereabouts.

Police said Monday that the family had been located in good health.

Authorities are respecting the family’s request for privacy and aren’t saying where the mother and three kids were found.

1 dead, 3 injured, in Hunstville-area crash

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The Ontario Provincial Police are investigating a fatal crash in the Hunstville area.

Officers say the vehicle rolled on Highway 11 in Port Sydney around 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, killing one man and leaving three people injured.

James Colyer, 62, was killed in crash. Colyer, the driver of the SUV, allegedly rolled off the ramp just north of Highway 141 and came to rest in the centre median.

Two of the injured people are in critical condition and the third is in serious condition at Toronto’s Sunnybrook hospital.


Accused Eaton Centre shooter faces 2 first-degree murder charges

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The man accused in the fatal Eaton Centre shooting is now facing new charges, Toronto Police said Wednesday.

Christopher Husbands, 23, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder after a second victim, 22-year-old Nixon Nirmalendran, died in hospital on Monday.

Husbands, wearing a hooded sweatshirt that covered his face, appeared in court on Wednesday afternoon to set a date for a bail hearing. His hearing was set for Aug. 25 and Husbands agreed to remain in custody until then. The judge agreed to a publication ban for the bail hearing.

Husbands surrendered June 4 and was charged with first-degree murder in the death of Ahmed Hassan, 24.  He was also charged with six counts of attempted murder. One of those charges has now been upgraded to first-degree murder following Nirmalendran’s death. Husbands has also been charged with criminal negligence causing bodily harm.

Police believe both Hassan and Nirmalendran were the intended targets and were together at the time.

Husbands, and both victims, have been tied to a gang out of Regent Park called the Sic Thugs.

Despite their gang connections, police say the shooting stemmed from a personal dispute and wasn’t gang-motivated.  

Husbands was under house arrest for sexual assault when he allegedly opened fire. He will appear in court on those charges on June 25.

Six other people were injured during the shooting, including a 13-year-old boy who was shot in the head and a pregnant woman who was trampled in the chaos. The boy, who underwent neurosurgery June 4 at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children, was released Monday and is expected to recover.  

Eaton Centre shooting accused in court Monday

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The man charged with first-degree murder in the fatal Eaton Centre shooting was scheduled to appear in court on a previous sexual assault charge on Monday.

Christopher Husbands, 23, was under house arrest for the alleged sexual assault when he allegedly opened fire in the mall’s food court on June 2.  

Ahmed Hassan, 24, and Nixon Nirmalendran, 22, were killed and five others were wounded.

“At the time of the shooting he was charged and on house arrest conditions not to be outside of his residence,” Det.-Sgt. Brian Borg, the lead investigator in the Eaton Centre case, said earlier this month.

He was charged with the sex assault in November 2010. The sex assault and the shooting are not connected. 

Husbands will appear in court on the Eaton Centre shooting charges on Aug. 25.

He is facing two counts of first-degree murder, five counts of attempted murder and criminal negligence causing bodily harm.

Husbands agreed to remain in custody until then. The judge agreed to a publication ban for the bail hearing.

Missing 9-year-old boy found safe

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A missing nine-year-old boy has been found safe, Toronto police confirm.

Iymen Omer was found around 12:30 a.m. on Saturday at the Scarborough Town Centre, hours after he went missing.

He was last seen Friday around 5 p.m. in the Milner Avenue and McCowan Road area of Scarborough.

It’s not yet known how he went missing.

Canada should be economic model: IMF chief

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The head of the International Monetary Fund says measures taken to protect Canada’s economy should be a model for countries trying to fix their financial systems.

Christine Lagarde said Thursday that Canada has been a leader in creating policies intended to rein in the build-up of household debt.

“Abroad, Canada is identified by its values of co-ordination and consensus building, which have given your country influence beyond its years,” she said.

“Building a safe and stable financial system is in the best interests of the global community, but it also serves the self-interest of nations,” she added.

Lagarde made the comments at a dinner held in Toronto by the Canada International Council — an organization created to promote Canada’s position on the world market.

She pointed to the decision by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty to boost down payments on new mortgages for homebuyers as an example of restraint that others should follow.

“All of these new reforms comprise the tools so far that will help us shape the future financial system,” she said.

“We must shape the system so it cannot again hold us ransom to the consequences of its failings.”

Lagarde’s speech focused on global financial reforms that while “heading in the right direction,” still haven’t delivered the safer financial system they were designed to create.

“Some financial systems are still under distress and crisis-fighting efforts are inadvertently impeding reforms,” Legarde said.

She singled out Basel III requirements as one of the financial reforms that had “generous implementation timetables,” that have been in development since 2010.

Under the proposed Basel III rules, a bank’s required capital levels must meet certain requirements, amongst other standards. The intention of the rules is to set a standard on key measures of a bank’s health and its ability to endure future economic downturns.

“There are many vested interests working against change and pushback is intensifying,” Legarde said.

“It is interesting how some banks say the new regulations will be too burdensome, but then spend hundreds of millions of dollars lobbying to kill them.”

Canadian banks have been proactive in reinforcing their balance sheets to meet the Basel III requirements ahead of schedule, and are widely considered a model for international banks because they weathered the global recession better than others.

“Most countries have committed to adopt some or all of the new regulations, and some have moved further ahead with their own national policies,” Lagarde said.

“The challenge now is to proceed to the end of the reform path all together.”

Toronto Public Health supports safe injection sites for drug users

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Toronto Public Health has released a report suggesting the city should create supervised safe injection sites for drug users.

The report says research from Vancouver, Australia and Europe shows that safe injection sites are effective in addressing public health issues associated with drug addiction.

About 75,000 drug users in Toronto currently have access to needle exchange services.

The public health agency said Tuesday a new pilot project would integrate safe injection services into existing health services.

Safe injection sites encourage drug users to inject with sterile needles, reducing the risk of disease transmission.

The city’s Board of Health will consider the report on July 10.

Dr. Douglas Sinclair, executive vice president and chief medical officer of St. Michael’s Hospital, said in a letter the hospital supports the report, noting that injection sites are safer for drug users and others.

“St. Michael’s Hospital would like to support the recommendations contained in the Board of Health report regarding Supervised Injection Services,” he wrote Tuesday.

“St. Michael’s has experienced success in adopting harm reduction principles as one aspect of our programs. Research completed locally and internationally has indicated that SIS contributes to a safer environment for all residents, reduces transmission of blood-borne illness, increases usage of other addiction services and is an efficient use of financial and human resources, an important consideration during this time of fiscal constraint.”

What do you think? Weigh in below.


Tougher drinking and driving penalties boost one local business

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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Thanks to the stiffer drinking and driving penalties, business is up at one local company.  Dyann Mullen, owner of A Safe Ride, says the number of people using the program has increased.

A Safe Ride works by arranging someone to drive your car home if you’ve had a few too many drinks.

Mullen explains she is getting a lot of calls and in fact, business has tripled.  “It’s just been crazy. People are afraid of roadblocks. Lots of people are afraid of even drinking the one drink or beer and driving home.”

She says a couple of weeks ago, they’d average about 86 calls on a Saturday night. However, this weekend they received 127 calls.

Mullen admits she didn’t expect the jump in customers, saying people just don’t want to take the chance and have a drink before getting behind the wheel.

Slippery roads and weather conditions delay GTA drivers

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TORONTO, Ont. – Downtown Toronto is one of the many areas that is getting more snow than expected. The weather conditions have caused traffic on most major highways to move slower than usual.

The snow is expected to taper to flurries this afternoon creating hazardous driving and poor visibility.

680’s meteorologist Harold Hosein said this is a weak system, but the wind off Lake Ontario is making it worse.

“By the time this is over late this afternoon, portions of the city of Toronto on the east side could have between fifteen to twenty centimetres of snow,” Hosein reports.

“On the west side, between ten to fifteen centimetres. It is all due to the wind coming from the lake.”

680’s traffic reporter Matt Padanyi is advising all drivers to put safety first and to remember that the roads are being shared.

“Today is one of those days where it’s going to take team work from everyone out on the road to ensure that everyone gets to where they’re going safely,” said Padanyi.

Drivers are finding it hard to see the lane markers on the roads and are unable to see what lane they are driving in. “When you get to the 427 things start getting heavy there. The snow is evident on the road,” Padanyi reports.

“401 westbound, that’s where things really start to get bad. That’s where the lines disappear because the snow has covered the roads completely.”

“It’s a really messy situation out this morning,” he said.

This is the first time in two years that we have seen more than ten centimetres at Pearson airport.

The best advice is if you do not have to drive, don’t!

OPG review after Japanese nuclear crisis finds Ontario reactors safe, robust

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TORONTO – A review of Ontario Power Generation’s nuclear facilities in the wake of the crisis at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi plant shows reactors in the province are safe and robustly designed, the utility said Friday.

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission asked OPG to review its nuclear reactors after a massive earthquake and tsunami knocked out power to the cooling system at Fukushima Daiichi on March 11, leading to a situation officials still describe as very serious.

In its preliminary report, OPG said it has made significant progress in evaluating the lessons learned from Japan.

“What we’re looking at, is there something that we can learn from Japan that we should be enhancing our safety,” said OPG’s chief nuclear officer Wayne Robbins. “We’re safe now, that’s not the question, but how do we get even more safety, what lessons should we put in there?”

OPG did a review of external hazards such as earthquakes, flooding, fire and extreme weather and found an “acceptably low risk” to power supplies for reactor cooling systems.

Canada’s reactors are designed differently, and have many, many redundant backup systems, added Robbins, who said OPG would continue to look into possible disasters and how they could impact the nuclear plants.

“It may have us looking at even further accident-type scenarios that are really, really beyond design basis,” he said. “What we have right now are designs, what we meet are beyond design basis events, but what if we go even further? That’s what we’re looking at now.”

One of the biggest advantages Ontario has over Japan when it comes to locating nuclear reactors is the relatively modest amount of seismic activity in the Great Lakes region.

“To experience a magnitude-nine earthquake and then a 15-metre tsunami, that’s not our environment,” said Robbins. “So very first, right off the bat, our environment is a lot different. With our design being safe, and where we live, it really does add that extra layer of confidence to us.”

OPG’s report to the federal nuclear regulators said so far, “no significant issues requiring immediate corrective measures have been identified,” but the utility said it would continue a rigorous review looking for more safety improvements.

However, Greenpeace Canada complains government-owned OPG is refusing to release data on the potential health and environmental impacts of a radiation release from a Fukushima-like accident.

“It is unacceptable for OPG to withhold information on the potential environmental and human health impacts of accidental radiation releases from its reactors while publicly claiming those reactors are safe,” said Greenpeace’s Shawn-Patrick Stensil.

“In light of the ongoing radiation releases at Fukushima and the continued impacts at Chornobyl 25 years after that disaster, Canadians have the right to know the risks they face from OPG’s reactors.”

OPG said it will provide another progress update on its post-Fukushima review to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission by May 28. The utility owns and operates nuclear reactors at Pickering and Darlington in southern Ontario and leases another nuclear generating facility to Bruce Power near Kincardine.

Our stages are safe: PNE

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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Organizers of the PNE insist the stages at the Fair won’t see a repeat of mishaps in Ottawa and Indiana.  Over the weekend bad weather and stage design came together in the tragedy in which five people died at the Indiana State Fair.

Last month, classic rockers Cheap Trick were lucky to escape unhurt when a stage collapsed in Ottawa.

“The stage at the PNE is very different.  It is a singular unit stage where the roof and the stage structure are a single unit,” says Laura Ballance with the PNE.

She means the rigging problem seen in Indiana won’t be an issue here.

The stages at the Fair are being built by the same company linked to the Ottawa collapse, but Ballance says all of them are approved by an engineer at the design stage and then inspected on site.

The PNE runs from August 20th – September 5th.

Family thanks God and abductor for Kienan’s safe return

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SPARWOOD (NEWS1130) – The father of a three-year-old boy who was abducted four days ago is thanking God – and the boy’s abductor – for returning Kienan Herbert safely.

“To the person who returned Kienan safely to our family, we would like to say thank you,” says Paul Hebert, a father of eight, breaking down in tears. “It was the right thing to do. I thank God that Kienan was returned unharmed.”

The boy was returned to his home just after 2 a.m. by a suspect. As a result, the Amber Alert was cancelled.

“He appears to be in good general health, not withstanding that right now he’s in care with the appropriate people,” says Cpl. Dan Moskaluk. “The little guy appears to be in good health.”

No one has been arrested and police are still searching for the man they believe took Hebert, 46-year-old Randall Hopley.

Hopley is suspected of snatching the little boy from the family home on Tuesday night.  A massive search for the pair was launched and an Amber Alert stretched from BC into Alberta.

Canadian Press reporter Bill Graveland was in Sparwood when the happy news of Kienan’s return broke.

“He was described as being in good spirits and very resilient, and we saw him, from a distance, mind you, playing with his brothers and sisters playing in the front yard of the house they’re staying in,” Graveland tells News1130.

“I think he had a can of that Silly String stuff that you use, and it didn’t look like he was any the worse for wear. So I’m hoping that it was more of an adventure for him than something that’s going to stay with him.”

Graveland also explains why the RCMP didn’t catch him overnight, saying that there had been police tape around the home for days and they had only recently reduced their presence at the crime scene.

“Once they finished their forensic investigation, I guess they thought that was the last place he would return to,” he says.

Hopley once again urged to contact police

Cpl. Moskaluk again urged Hopley this afternoon to reach out to police so they can establish a timeline of events in the tot’s disappearance.

Moskaluk said it was obvious that Paul Hebert’s plea on Saturday to Hopley, in which he reminded the suspect that his son is too young to identify his abductor to investigators, got through.

“I’m pretty sure that we were having a conversation with you yesterday, or at least you and Paul did have a conversation, because we saw what you did,” said Moskaluk, addressing Hopley directly. “So from the bottom of all our hearts, thank you for bringing Kienan Hebert home and reuniting him with his family.”

“It was a tremendous thing that you did for them, OK, Randall? And it’s perfectly clear.

“Our investigation now is shifting its focus from getting Kienan home safely to ensuring public safety by finding Randall.”

Moskaluk urged Hopley to reach out to police by calling 911, any member of the RCMP he knows in the Sparwood area, or by turning himself in at any detachment.

“We know how extremely difficult it’s been, this time, for your family, and yourself,” he said. “But you’ve done the right thing so far. You’ve corrected many things…. We know you have a story to tell. We want you to reach out to police. Come and talk to us. We can talk about this. We are concerned for your well-being.”

The public was once again asked to be on the lookout for any sign of Hopley, who is described as white with brown hair, hazel eyes, five-foot-ten-inches and 147 pounds. They said there is a possibility he has switched cars, but they are still looking for his brown Toyota Camry, BC license plate #098 RAL.

Moskaluk asked for the public’s patience and understanding about the RCMP’s limited ability to answer some big questions that remain, including how Kienan’s abductor managed to return him to his home undetected.

“We are absolutely not in a position to start discussing, in great detail, who was where, where was the child exactly in the house, we cannot get into those, because what happens is, if we discuss those prior to court proceedings, this null and voids and destroys the evidentiary value of that evidence and information,” he said.

He said that information will come to light if and when there are court proceedings.

Sparwood heaves a sigh of relief

Everyone living in Sparwood is completely shocked and delighted over the news.

Tara works at a hotel in town and plays baseball with the boy’s father Paul Hebert.  She tells News1130 people there are still a little puzzled as to how exactly Kienan was returned.

“We just heard that he was brought back into his home and so that’s why everyone is shocked at how this guy broke back in and put the child in the house.”

Tara says the whole ordeal has been a nightmare for the Hebert family.  “He’s [Paul] been so strong.  He’s been trying to enlighten the mood with everybody; he’s been trying to be very strong for his family.  He’s been great.”

She explains people who live in Sparwood feel proud to call it home.  “Everybody has been saying this is why they’re proud to call Sparwood their home because everybody has helped.  When somebody is in trouble they’re all there to help, day and night, early in the morning until late at night, everybody has been out there helping search.”

Still, she says they’re just thankful he’s back and the family’s prayers have been answered.

Safe

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Jason Statham shows off his fighting and shooting skills yet again. Film critic Leslie James calls “Safe” a thumping thriller.

Missing pilot found uninjured after plane crashes in swampy area near Wawa, Ont.

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LAKE SCUGOG, Ont. – A pilot reported missing on the weekend after failing to reach his destination in northern Ontario has been found uninjured.

The Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre at CFB Trenton launched a search after the man’s family reported his plane didn’t arrive in Hornepayne, north of Sault St. Marie, after leaving the Lake Scugog area Sunday.

Two C-130 Hercules airplanes and two Griffon helicopters from the military, seven civilian search and rescue aircraft, two provincial police helicopters and a Canadian Coast Guard vessel on Georgian Bay were involved in the search.

However, an official at the rescue centre in Trenton says one of the Hercules aircraft spotted the man Monday in his downed and damaged aircraft, in a swampy area near Wawa.

He was uninjured and was taken by one of the helicopters to Chapleau, northwest of Sudbury.

No name was released.






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