With meteorologist Jaclyn Whittal
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump will leave Washington next Wednesday morning just before President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration to begin his post-presidential life in Florida. Refusing to abide by tradition and participate in the ceremonial transfer of power, Trump will instead hold his own departure ceremony at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland before his final flight aboard Air Force One. Officials are considering an elaborate send-off event reminiscent of the receptions he's received during state visits abroad, complete with a red carpet, colour guard, military band and even a 21-gun salute, according to a person familiar with the planning who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a formal announcement. Trump will become only the fourth president in history to boycott his successor's inauguration. And while he has said he is now committed to a peaceful transition of power — after months of trying to delegitimize Biden's victory with baseless allegations of mass voter fraud and spurring on his supporters who stormed the Capitol — he has made clear he has no interest in making a show of it. He has not invited the Bidens to the White House for the traditional bread-breaking, nor has he spoken with Biden by phone. Vice-President Mike Pence has spoken with his successor, Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris, calling her on Thursday to congratulate her and offer assistance, according to two people familiar with the call. Pence will be attending Biden's inauguration, a move Biden has welcomed. While Trump spends the final days of his presidency ensconced in the White House, more isolated than ever as he confronts the fallout from the Capitol riot, staffers are already heading out the door. Many have already departed, including those who resigned after the attack, while others have been busy packing up their offices and moving out personal belongings — souvenirs and taxidermy included. On Thursday, chief of staff Mark Meadows’ wife was caught on camera leaving with a dead, stuffed bird. And trade adviser Peter Navarro, who defended the president's effort to overturn the election, was photographed carrying out a giant photo of a meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. (Staff are allowed to purchase the photographs, said White House spokesman Judd Deere.) Also spotted departing the West Wing: a bust of Abraham Lincoln. Stewart D. McLaurin, the president of the White House Historical Association, said he had reached out to the White House chief usher, who manages the building's artifacts with the White House curator, because of questions raised by the images. “Be reminded that staff have items of their own that they brought to the White House and can take those items home as they wish. Some items are on loan to staff and offices from other collections and will be returned to those collections,” he said in a statement. Earlier this week, reporters covering the president's departure from the South Lawn spotted staff taking boxes into the residence for packing up the first family's belongings. And on Friday the packing continued, with moving crates and boxes dotting the floor of the office suite where senior press aides work steps from the Oval Office in the West Wing. Walls in the hallways outside that once featured a rotating gallery of enlarged photographs of the president and first lady framed in gold suddenly were bare, with only the hooks that held the picture frames left hanging. Moving trucks pulled in and out of the driveway outside. While some people have been asked to stick around by the incoming administration, the White House has been reduced to a skeleton crew, with more scheduled to depart on Friday. That includes White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany. Come Monday, the press staff will be down to two. Trump will leave Washington with his future deeply uncertain, two weeks after his supporters sent lawmakers and congressional staffers scrambling for safety as they tried to halt the peaceful transition of power. While Trump was once expected to leave office as the most powerful voice in the Republican Party and the leading contender for its 2024 nomination, he has been shunned by much of the party over his response to the violence, which left five people dead, including a Capitol Police officer. Trump is expected to be joined in Florida by a handful of aides as he mulls his future. ___ Associated Press writer Zeke Miller contributed to this report. Jill Colvin And Darlene Superville, The Associated Press
Alongside Canada’s national flower, sport, symbol and bird, is a national animal that is often forgotten. Canada’s national horse, Le Cheval Canadien, is in danger of disappearing. An Uxbridge equestrian centre, however, is dedicated to the revival of this special breed. Hundreds of years ago, in about 1665, King Louis XIV of France began shipping mares and stallions, with bloodlines from the King’s Royal Stud, to Acadia and New France. These horses had great abilities to adapt to harsh climates (like Canada’s cold winters), rough terrains and were easily trained. They became known as the Canadian Horse, or Le Cheval Canadien. While the breed was well known to American colonists, it is rather rare today. After being used in the American Civil War and for breeding to diversify genetics in American stock, but its popularity in Canada waned. Despite this, however, and despite the fact that the horse was smaller in size and often thought of as the “Quebec pony,” the Canadian Horse was declared by the Parliament of Canada to be the National Horse of Canada in 1909. In 2018, Barb Malcom, owner and head coach of Churchill Chimes Equestrian Centre on Webb Rd., committed to doing her part to save the Canadian Horse. Alongside her riding school, Malcolm set up a sister company called Donalf Farms, specifically to breed the Canadian horses in an attempt to bring back the name and the breed. “I had worked as a professional for over 20 years and just happened to buy an unpapered Canadian gelding. He is one of the most darling horses I’ve ever had,” says Malcom. Very soon Malcom fell in love with the breed. “They are durable, willing, personable and versatile. I went from being a “crossbreed person” to being completely wowed by this purebred.” “It’s one thing for Canadians not to know Canada has a national horse, but for horse people not to know, it just shows how much the breed is in trouble,” says Malcom. If it weren’t for a pandemic, this year Malcom had plans to contact Heritage Canada and rally for government assistance in the fight for the Canadian Horse. “We would love to see federal support,” says Malcom. “It really is an altruistic endeavour, but they're worth it.” Malcolm dreams of one day having all the horses in her riding school be Canadian Horses. “They are so little known, but absolutely remarkable,” says Malcolm. For more information about the national horse of Canada, visit lechevalcanadien.com or find Malcom’s breeding farm at donalffarms.com Justyne Edgell, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Uxbridge Cosmos
When Ontario declared a second state of emergency and issued a stay-at-home order Jan. 12, it also implemented new health and safety measures for schools. When Niagara students return to the classroom Jan. 25, they will be greeted by those new measures. The new rules will require students in Grades 1 through 3 to wear a mask. Also, there will be masking requirements when students and staff are outdoors and physical distancing cannot be maintained, school boards will be required to implement enhanced screening protocols, and the province will expand targeted testing. A government release indicated “these new public health measures will help stop the spread of COVID-19 by reducing concerning levels of mobility as the province continues its vaccine rollout and ramps up to mass vaccination when the federal government is able to provide the necessary supply to do so.” Camillo Cipriano, education director for the Niagara Catholic District School Board, said Niagara Catholic has complied with Ministry of Education requirements throughout the pandemic. “Students in Grades 1 to 3 will now be required to wear masks in class, and students will be required to wear masks outdoors when schools reopen if physical distancing is not possible,” said Cipriano. “Staff will continue to reinforce the importance of students staying two metres from each other, even while outside.” He said, “Niagara Catholic will await further details from the ministry regarding enhanced screening protocols and will explore options on how to best proceed.” Niagara Catholic will also consult with Niagara Region Public Health for guidance on best practices. Targeted testing is a new concept in Niagara, he said. “We will await further information from the province and consult with Niagara Region Public Health in implementing any targeted testing required.” On Nov. 26, the province launched voluntary targeted COVID-19 testing — voluntary for asymptomatic students and staff — in Ottawa, Toronto, Peel and York regions. The province has yet to release details about the expanded targeted testing. A lack of information flowing from the province, though, has left school boards in the dark. District School Board of Niagara spokesperson Kim Sweeney said, “while we wait for further information from the province to learn more about what these new measures will entail, we will be discussing the next steps at our upcoming meeting with Niagara Region Public Health, which are meetings we have weekly. “As we keep our attention on supporting our students and families with online learning, we are also prioritizing our plans for the return to in-person learning and the new measures that will be added to the existing ones we’ve had in place since September 2020,” she said. “I can assure you that all families and staff will receive detailed information from their school principals before the first day back to in-person learning.” She added, “since the beginning of the school year, we’ve had masks available for every student at the DSBN, and we will continue to provide masks for anyone who needs one. If targeted testing does become available to schools in Niagara, we would welcome that.” Sean Vanderklis is a Niagara-based reporter for the Niagara Falls Review. His reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative. Reach him via email: svanderklis@metroland.comSean Vanderklis, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Niagara Falls Review
VANCOUVER — A British Columbia Supreme Court judge has ruled that businessman Frank Giustra's lawsuit against Twitter Inc. over alleged "false and defamatory" tweets can proceed in the province. Giustra, the founder of Lionsgate Entertainment and CEO of the Fiore Group of Companies, filed a civil lawsuit in April 2019 alleging that Twitter published defamatory tweets about him and neglected or refused to remove many of the posts despite his repeated requests. Giustra says in a statement of claim that he sits on the Clinton Foundation board and the tweets escalated during the 2016 U.S. election, accusing him of being involved in "Pizzagate,'' a debunked child sex-trafficking conspiracy theory. Twitter filed an application in June 2019 asking the B.C. court to dismiss or stay Giustra's lawsuit or decline its jurisdiction in favour of the courts in California, where the company is headquartered. Justice Elliott Myers says in a decision posted online Friday that the court does have jurisdiction because Giustra has close ties to B.C. and tweets were published in the province and refer to B.C. None of the allegations has been proven in court and Twitter declined to comment on the ruling, which only concerns jurisdiction and does not assess the merits of the civil claim. Giustra says in a statement he hopes the lawsuit helps raise awareness of the real harm to society if social media platforms are not held responsible for the content published on their sites. "I believe that words do matter, and recent events have demonstrated that hate speech can incite violence with deadly consequences," he says. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 15, 2021. The Canadian Press
HALIFAX — The rugged point of land upon which sits the Peggys Cove lighthouse will be getting a much-needed facelift this summer. Plans were announced today to build a large viewing platform to improve access to the site and, at times, prevent people from venturing onto the rocks when storms roll in. The $3.1-million deck is expected to be completed by the end of June. The wood and concrete structure will include steel guardrails that look like fishing nets. The lighthouse and nearby fishing village attracted more than 700,000 visitors in 2018. Nova Scotia is contributing $1.7 million to the project and the federal government is covering the rest of the bill. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 15, 2021. The Canadian Press
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has tapped nine of her most trusted allies in the House to argue the case for President Donald Trump’s impeachment. The Democrats, all of whom are lawyers and many of whom have deep experience investigating the president, face the arduous task of convincing skeptical Senate Republicans to convict Trump. A single article of impeachment — for “incitement of insurrection” — was approved by the House on Wednesday, one week after a violent mob of Trump supporters invaded the Capitol. At the time, lawmakers were counting the votes that cemented Trump’s election defeat. As members of the House who were in the Capitol when it was attacked — several hiding under seats as rioters beat on the doors of the chamber — the Democrats are also witnesses to what they charge is a crime. So are the Senate jurors. “This is a case where the jurors were also victims, and so whether it was those who voted in the House last night or those in the Senate who will have to weigh in on this, you don’t have to tell anyone who was in the building twice what it was like to be terrorized,” said California Rep. Eric Swalwell, one of the managers. It is unclear when the trial will start. Pelosi hasn’t yet said when she will send the article of impeachment to the Senate. It could be as soon as next week, on President-elect Joe Biden’s first day in office. The managers plan to argue at trial that Trump incited the riot, delaying the congressional certification of the electoral vote count by inciting an angry mob to harm members of Congress. Some of the rioters were recorded saying they wanted to find Pelosi and Vice-President Mike Pence, who presided over the count. Others had zip ties that could be used as handcuffs hanging on their clothes. “The American people witnessed that,” said Rep. Madeleine Dean, D-Pa., one of the managers. “That amounts to high crimes and misdemeanours.” None of the impeachment managers argued the case in Trump’s first impeachment trial last year, when the Senate acquitted the president on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of justice. The House impeached Trump in 2019 after he pressured Ukraine’s president to investigate Biden’s family while withholding military aid to the country. Colorado Rep. Diana DeGette, another manager, says the nine prosecutors plan to present a serious case and “finish the job” that the House started. A look at Pelosi’s prosecution team in Trump’s historic second impeachment: REP. JAMIE RASKIN, MARYLAND Pelosi appointed Raskin, a former constitutional law professor and prominent member of the House Judiciary Committee, as lead manager. In a week of dramatic events and stories, Raskin’s stands out: The day before the Capitol riots, Raskin buried his 25-year-old son, Tommy, after he killed himself on New Year’s Eve. “You would be hard pressed to find a more beloved figure in the Congress” than Raskin, says House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, who was the lead manager during Trump’s first trial. He worked closely with Raskin on that impeachment investigation. “I know that part of what gives him strength to take on this burden that he now carries is knowing that this is something that would be enormously meaningful to his son.” REP. DIANA DEGETTE, COLORADO DeGette, who is serving her 13th term representing Denver, is a former civil rights attorney and one of Pelosi’s go-to allies. The speaker picked her to preside over the House during the first impeachment vote in 2019. DeGette said Pelosi trusted her to do it because she is “able to to control the passions on the floor.” She says she was surprised when Pelosi called to offer her the prosecutorial position but quickly accepted. “The monstrosity of this offence is not lost on anybody,” she says. REP. DAVID CICILLINE, RHODE ISLAND Cicilline, the former mayor of Providence and public defender, is in his sixth term in Congress and is a senior member of the Judiciary panel. He was heavily involved in Trump’s first impeachment and was one of three original authors of the article that the House approved on Wednesday. He and California Rep. Ted Lieu began writing the article together, in hiding, as the rioters were still ransacking the Capitol. He tweeted out a draft the next morning, writing that “I have prepared to remove the President from office following yesterday’s attack on the U.S. Capitol.” REP. JOAQUIN CASTRO, TEXAS Castro is a member of the House Intelligence and Foreign Affairs panels, where he has been an outspoken critic of Trump's handling of Russia. He was a litigator in private practice before he was elected to the Texas legislature and came to Congress, where he is in his fifth term. Castro’s twin brother, Julian Castro, is the former mayor of San Antonio and served as former President Barack Obama’s secretary of housing and urban development. Julian Castro ran in the Democratic primary for president last year. REP. ERIC SWALWELL, CALIFORNIA Swalwell also serves on the Intelligence and Judiciary panels and was deeply involved in congressional probes of Trump’s Russian ties. A former prosecutor, he briefly ran for president in 2019. “The case that I think resonates the most with the American people and hopefully the Senate is that our American president incited our fellow citizens to attack our Capitol on a day where we were counting electoral votes, and that this was not a spontaneous call to action by the president at the rally,” Swalwell said. REP. TED LIEU, CALIFORNIA Lieu, who authored the article of impeachment with Cicilline and Raskin, is on the Judiciary and Foreign Affairs panels. The Los Angeles-area lawmaker is a former active-duty officer in the U.S. Air Force and military prosecutor. “We cannot begin to heal the soul of this country without first delivering swift justice to all its enemies — foreign and domestic,” he said. DEL. STACEY PLASKETT, U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS Because she represents a U.S. territory, not a state, Plaskett does not have voting rights and was not able to cast a vote for impeachment. But she will bring her legal experience as a former district attorney in New York and senior counsel at the Justice Department — and as one of Raskin's former law students. “As an African American, as a woman, seeing individuals storming our most sacred place of democracy, wearing anti-Semitic, racist, neo-Nazi, white supremacy logos on their bodies and wreaking the most vile and hateful things left not just those people of colour who were in the room traumatized, but so many people of colour around this country," she said Friday. REP. JOE NEGUSE, COLORADO Neguse, in his second term, is a rising star in the Democratic caucus who was elected to Pelosi’s leadership team his freshman year in Congress. A former litigator, he sits on the House Judiciary Committee and consulted with Raskin, Cicilline and Lieu as they drafted the article the day of the attack. At 36, he will be the youngest impeachment manager in history, according to his office. “This armed mob did not storm the Capitol on any given day, they did so during the most solemn of proceedings that the United States Congress is engaged in,” Neguse said Thursday. “Clearly the attack was done to stop us from finishing our work.” REP. MADELEINE DEAN, PENNSYLVANIA Like Neguse, Dean was first elected when Democrats recaptured the House in 2018. She is also a member of the House Judiciary Committee, and is a former lawyer and member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. She says she hopes the prosecutors can convince the Senate and the American people “to mark this moment" with a conviction. “I think I bring to it just the simple fact that I’m a citizen, that I’m a mom and I’m a grandma," Dean said. "And I want my children, my grandchildren, to remember what we did here.” Mary Clare Jalonick, The Associated Press
OTTAWA — Canada's international development minister says the world's first inoculation of a refugee with a COVID-19 vaccine this week is an important milestone in ending the pandemic everywhere. Karina Gould tells The Canadian Press that inoculating the world's most vulnerable people offers a glimmer of hope that the pandemic can be brought under control everywhere. A woman living in the northern Jordanian city of Irbid who had fled northern Iraq became the first United Nations registered refugee to receive the vaccine on Thursday. Before the pandemic Canada committed $2.1 billion in security, humanitarian and development funds to help Jordan and neighbouring Lebanon cope with the massive influx of refugees they face due to the crises in Syria and Iraq. Since the pandemic, Canada has committed more than $1 billion to international efforts to buy vaccine doses for low- and middle-income countries. Rema Jamous Imseis, the Canadian representative for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, says if refugees aren't vaccinated they run the risk of infecting people in their host national populations. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 15, 2021. The Canadian Press
Richmond’s Gateway Theatre has commissioned a piece in response to a question posed by the National Arts Centre in its Transformations Project: What would it take to transform our society for the betterment of all? In the piece, local Taiwanese-Canadian artist Johnny Wu dives into themes of family, belonging, and filial piety—a central value in traditional Chinese culture that means respect and duty for one’s parents and ancestors. A regular in the theatre scene, Wu has worked with Gateway several times before, including as the Surtitle translator for China Doll. To learn more or view the piece online, click here.Hannah Scott, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Richmond Sentinel
FORT FRANCES, ONT., — A 30-year-old man in Fort Frances is facing a series of break and enter related charges. On Jan. 11, shortly after 8 a.m., Rainy River Ontario Provincial Police responded to a break and enter at a local business on First Street East in Fort Frances, according to a police news release. As a result, Thomas Atkinson, 30, of Fort Frances was charged with break and enter, theft under $5,000, mischief under $5,000, possession of property obtained by crime and possession of heroin. A day later, on Jan. 12, police responded again to a break and enter report at a pharmacy in Fort Frances shortly after 2 p.m. As a result, Atkinson was charged with break and enter, theft under $5,000 and possession of property obtained by crime. On Jan. 13, police attended a break and enter at two separate pharmacies in Fort Frances. Atkinson was taken into custody and charged with two counts of break and enter and two counts of possession of property obtained by crime. Police say the investigation remains ongoing and anyone with information regarding the break and enters is urged to call OPP at 1-888-310-1122. Karen Edwards, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Thunder Bay Source
VANCOUVER — A lawyer for a former RCMP officer convicted of perjury after the 2007 death of Polish immigrant Robert Dziekanski at Vancouver's airport says his client has settled a lawsuit against the federal and B.C. governments. Sebastien Anderson says Kwesi Millington reached an agreement this week after suing the federal and provincial government for damages, claiming he acted in accordance with his RCMP training. A public inquiry heard that Dziekanski, who died at the airport's arrivals area, was jolted numerous times with a Taser seconds after Millington and three other officers approached him. Millington and his senior officer, Benjamin (Monty) Robinson, were later convicted and handed prison time by the B.C. Supreme Court for colluding to make up testimony at the public inquiry into Dziekanski's death. Anderson says strict confidentiality provisions prevent him from discussing most of the settlement's details. The RCMP said in a statement that the matter had been settled to the satisfaction of both parties, while the B.C. government says it wasn't a party to the settlement and the federal government referred questions back to the RCMP. Millington's lawsuit filed in 2019 said the Integrated Homicide Investigations Team found he and the other RCMP officers acted in accordance with their training. The statement of claim said an RCMP use of force instructor who trained Millington testified during the public inquiry that the officers' actions were consistent with training. Millington's lawsuit said he suffered post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, nervous shock, loss of career advancement and other injuries. Anderson says he is able to disclose that part of the settlement agreement includes a letter from the RCMP in support of Millington's bid for a pardon, which would wipe out his criminal conviction. "Part of that is because all of their internal reports with respect to Mr. Dziekanski's unfortunate death was that they all acted within the scope of their training at that time," he said. The RCMP was asked about the letter Friday but didn't comment. Anderson said Millington has served his sentence and is living in Canada but not in B.C. "He's taken courses and has become a resilience coach," said Anderson. "He's published a book and he's hoping to help others who go through traumatic experiences like he has, and suffered PTSD, to cope and return to somewhat of a normal life." — By Dirk Meissner in Victoria. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 15, 2021. The Canadian Press
Holyrood residents who have spearheaded a petition asking the Town of Holyrood to not sell a portion of the town’s Festival Grounds to accommodate a microbrewery have now filed an appeal with the Eastern Regional Appeal Board following council’s decision to approve the brewery in principle. “The issue is the sale of the property,” said Mark Lane, representing the Concerned Citizens of Holyrood group. “We want the beer, we just don’t want it there, on the festival grounds… The only opposition we have is the final sale of property to a private business. Because that is final and irreversible.” Back in September, following the submission of the Beach Head Brewery application, Lane prepared a petition, which he said currently exceeds 500 signatures, requesting that Holyrood not sell the land. Lane said when he found out council would be voting on the application during a December 22 meeting, he sent a copy of that petition to each member of council. Council granted approval-in-principle to the application following a 4-3 vote. During the meeting, councillors Roger Myette, Kevin Costello, and Mayor Gay Goobie, who voted against the approval, cited several of the same concerns raised by residents — including the as yet unknown costs associated with the development, costs which would not be covered by the brewery owners. “The taxpayers have to subsidize the purchase of other properties, road upgrades, water and sewer upgrades, and infilling the harbour,” said Lane. “So, we pay for all that, the taxpayers, and the company gets a deal on the most prime piece of real estate in Conception Bay. It just doesn’t make sense.” Lane, a former councillor, said he felt it necessary for the group to appeal the decision. “We’re being ignored, so we have no choice but to appeal. It’s an expense that we have to incur ourselves, it’s a time expense, it’s a monetary expense, and it’s something that we shouldn’t have to do. We should not, as residents of the Town of Holyrood, have to fight our government,” said Lane. “No decision on council is easy. I’ve been there. They’re all challenging — some easier than others— but you will never satisfy everybody. I appreciate that. What I was surprised at was, that even though a petition of, at that time 354 individuals, was given to all council members, because I sent it to all councillors the morning of once I heard this vote was happening, and as well as the Marina Park Corporation, who canvassed their members and they recommended not supporting the sale of the marina and the festival grounds, council went ahead and supported it, 4-3. We thought, in all confidence, that it would never have passed the approval in principle.” Mayor Goobie said he felt the vote should have been held off until the New Year, so that council would have more time to delve into some of the nitty-gritty details. “Council was very consumed, and council committees were very consumed, in preparing the municipal budget during December,” said Goobie. “I knew there was a lot of discussion that had to take place surrounding this brewery application. So, personally, I felt that because we were so consumed in preparing the town’s budget, time would not allow us to reach that comfort level in bringing that motion on the brewery forward at the December 22 meeting. At the time, I didn’t think that we were ready for that.” The discussion to hold the vote on December 22 was made in a private meeting of council a week or so prior, said Goobie, noting he couldn’t attend for personal reasons. “There were two private meetings held with council and a couple of staff. I was unavailable for the two meetings,” said Goobie, explaining he missed one due to a work commitment and the other for a medical appointmnent. “I spoke to the CAO on that,” Goobie added. “I said, ‘It seems like we’re going to have to put off this vote until the new year. But then I was advised by the CAO that, from that last private meeting that was held with the councillors, that they wanted to vote to proceed on the 22nd, which, I had some issues with. I told the CAO that. I said, ‘There were still a lot of outstanding questions here, and I think we should flush all this out first, before we take this to a vote.’” The mayor said that since the vote, residents have accused him of not doing enough to prevent the application’s approval. “There’s one piece that I really want to get out there. Some people think that the mayor has such authority that they can make a decision on behalf of council,” said Goobie. “But I am only one person, amongst seven around that table. I have one vote, the same as every other councillor… I think people have to understand that we follow a democratic process whereby the majority rules. The mayor doesn’t supersede, or override council recommendations based on a majority… people have to understand that I don’t have the authority to make a unilateral decision and override council recommendations. That’s why we have seven people on council. Because if the mayor could make a decision on his or her own, then why do you need a council?” The appeal, which was received by the board on January 5, makes four claims. It says council breached the Holyrood Municipal Plan which provides for protection of greenspace and scenic shorelines, and sound financial management; alleges potential conflicts of interest; contends town office employees overreached their authority; and that the ultimate cost to taxpeyers is undisclosed, citing the future purchase of private land to accommodate Holyrood Marina Park, road upgrades, water and sewer upgrades, and infilling of the harbour, which could potentially exceed $2 million. Lane said selling a portion of the festival grounds to a brewery flies in the face of thousands of dollars in government funding that were spent on improvements to the festival grounds and boardwalk. In total, the Town received $77,408 from the provincial government and $112,511 in federal funding to improve the area. “At that time, the plan was beautiful,” said Lane. “We all loved it. Because, the festival grounds do need some TLC and it’s underutilized for sure. But, it’s the crown jewel of the Town of Holyrood… Now the plan is to sell the property, reduce the festival grounds down to only a fraction of what it was, displace a part of the marina, and the taxpayers are on the hook to purchase property, do land infilling, etcetera.” Lane said there has been a lack of transparency and key questions have yet to be answered. “What is the sale price of that property? What is the valued assessment of that property? What are the associated costs with the water and sewer upgrades?” said Lane, noting the town has been plagued with water woes for a decade. Goobie acknowledged the appeal process will affect the development. “There has been an appeal registered with the regional appeal board, which means, legally, everything comes to a standstill,” said the mayor. “The town and the developer are not permitted to do or say anything else. Everything is at a standstill until that appeal is heard… and these appeals can take quite some time before the board gets to hear, and render a decision; And I expect now that, because of COVID, I would venture to guess that there’s quite a backup in files waiting to be heard. So how long it’s going to take, I don’t know, but I would safely say that it’s going to be several months before any decision is rendered.” The mandate of the appeal board, said Goobie, is not to determine whether or not the appeal board feels that the brewery should go in that location, but to determine whether council adhered was compliant in following its development regulations and the proper process. “That’s their mandate,” said Goobie. “So, if there was something technical that was overlooked, and wasn’t done, or something done that shouldn’t have been done, then they can rule on that.” Goobie said that if the appeal is won, it means the application is essentially back to square one. “I voted against it for several reasons,” he said. “But the fact is now that council has approved that approval-in principle. So, collectively, council has made that decision… If the appeal is won, council will continue their discussion of the terms and conditions within the approval in principal.” The terms and conditions, said Goobie, include the sale of land, which includes applying for ministerial approval, an agreement amongst council as to its fair market value, and an environmental assessment. “If the Town wins the appeal, then we’ll continue on where we left on in terms of dealing with the conditions set forth in the approval-in-principle,” he added. “There’s still a lot of discussion that is going to have to take place between council. There have to be more votes… approving that approval-in-principle is just one step. There are many more steps that are going to follow from that. But again, nothing can be done, absolutely nothing, until that appeal is heard.” As to the unproven accusations raised in the appeal of potential conflicts of interest, Goobie said council is taking the matter very seriously. “When we reconvene, I will be asking the question, as to whether council feels a need to explore possible perceived conflict of interests in an official manner to get a definitive answer, and that answer will come through legal channels,” said Goobie. “As mayor, if such information is brought to my attention, I have a responsibility, I am duty bound, in accordance with the Municipalities Act, to ensure that it’s investigated appropriately and that council is provided with all the relevant information pertaining to allegations or any perceived conflicts. And then it’s up to council to decide if they’re satisfied with the explanations that they’re given and that they feel there’s no basis or foundation for such allegations, or, if it can’t be ruled out unequivocally, we have to take it to another level in which we have to seek legal advice from Municipal Affairs and from a lawyer.” Meanwhile, Lane said that many residents felt put out by a Town brochure delivered on December 23 announcing council’s decision and highlighting some of the potential solutions to the repercussions of selling part of the festival grounds. “The very next morning after the vote, there was in everybody’s mailbox, almost the equivalent of a marketing brochure for the company as an update from the Town of Holyrood,” said Lane. The mailout highlighted main concerns and workable solutions, including additional green space through the redesigning of the Festival Grounds area through the Beach Boardwalk Project (estimated to be completed, in phases, by 2024) which also allows for a splash pad area, beach area, and new stage, the use of space on the second floor for community groups, and the ongoing discussions between the Town and boaters to resolve boat storage space. The mailout out assured residents the proponents have spent a significant amount of time researching and speaking with Public Works staff regarding town infrastructure and water availability. The mailout did not indicate that three of seven members of council had voted against the approval-in-principle. Goobie also has issues with the mailout. “The Town, and I will leave it at that, it wasn’t council, it was the Town, drafted up a brochure… in the eyes of many, that went beyond an update,” said Goobie. The mayor acknowledged that council, during one of the private meetings he missed, had requested that residents be given an update once the vote had been taken. But Goobie said the mailout brochure far outshot the original intention of council. “There should have been an update put out by the Town, that sticks to the facts as it is, and there should have been another one put out by the brewery, promoting their proposal and trying to garner support,” said Goobie. “I wouldn’t have an issue with that. Instead, the two of them were rolled together. Which means staff got too entrenched in promoting this, which caused a lot of confusion, a lot of frustration, and people don’t know what to make of it.” Goobie said production of the brochure was both flawed and untimely. “Unbeknownst to anyone of us, at one o’ clock in the afternoon, the day of the vote, we received an email, in which the pamphlet was enclosed,” said Goobie. “We were asked to look at it and get back to the staff by 2:30 at the latest, because it had to go to print. Now, we hadn’t even voted on this yet, and we were asked to, more or less give the green light on this brochure. Now at one o’clock in the afternoon, how many people, if they’re out and about and doing things, are checking their email? I took exception to some of the stuff that was in this. Because it said, ‘The Holyrood Town Council believes that by working collaboratively and finding solutions that this Approval in Principle will have a positive affect on our Town’s ability to move with confidence into the future,’… the concern I have with this is that they use the word ‘council.’ They didn’t make reference to say that ‘the majority of council feels,’ and they never made any reference to how the vote went or anything else. Maybe this was well intentioned. But I’m suspicious. I should have been given an advance copy of this days in advance, along with the rest of council, to go through and pick apart, and say, ‘Okay, this is what we want,’ and then send it out, so everyone is on the same page. But it left everyone shaking their head and it’s caused a lot of confusion in the community.” Goobie said he has other issues with the flyer that he will address in the council chambers at the appropriate time. “I’m going to call this into question; how this was done, why it was done the way it was, why council weren’t provided ample opportunity to actually review it and suggest anything be added or deleted or changed or modified,” said the mayor. “It was done and ready to go. This seems very problematic. Because obviously there was a lot of time put into producing this brochure. This wasn’t slapped together overnight, this was carefully, carefully crafted. No question about it… it has the Town of Holyrood logo on it, but it wasn’t signed off by the mayor. “I really want it out there that this wasn’t done by the council; this was done by staff and it went out in an untimely manner, and inappropriately. And it unfortunately caused some confusion because it was worded in a way that all of council was supporting this. And it barely got passed. Obviously the public got confused. This wasn’t the intent, or what council wanted. They wanted a simple update for the residents. They weren’t expecting this.” So far as Goobie figures, no one on council reviewed the brochure by the print deadline. As for Lane, whatever the appeal board decides, he said, the residents of Holyrood will have a say too come next election. “What I want is for the Town of Holyrood to immediately cease any consideration to sell that property, and to begin to work with the developer to put it in an alternate location in Holyrood, and people would welcome that, end of story,” said Lane. “What I think is going to happen is that we’re going to have to go through the entire appeals process, and the end state, well, there’s a municipal election in the fall and if people are happy, or not happy with the decision council has made, that will be decided there. Let’s protect the greenspace that we have. Let’s develop it with money that has already been approved. And let’s work with the developer to put it in an alternative location. My advice to council is to sit back, take off the beer goggles, and reconsider.”Mark Squibb, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Shoreline News
OTTAWA — Canada's chief medical officer of health says British Columbia's decision to seek legal advice on limiting travel reinforces the message that it isn't the time to go on vacation across the country. Dr. Theresa Tam says stopping non-essential travel would be a difficult decision for the province, but it could reduce COVID-19 by cutting the number of contacts. Premier John Horgan said Thursday his government was seeking legal advice on whether it can limit interprovincial travel. Other provinces and territories, including those in Atlantic Canada, have required travellers to self-isolate upon arrival or get authorization to travel. Horgan said he and other premiers have made the case for Canadians to stay home during the pandemic, but people continue to travel. The issue has been discussed for months and it's time to determine if the government can act, Horgan added. B.C.'s provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, said Thursday that she's not sure if she has the authority to limit out-of-province travel nor was she considering such an order. "We do have requirements that people who come in to British Columbia must follow the rules in place here, and that is something that is continuing to be reinforced," she said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 15, 2021. The Canadian Press
According to a report recently published by the Northern Policy Institute, Northern Ontario communities need to create a collective brand to make the North more attractive to new residents. Last February, the City of Temiskaming Shores and the Northwest Community Futures Network, in partnership with Northern Policy Institute and the Northwestern Ontario Immigration Partnership, held two conferences to explore population growth strategies in Northern Ontario. The Come North conferences were held in Thunder Bay and Temiskaming Shores with more than 300 people representing almost 100 organizations coming together to discuss how to attract and retain more people in the North. Last December, the Northern Policy Institute released a conference report, a 10-point action plan and conference proceedings detailing what was discussed during the sessions and how northern communities can be more welcoming. Being more welcoming means not only toward international newcomers but to domestic migrants as well, the report says. The 37-page conference document includes short, medium and long-term objectives for northern communities and identifies 16 core themes and 18 separate action items. The five key points state that Northern Ontario communities need to work together to create a coordinated marketing plan and one consistent brand to promote to newcomers. In addition, the action plan needs to be updated on an annual basis. “The brand should be Northern Ontario … We’re speaking to people from southern Ontario and/or outside Canada, so they don’t know what we look like or the geography," said James Franks, an economic development officer for the City of Temiskaming Shores. "Life here is not much different than life anywhere else. We have all the services and activities that you can find in communities in southern Ontario, just less often," he said. "The way I would sell it to people is you can enjoy all the activities anywhere else, however, in Northern Ontario there’s just less people enjoying it with you.” Franks said communities need to come together to create one marketing plan to sell the same narrative instead of having scattered brands for each community. “Some people come to North Bay, some to Temiskaming Shores and some come to Timmins. And that’s great, everybody gets a little piece of the pie. But what we need to do is grow the pie,” Franks said. He said people in the south often ask him if there are gas stations in the north or whether there are places to stay. “They really do believe they’re going off into the wilderness. A part of the marketing plan is to help people understand there are communities up there, you don’t have to drive six hours between gas stations,” Franks said. “It isn’t the scary north, it’s a safe north.” One of the points in the action plan suggests the Timmins Local Immigration Partnership (LIP) look for funding to keep the Northeastern Ontario Immigration portal and its resources up-to-date. “If it’s difficult for people to find information or to be able to locate to an area, then they don’t come,” Franks said. “We’re good at websites but (people) often have questions, they want to talk to somebody to get answers.” The report says newcomers must be a part of the reconciliation process, that the existing immigration portals need to focus on population growth and offer more information on how to battle racism. “Unemployment and lack of economic participation among First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples remain high. Increasing participation and encouraging retention among these populations represents the largest potential domestic contribution to our future wellbeing,” reads the report. Franks said communities may not be aware of how vibrant First Nation communities are in the north and how fast the Indigenous population is growing, so communities need to “reconnect” with First Nations. “Because how can we better integrate that potential workforce with employers who are advising us they’re having trouble finding employees because the demographics in Northern Ontario is shrinking,” he said. “If we have a portion of our population that is growing, then we need as communities to better work with that portion of the population to fill the jobs and make ... Indigenous people feel as they’re part of the community.” Last summer, northern communities saw a significant increase in tourists although there were no specific promotions for people outside the region to come up north, Franks said. “Whether COVID is a driving force behind that, I assume it is, but every community across the north is seeing new residents coming here. And it’s a perfect time to work together to keep this going once the pandemic relaxes and if that’s the cause of people coming here, let’s build that,” Franks said. The next step would be making sure all communities are onboard to sell the same product and getting bigger partners involved so that the project keeps moving, Franks said.Dariya Baiguzhiyeva, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TimminsToday.com
A cannabis store in Kanesatake went up in flames early last Friday morning, leaving nothing but the container’s carcass behind and a herbal smell lingering in the cold winter air. The Dank Bank, which had opened its door last November 21, was one of the latest additions of smoke shops in the community, located at the edge of Route 344. On January 8, First Nations Paramedics were called at 2:38 a.m. after the Kanesatake Emergency Response (ERU)’s Access Control Team (ACT) noticed smoke coming out of the roof. “There’s no more Dank Bank, no more store,” said the ERU spokesperson Robert Bonspiel. “It was cleared out. It’s a complete loss.” Along with St. Placide and Pointe-Calumet, Oka’s firefighters stayed until 8 a.m. fighting to put the fire down. It was later confirmed by the Surete du Quebec (SQ) that the fire was not criminal. While there was no one on-site when it happened, the director of Oka’s fire department Sylvain Johnson said that they were able to investigate the cause by cameras that were surrounding the shop. “The cause of the fire was electrical,” said Johnson, “so the possibility of a deliberate act was quickly brushed off.” Johnson also mentioned that they were thorough throughout the investigation as molotov cocktails were thrown at one of the Dank Bank’s owner’s car earlier in December. “We wanted to make sure that there was no connection, or that it would not start a small war on the territory,” said Johnson, adding that there has been a lot of competition between cannabis shops. For Mohawk Council of Kanesatake grand chief, Serge Otsi Simon, when it comes to fire in the community, there’s no coincidence. Simon said he doesn’t believe in the electrical cause. In the past 30 years, he said, the community has had more than 10 arsons, with the same number of attempted cases. “Arson has become a trend, an acceptable form of revenge,” said Simon. “It’s an expression of anger. There are homes and shops that people take years to build here, they put all their money into it and because they get into an argument with someone, it goes up in flames.” This incident undeniably goes without reminding of how last year also started for Kanesatake. Sharon Simons’s house was destroyed overnight after a suspicious fire broke out in January 2020. One of the latest also ravaged another person’s house last fall, but this time in the Domaine des Collines - a controversial development area in Oka’s village. However, the SQ and fire department both ruled out this one as suspicious. “If there’s no further investigation, I’m sure that they have their reason for not doing it,” said Bonspiel. virginie.ann.news@gmail.comVirginie Ann, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Eastern Door
MADRID — The Spanish region of Catalonia is postponing regional elections planned for Feb. 14 until May 30 because of a strong surge in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks. The new date was agreed on by the region’s parliamentary parties Friday and formally announced later by the regional government. It says the change will give authorities more time to bring the virus spread under control and people a better chance to vote. The virus incidence rate in Catalonia on Thursday was at 561 per 100,000 inhabitants, which is high but still below Spain's national average of 575. The region has imposed strict movement restrictions between towns and non-essential stores can only open Monday to Friday. Critics of the date change say pro-independence governing parties in Catalonia hope it might weaken the electoral impact of highly popular Spanish Socialist Health Minister Salvador Illa, who recently announced his candidacy. Polls suggest Illa could upset the balance of power in the region. Separatist parties currently control the Catalan government. The separatist movement, which is supported by roughly half the region's 7.5 million residents, wants to create a republic for the wealthy northeast corner of Spain. The region’s political situation is still heavily dominated by the jailing in 2019 of nine political figures for their role in a secession push two years earlier. Catalonia has been operating without a president since former leader Quim Torra was barred from public office last year for disobeying the country’s electoral law in 2019 — when he displayed banners in a public building calling for the imprisoned separatists to be released. The Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. — No criminal charges will be filed against a former temporary elections worker authorities have said mistakenly discarded nine military ballots ahead of the November presidential election, a federal prosecutor announced Friday. Officials have previously blamed the decision to toss out the ballots on an unidentified and improperly trained contract worker who had been handling mail-in ballots for the county for two days. The ballots were later retrieved from the trash and were counted with other mailed ballots after the Nov. 3 election. “After a thorough investigation conducted by the FBI and prosecutors from my office, we have determined that there is insufficient evidence to prove criminal intent on the part of the person who discarded the ballots,” Acting U.S. Attorney Bruce Brandler, a career prosecutor, said in a news release. “Therefore, no criminal charges will be filed and the matter is closed," he said, President Donald Trump repeatedly brought up the nine ballots as he pressed groundless claims of election fraud, including two mentions during the first presidential debate. Brandler's predecessor, Dave Freed, a Trump nominee who recently stepped down ahead of the change in administrations, has said that seven of the ballots were cast for Trump. The other two had been resealed. Pennsylvania Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar, a Democrat whose office oversees voting in Pennsylvania, has previously described the discarded ballots as a “bad error” but not a matter of intentional fraud. The Department of State provided training for Luzerne County election workers in the wake of the September incident. The unidentified worker was fired. The Associated Press
Herbert Kickl claimed that children would play "not the slightest role" in spreading the virus.View on euronews
Tenants in a Downtown Eastside SRO who have criticized guest restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic say they’re concerned about police actions enforcing the rules. Erica Grant and David Mendes live in the Savoy, a single-room occupancy hotel building on East Hastings Street operated by Atira Property Management, which manages several buildings in the neighbourhood. Grant was warned she could be evicted after police were called to the building on Jan. 2 to arrest her 29-year-old son, who had been banned from the Savoy at the end of December. Mendes said he was visited the next day by police officers looking for a guest of another tenant. Officers pulled him out of his apartment and went in to search for that guest, he said. “I was like, ‘What? What are you doing? Do you have a warrant? Like, why are you coming in here?’” Mendes said. “And the one popped his head back out, and he pointed at me and said, ‘Suspected COVID violation.’” Atira and most other housing operators in the Downtown Eastside have restricted guests at their buildings since pandemic restrictions started in March. Atira now allows residents to designate two guests who must be identified to building staff. Current provincial health orders state that there can be no social gatherings of any size inside people’s homes, “other than your household or core bubble.” B.C.’s public health officer strongly recommends that people wear masks in common areas of rental buildings (for instance, hallways, stairwells and shared laundry rooms). B.C.’s Residential Tenancy Branch published guidance for COVID-19 that said landlords have the power to “schedule or restrict the use of common shared areas” like lobbies and laundry rooms — but they don’t have the power to stop visitors from coming to someone’s apartment. The guest restrictions put in place by supportive housing operators in the Downtown Eastside are not supported by B.C.’s tenancy laws. But housing providers say the rules are necessary to protect vulnerable residents in the century-old hotels. SRO hotels often have narrow hallways, tiny 100-square foot rooms and shared bathrooms and kitchens. The people who live in them frequently have existing health conditions, and people who have contracted COVID-19 in the Downtown Eastside are more likely to be hospitalized. Grant said she had been told that her partner, Grant Houle, and her adult son were both on her guest list. On the night of Jan. 2, she said police came to her door and entered her room, looking for her son. Grant said she tried to tell them they couldn’t come in and that she would send him out. Grant said she tried to keep her door shut but police officers pushed it open, and her foot and arm were painfully scraped. A female officer pulled her hair and twisted her thumb, she said. Grant said she is still in pain from the incident. The Vancouver Police Department says officers were called to the building by staff who were concerned for their safety “after a man who was known to be violent toward them entered the building and went up to a room. The man had a B.C.-wide warrant for assault.” “The officers found the door to the room ajar and tried to convince the man to come into the hallway so he could be taken into custody,” media liaison officer Steve Addison wrote to The Tyee in an email. “While speaking with him, another occupant of the room became agitated and hostile towards one of the officers, and the officer did physically control the person to avoid being assaulted.” Grant said her son was co-operating with police during the incident. The officers said they were there because he had been banned from the building, she added, and didn’t mention anything about him being violent. Grant said she wasn’t aware on Jan. 2 that her son had been banned from the building days earlier. She said she later learned that building staff had told Houle of the ban, but he hadn’t passed the information on to her. And Grant said she also later learned her son had shoved the building manager on Dec. 30 when she was trying to take away a key to the building staff had given him. The incident was overblown, Grant maintains. Her son is now homeless, Grant said. Janice Abbott, CEO of Atira, declined to comment on the incident. Two days after police came to her door, Grant received a letter from her building manager warning she could be evicted if she violates the guest policy again. The letter makes no mention of her son being violent, but says he was barred from the building after “being seen on camera letting others in the building as well as wandering in common areas, which is prohibited during the current lockdown because of the Global Coronavirus Pandemic, COVID-19.” The letter goes on to say that “guests may use the washrooms in a timely manner but are not to access any other common areas or visit other units to which they are not registered on the restricted guest list.” The letter states that Grant is in breach of her residential tenancy agreement with Atira “because you continue to seriously jeopardize the safety of tenants and staff by putting them at significant risk by allowing your guest… into the building after being barred for breaching the COVID-19 guest protocol and the landlord does have cause to end tenancy.” Abbott said Atira often sends tenants letters warning them they could be evicted because they are breaking the rules, and the letters rarely lead to actual evictions. Robert Patterson, a legal advocate with the Tenant Resource and Advisory Centre, said it’s common for supportive housing landlords who house high-needs tenants to be much more directly involved in managing tenancies. That includes enforcing rules like when and how guests can visit buildings — rules that aren’t in place at other rental buildings. In some buildings, those restrictions were in place long before COVID-19 but are now stricter. “People who live in supportive housing are very usually a very volatile population anyways, and while many of these policies are very well meaning, it has resulted in cutting many of them off from supports,” Patterson said. Several supportive housing tenants in B.C. have challenged guest restrictions in court and won, Patterson said. And yet, the restrictions continue to be applied by housing providers, including Atira, who say they are needed to keep their buildings safe. Patterson said it’s also very common for tenants in supportive housing buildings to get letters like the one Grant received. He said it’s good for landlords to give tenants a warning first so they can correct the situation, “but on the flip side, a lot of times these letters are used kind of as cudgels to get people to behave better or more like the landlord wants to see.” This October, the Tenant Resource and Advisory Centre hired a new legal advocate to focus solely on helping tenants who live in supportive housing, Patterson said. Tenants and staff from Vancouver Coastal Health have raised concerns that restricting guests led to more overdose deaths in the spring of 2020, although housing providers have disputed that. In early April, Grant’s son Duncan died in his room at the London, another Atira-operated SRO building in Vancouver. Grant still wonders if things would have been different if she had been allowed in the buildings to look for him when he stopped answering his phone. Savoy resident Mendes said staff at his building try to do a good job, and he said Atira has been receptive to hearing his concerns about the current guest rules. But he said it was frightening and upsetting to have police officers pound on his door, to be pulled physically out of his apartment and to be held in the hallway while police searched his home. The Vancouver Police Department says it does not have a record of the incident Mendes described. There have been several media stories about police breaking up large parties in other parts of Metro Vancouver, but Mendes believes the situation he experienced would have been handled differently outside of the Downtown Eastside. “In any other neighbourhood, they would send the bylaw officer if the neighbours complained that there are too many people. An officer would come there, ring the doorbell and ask the tenant or the homeowner if there’s somebody in there that was breaking the provincial policy,” he said. “As opposed to pulling you out and having three cops come barrelling into your place and the other one holding you outside.” Grant, who has herself experienced homelessness, said it’s very difficult to not be able to invite your loved ones inside when they’re suffering outside in the winter. “There’s a lot of parents down here, a lot of mothers, a lot of grandmothers,” she said. “They’re not going to let their kids stay out in the cold.” Jen St. Denis, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Tyee
ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — Newfoundland and Labrador is offering $175 million to the owners of the dormant Terra Nova offshore oilfield, but only if oil starts pumping again. The announcement came late Thursday afternoon, as rumours of an impending election intensified and funding announcements flowed freely from the governing minority Liberals. Suncor Energy is the majority stakeholder in the Terra Nova field, where restart operations were halted because of the COVID-19 pandemic and crashing oil prices. The province says the conditional funding is part of a non-binding memorandum of understanding, which includes a commitment from government to adjust its royalty entitlements. The money comes from a $320-million federal envelope given to the province this fall to boost its sputtering offshore oil sector. Premier Andrew Furey's government gave Husky Energy $41.5 million in December for its stalled West White Rose project, but that money wasn't contingent on the company reviving the project. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 15, 2021. The Canadian Press
NEW YORK — A bus dramatically plunged off a bridge in New York City late Thursday, leaving its front half hanging over a highway ramp, its fall broken only by the road below. The 55-year-old driver broke his jaw in the crash and refused to submit to a drug and alcohol test after arriving at the hospital, authorities said Friday. Seven passengers suffered minor injuries in the crash, which happened after 11 p.m. near an interchange of the Cross Bronx and Major Deegan expressways. They were taken to hospitals. No other vehicles were involved. One part of the articulated bus — essentially two buses connected by a pivot that allows it to navigate turns — remained on the bridge, with the other half vertical, its smashed front end resting on a ramp connecting the two expressways. “The bus fell approximately 50 feet onto the access road. The patients suffered injuries consistent with a fall from such a great height,” Deputy Fire Chief Paul Hopper said in a social media post. Speed appeared to be a factor in the crash, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said, adding no mechanical issues were detected in the bus. The MTA said it was conducting “a full investigation and will implement lessons learned in order to prevent it from happening again.” The driver, whose name was not released, was driving his regular route. He has more than 11 years of service and a good safety record, the MTA said. The driver passed a breath test at the scene of the crash but then refused to submit to a later drug and alcohol test at the hospital, said Patrick Warren, the MTA’s chief safety and security officer. “This is obviously troubling,” Warren said. The Associated Press
