Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are a few stories to start your day on this Saturday morning.
Sudbury is no Pickering, but political disruption always looms
Greater Sudbury’s brushes with political turmoil and misinformation pale in comparison to that experienced in the City of Pickering lately, but that doesn’t mean it’s out of reach. In Pickering, a city council member’s rhetoric-filled social media activity on political platforms has escalated to a point where activists have been threatening city staff and council members. Their activity has reportedly followed the well-worn beats of the far right, including anti-2SLGBTQ+ sentiment and allegations levied for such things as pedophilia, without evidence. Pickering Mayor Kevin Ashe described city council member Lisa Robinson and her supporters as using “overblown rhetoric” in their anti-city hall comments, and affiliating themselves with the “alt-right.” A video critical of Robinson’s alleged wrongdoings was posted on the City of Pickering’s YouTube page late last month.
Cochrane helicopter ready to help fight California wildfires
A Cochrane helicopter company is ready to help fight the devastating wildfires burning in California. Expedition Helicopters’ UH-60 Black Hawk is stationed in Sandpoint, Idaho. “We are ready to go but have not been asked to assist at this time,” said company president Todd Calaiezzi. Four major wildfires in the Los Angeles, California, area have spread to over 36,000 acres. The devastating fires have forced tens of thousands of people from their homes and completely demolished neighbourhoods. Canadian water bombers are already helping fight the blazes, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Thursday. There are also 250 firefighters ready to deploy and the Canadian Armed Forces are on stand by to help move personnel and equipment.
Greater Sudbury school boards unaffected by widespread ‘cyber incident’
School boards servicing the Greater Sudbury area were not among the several school boards in Ontario affected by a “cyber incident” that could have exposed student and staff information. Sudbury.com reached out to the Rainbow District School Board, Sudbury Catholic District School Board, Conseil scolaire du Grand Nord and Conseil scolaire catholique Nouvelon. Board officials say none of them use the affected PowerSchool system, an American application used by school boards to store student and staff information. A paywalled story on the Village Media provincial affairs website The Trillium said 10 Ontario school boards have been impacted by the cyber incident, according to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario. That includes several Northern Ontario boards — the Near North and Rainy River District School Boards and the Thunder Bay, Northwest and Northeastern Catholic District School Boards.
Sudbury cop guilty of 2007 sexual assault of 17-year-old student
A former Sudbury Police officer has been found guilty of sexual assault against a then 17-year-old summer student who was working at the GSPS headquarters. Wayne Foster, a now-retired 31-year officer was charged for a sexual assault that took place on Aug. 24, 2007. Foster was ultimately convicted of the assault on Dec. 23. The victim, who is protected by a publication ban surrounding her identity, “found herself in an elevator alone with Mr. Foster when, without her consent, he pushed her against the side of the elevator, kissed her forcibly, slid a hand down her pants, and pushed a hand up her shirt,” said court documents. Foster denied the assault, and in fact denied having any memory of or any interactions with the victim. Only the victim and Foster testified at trial, and much of the evidence came through an agreed statement of facts, including work schedules, and the confirmation of a conference that Foster had attended shortly after the assault in the fall of 2007.
City restructuring adds two permanent manager positions at $525K
The restructuring of city management will create two net new permanent positions at a net annual cost of approximately $525,000. This, plus one temporary strategic projects lead position lasting approximately 36 months to oversee the downtown arena/events centre project and Cultural Hub at Tom Davies Square. The temporary position will be filled by Tony Cecutti, who currently serves as city Growth and Infrastructure general manager and is on the verge of retirement. The two new permanent positions consist of chiefs, including one each for Fire Services and Paramedic Services, who will work under the direction of a general manager of Emergency Services and Community Well-being. The city currently has Joseph Nicholls as its Community Safety general manager, through which he serves as chief of both fire and paramedic services.
Klinkhammer nets 4 as No. 1 Cubs claim 16th straight win
The Greater Sudbury Cubs, the top-ranked junior team in Canada, continued its winning ways on Jan. 9, when they welcomed the French River Rapids to the Gerry McCrory Countryside Sports Complex. The Rapids probably didn’t feel all that welcome actually as the Cubs skated to a 16th straight win, sending French River packing by a score of 9-2. Cubs forward Daks Klinkhammer had an incredible night, supplying four of those nine goals all on his own. The Cubs struck first after a Jacob Signoretti blast from the left point clipped a stick and beat Rapids goalie Zachary Burleigh, making his Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League debut. Up 1-0, the Cubs added another shorthanded a few minutes later. Klinkhammer scored his first of the night after snagging a bouncing puck at his own blueline and racing in on a breakaway. The Cubs would score again a few minutes later, this time on the power play. Noah Kohan tucked in a backhand to make it 3-0 after driving hard down the left wing.
