Good morning, Greater Sudbury! Here are a few stories to start your day on this Thursday morning.
Public Health Sudbury moves COVID risk rating to high
Public Health Sudbury and District (PHSD) is sending out the message that COVID-19 continues to be a significant concern in the local health jurisdiction. That is being reflected in the public health COVID-19 Risk Index, which is now at the "high" level. That's because the COVID case positivity rate is up, the number of COVID cases in the hospital is up and the number of active COVID outbreaks has also increased. Katie Junkin, a health protection specialist with PHSD, said those three factors are what prompted the health unit to put the risk index up from the "moderate" rating it was sitting at last week. She said there are other indicators as well, and while they are stable, none of the indicators is decreasing at this time. "So, the concerning trend is that things are on the rise," said Junkin. Not used during the height of the pandemic, the risk index was only launched on June 10 and for the first month, the risk was listed as "low". Then on July 6, the risk was moved upward to "moderate". This week's change to the "high" rating means the risk is at the second highest level, with "very high" being the top rating in the index. Sudbury has not reached that rating. Junkin could not pin down one precise reason, but she acknowledged that an increase in summertime travel might be a factor in the risk index change.
Read the full story on the Sudbury.com homepage.
Med school may get $14.6M in endowments back from Laurentian
It is possible that NOSM University (Northern Ontario School of Medicine) will recover more than $14 million locked into the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) when Laurentian University became involved in financial insolvency in February 2021. The proposal put before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in the past week outlines that Laurentian University (the applicant) will transfer funds back to NOSM University in the amount of approximately $14.6 million. It was back in November 2021 that NOSM president and CEO Dr. Sarita Verma expressed her concern at a public meeting about the loss of funds that had first been endowed to the medical school when it was part of Laurentian. It was revealed at that time that $14 to $15 million worth of endowments were directed to LU before the financial insolvency occurred. The endowments were meant for the most part to be applied toward scholarships and bursaries at the medical school.
Murder charge dropped against Sheridan in high-profile case
A high-profile area murder case came to a sudden end yesterday after the Crown attorney dropped the case saying there was no reasonable possibility of conviction. Melissa Sheridan was charged with first-degree murder for the Oct. 19, 2020 death of her husband, Brant. Brant’s brother, Kerry, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in May, saying he conspired with Sheridan — with whom it is alleged he was having a sexual relationship — to murder his brother. Sheridan’s attorney, Michael Lacy said the defence was cross-examining the Crown’s sole witness, Kerry Burke, on Tuesday, when the court broke for lunch. When they returned, Assistant Crown Attorney Stephanie Baker suddenly announced the case was being dropped because there was no possibility of conviction.
MPP: Pope offers ‘feel good words from a colonial institution’
On July 25, Kiiwetinoong MPP Sol Mamakwa sat beside NDP leader Jagmeet Singh at the grounds of the former Ermineskin Indian Residential School in the community of Maskwacis, Alta., listening to the words of the Pope as he addressed the “deplorable evil” that was visited upon the First Nation, Métis and Inuit people in residential schools. Mamakwa told Sudbury.com after the event that many there listening needed to hear those words, but to him, they were somewhat empty. “Good colonial institutions talk like that,” he said. “Feel good language.” But he also saw the effect the Pope’s words had on the crowd, on the people who did need to hear an apology. “When he asked for forgiveness, it was so heavy. I could feel the emotions from people that were around us, I could see people holding each other, I could see people crying together, that's what they needed to hear to start their healing journey.” The Pope is visiting Canada as part of his “penitential pilgrimage” as he called it. After his Monday appearance in Maskwacis, the Pope departed for Quebec City on July 27, where he will meet Gov. Gen. Mary Simon and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the Citadelle of Quebec. He will also hold mass at the National Shrine of Saint Anne de Beaupré the following day before meeting with a Quebec Indigenous delegation. He’ll then be flying to Iqaluit on July 29, where he will meet privately with Indigenous residential school survivors before attending a public community event hosted by Inuit leaders.
Canadian musical gem ‘Ride the Cyclone’ runs July 29 to Aug. 14
For the second production of its summer theatre festival, YES Theatre/STC is staging the Canadian musical “Ride the Cyclone,” which is on stage at the Sudbury Theatre Centre building from July 29 to Aug. 14. In this hilarious and outlandish story, the lives of six teenagers from a Saskatchewan chamber choir are cut short in a freak accident aboard a roller coaster. When they awake, a fortune teller invites each to tell a story to win a prize like no other — the chance to return to life. The world premiere production of “Ride the Cyclone” took place in Victoria, B.C., at Atomic Vaudeville in 2008. The show’s music, lyrics and book are all by Jacob Richmond and Brooke Maxwell. Although the show subsequently found success as an off-Broadway hit, YES Theatre/STC is one of the first Canadian companies to stage the production since its original run. “It's this really fantastic, wacky, zany, zany, and sort of heart-expanding, beautiful musical,” said YES Theatre founder Alessandro Costantini, who is directing the show.
PTSD survivor on sea-to-sea trek meets local first responders
Emergency workers and members of the first response community in Sudbury were out Wednesday morning to welcome an Alberta man who is on a cross-Canada walk to raise awareness of the struggles of PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). Chad Kennedy walked through part of Sudbury along Lorne Street and then Brady Street. Greater Sudbury Police spokesperson Kaitlyn Dunn said Kennedy was meeting with local first responders, including police, fire and ambulance, during a private meet-and-greet at Tom Davies Square this morning. Kennedy is a member of the Alberta Sheriff Highway Patrol, but is currently on medical leave as he was diagnosed with PTSD, a condition that he said was the result of dealing with accumulated stressful incidents since he joined law enforcement in 2004. His mission with the walk is to raise awareness of PTSD and other mental health struggles faced by first responders. Kennedy's website, Sea to Sea For PTSD, states part of the effort is also to raise funds to help those who need treatment and to assist in creating education programs for loved ones and friends.
Anti-casino advocate running against pro-casino incumbent
The political fight for Ward 11 is being waged between its pro-casino incumbent and an anti-casino political newcomer who publicly opposed the Kingsway Entertainment District. Unopposed until Christopher Duncanson-Hales’s candidacy was registered with the city earlier this week, Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc said his new political opponent carries a glaring red flag. “I think our taxpayers should know that this gentleman cost them money, cost them an arena,” Leduc told Sudbury.com. “You want to support someone like that? Go for it.” Duncanson-Hales was one of the key figures in the Local Planning Appeals Tribunal appeal against the Kingsway Entertainment District, a municipal arena/events centre project the city proposed to accompany a private hotel and casino. Leduc blames this appeal, which the LPAT dismissed in December 2020, for delaying the project long enough to push it into the pandemic. Its costs ballooned during the pandemic to such a point city council voted to back out of the project earlier this month.
Read the full story on the Sudbury.com homepage.
Fairly cool cloudy day in store
Expect a high of just 21 today under mainly cloudy skies. Fog patches will dissipate over the morning. There is a 30-per-cent chance of showers early in the morning, with more showers as the morning moves on. Between five and 10 mm of rain are possible. There is a risk of a thunderstorm in both the late morning and in the afternoon. The wind will be out of the southwest at 20 km/h late in the afternoon. The high is 21, but expect temperatures to fall in the afternoon down to about 16 degrees. The UV index today is three, or moderate. Tonight, mainly cloudy skies will bring a 70-per-cent chance of showers and the risk of a thunderstorm early in the evening. The overnight low is 11.
