Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are a few stories to get you started on this Saturday morning.
It’s official: Sudbury is now home to Canada’s first independent medical university
Sudbury is now officially home to Canada’s first independent medical university. Staff, students, faculty and invited guests celebrated the unveiling of NOSM University on April 1. Dr. Sarita Verma is NOSM U’s president, vice-chancellor and dean. By becoming an independent university, it brings some significant changes that the public might not notice right away. The most significant change is that NOSM University won’t have to rely on Laurentian and Lakehead presidents to be the chair and vice-chair of the board, said Verma. The board will now have an appointed representative from the Lieutenant Governor, and the board will have elected opportunities for students, staff and faculty. “We can also expand the board a little bit now, as we’ve been very focused on Thunder Bay or Sudbury, but I think we need (representation) from around Northern Ontario, because the issues are not just urban issues, and are very much rural and Indigenous issues.”
Historic sexual abuse allegation caught up in Laurentian’s CCAA process
A legal action for $5 million in damages in which a woman claims she was sexually abused by a University of Sudbury professor in 1979 is caught up in Laurentian University’s insolvency proceedings. The matter was briefly discussed in an April 1 court hearing presided over by Chief Justice Geoffrey Morawetz, the judge who has heard most matters involving Laurentian’s insolvency. However, the matter was adjourned Friday at the request of one of the involved lawyers. According to documents filed before the courts, the woman, Barbara Robinson, alleges she was sexually abused by religion professor John Sahadat as a 26-year-old undergraduate student at the University of Sudbury, one of the federated universities operating on Laurentian’s campus. Sahadat passed away in May 2021. Robinson made a $5 million claim against Laurentian University regarding this matter through its insolvency claims process last summer. A $5-million legal action was also filed by Robinson on March 14 against the University of Sudbury. None of the allegations made by Robinson have been proven in court.
Police seek assistance in locating suspect in Manitoulin Island attempted murder
Sudbury Rainbow Crime Stoppers and the UCCM (United Chiefs and Councils of Mnidoo Mnising) Anishnaabe Police Service are seeking the public’s assistance in locating Prince Almando Graham. He is not to be approached, as he is considered armed and dangerous. On Feb. 26, at about 10 p.m., the UCCM Anishnaabe Police Service was dispatched to a home on Bebonang St in M’Chigeeng First Nation. A 30-year-old man had suffered a gunshot wound and was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The accused, Prince Almando Graham, also known as P, fled the area prior to police arrival. Police are seeking information about Prince Graham’s whereabouts. Sudbury Rainbow Crime Stoppers is convinced someone has information on the whereabouts of this suspect. A Guaranteed Minimum $1,000 reward is being offered for tips received before midnight on Friday, April 8, 2022, if the information leads to apprehension of the accused. The reward may be divided if multiple successful tips are received.
Abbeyfield model a potential for vacated Pioneer Manor space
A 42-bed shared residential accommodation has been proposed for a wing of Pioneer Manor being vacated as a result of the facility’s ongoing bed redevelopment project. “There is a (housing) crisis, and I think the upper levels of government and our municipal government want to find solutions,” Greater Sudbury Abbeyfield Steering Committee member Evelyn Dutrisac told the city’s community services committee earlier this week. “The Abbeyfield model is a social, economic and environmental use of housing,” she said of the seniors housing concept. “We need to mobilize the volunteer sector to get involved and work with the government,” she said, adding that we can use the buildings we have to give seniors affordable housing and a place “they can call their home.” Joined by fellow steering committee member Richard Meilleur and Abbeyfield Canada executive director JP Melville, who appeared remotely, the trio offered the committee a rundown of their proposal. Abbeyfield Canada, a not-for-profit charity with 20 homes in Canada and chapters throughout the world, would lease the property from the city and work to leverage funding from upper levels of government to renovate the space and keep it affordable.
Carbon price rising to $50 a tonne today, adds 2.2 cents to a litre of gas
The national price on pollution will go up another $10 per tonne of greenhouse gas emissions as scheduled today in most provinces. Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault is withstanding political pressure to delay or cancel the increase as fuel prices surge due mainly to the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Guilbeault says the government is not going to stall or move backward on its climate action plan, of which the carbon price is seen as a "cornerstone" policy. Today's increase brings the total price to $50 per tonne, adding another 2.2 cents to the cost of a litre of gasoline, or 11 cents total. The federal levy applies directly in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario but British Columbia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island are also raising their provincial carbon levies to stay in line. Quebec and Nova Scotia use cap-and-trade systems and Newfoundland and Labrador will raise its price to $50 a tonne later in 2022. B.C.'s price is going to $50 from $45, New Brunswick to $50 from $40 and P.E.I., which hasn't raised its levy since 2020, to $50 from $30.
'There's never been a downtick:' Nurses brace for 6th wave of COVID-19 in Ontario
A nurse at a downtown Toronto hospital says nurses are hitting a breaking point as the sixth wave of COVID-19 approaches in Ontario. Public health indicators, like the amount of those in hospitals and recent wastewater data, show the rate of COVID-19 is increasing. Virus-related hospitalizations on Wednesday were up 27 per cent over last week. However, the actual number of people getting sick with COVID-19 is not available to do the limited amount of testing being conducted in the province. Only a limited number of residents can access PCR tests. The Ford government announced on Wednesday that it would continue to offer free rapid antigen tests to the general public through existing channels like grocery stores and pharmacies. RATs will also be provided for free at workplaces, schools, hospitals, long-term care and retirement homes and other congregate settings. “We are seeing people coming in sick, and many of them are in denial. I don’t think the numbers being captured are truly reflective of what’s going on,” said Helen Wynter, who has been a registered nurse for the past 17 years. “So many people just feel like if they had the symptoms, so just stay home for five days and not bother to get tested.”
A few flurries but daytime highs above zero this weekend
Expect warmer weather this weekend than we’ve enjoyed for most of the week. The forecast calls for a high of 4 today with a mix of sun and cloud. The wind will be out of the southwest at 20 km/h late in the morning, so plan for a wind chill of -13. The UV index will be five or moderate. Tonight, the temperature will dip to -3 under cloudy skies. There is a 40-per-cent chance of flurries. Sunday, the daytime high is expected to be 6 under cloudy skies. There is a 40-per-cent chance of flurries today as well. Sunday night, the temperature will drop to -4 with cloudy periods.
