Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Case and Loyer guilty: Judge finds woman's flashback of 2011 sex assault 'not a dream':
Former Sudbury track coach David Case and one of his athletes, Celine Loyer, were found guilty March 5 of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman at Case's home in 2011. Justice Patricia Hennessy, who presided over the case, delivered a lengthy verdict Thursday morning, finding Loyer guilty of sexual assault in the case and Case guilty of sexual assault by aiding and abetting. Loyer wept after receiving the verdict, while Case showed no emotion, although he comforted Loyer after the proceedings by touching her shoulder. A date for sentencing will be set March 17. Get the full story here.
Four children sent to hospital following early morning Attlee Avenue fire:
An early morning fire on Attlee Avenue in New Sudbury today sent five people to hospital, four of them school-age children, Greater Sudbury Fire Service reports. Acting Deputy Fire Chief Jesse Oshell told Sudbury.com this morning that when the 9-1-1 call came in around 7:45 a.m., firefighters were able to respond especially quickly because Fire Station No. 3 on Leon Avenue is very close to Attlee. “Crews could actually see the smoke” from the station, Oshell said. Fortunately, he said, the five people in the second-floor apartment at the time of the fire made it out safely. All were transported to Health Sciences North by paramedics and treated for suspected smoke inhalation. The five people were a father and his four children, ranging in age from around 6 to around 12, Oshell said. He said the family was getting ready to leave for school at the time of the fire. A witness reported the father ran back into the building before firefighters arrived to rescue one of his children, who possibly got turned around in the smoke-filled apartment. “The dad did a really brave thing,” Oshell said. “He went back in to rescue one of the children.”
Sudbury schools cancel overseas trips as COVID-19 continues to spread:
The spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) has cancelled the travel plans of some Greater Sudbury students. China, Northern Italy and Iran, where the disease has hit particularly hard, are currently under Health Canada Level 3 travel health notices due to COVID-19, meaning people are advised to avoid non-essential travel. Japan is under a Level 2 travel notice because of COVID-19, meaning Health Canada advises to practise special precautions in travelling to that country. Conseil scolaire catholique Nouvelon has confirmed its board has cancelled five student trips to Europe that were supposed to take place during the March Break. École Secondaire Catholique Champlain students were supposed to go to France, Switzerland, Austria and Germany, while Collège Notre-Dame students were supposed to go to Italy and Greece and École Secondaire Catholique l'Horizon students were supposed to go to Greece. Students at the Espanola school École Secondaire Catholique Franco-Ouest were supposed to go to Italy and students at the Sault Ste. Marie school Notre Dame du Sault were supposed to go to Italy and Greece. However, those trips have been postponed until 2021 to protect students' health due to a COVID-19 outbreak in Italy. Health Canada said in the travel advisory for Italy that widespread transmission of the disease is being reported in multiple regions of the northern part of the country. Italy has closed all of its schools and universities due to the outbreak, which as of March 4 had killed 79 people in the country.
Tenth annual Dancing with the Easter Seals Stars raises record $85K:
Not only did the Dancing with the Easter Seals Stars event celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2020, but the Feb. 28 event also raised a record $85,665 to support the work Easter Seals does on behalf of children with physical disabilities. Entitled the Battle Back Edition, this year's competition pit former performers against one another in a bid for dancing supremacy. After months of training and one evening of putting all that training to work, Marissa Arnold of RE/MAX Crown Realty and her pro partner, professional dancer René Gagné, were crowned the winners. Full story and photos can be found here.
Province invests $900,000 for high-tech Sudbury firm:
The Ontario government has invested $900,000 in a Sudbury based company to support the development of a new Amazon-type mining supply and inventory system that uses “smart” containers. The announcement was made Tuesday at the annual convention of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada held in Toronto. “There is a lot of buzz around this morning’s announcement about the funding to support the advancement of innovative technology creating opportunities to transform how we mine,” said Patricia Mills, Vice President Business Development for SHYFTinc. “I’m going to say that again. It’s going to transform how we mine and provide a lot of high tech jobs” Ontario’s economic development minister Vic Fedeli endorsed the statement. “Mining is vital to Ontario’s economy and certainly to our nation. The materials that the men and women of our mining sector pull out of the earth are literally the foundation that our lives are built on,” said Fedeli. He noted that directly and indirectly, mining in Ontario, supports roughly 75,000 jobs. But just as important is the spinoff it creates for so many other sectors of the economy.
Virtual reality is the new reality at Vale:
NORCAT, Sudbury’s innovation and training centre, is working with nickel miner Vale to develop interactive educational tools, like virtual reality, to train its global workforce. The centre announced a “strategic partnership” with one of the world’s largest mining companies at the Prospectors and Developers mining conference in Toronto, March 2. NORCAT is out to deliver a suite of “interactive and experiential technology” tools for Vale in the area of equipment operation and maintenance training. Among these new methods include virtual reality (VR) pre-operational circle check training tools and exercises for mine equipment, including forklifts and utility vehicles. In a news release, NORCAT’s director of technology Ed Wisniewski said they can provide a portfolio of “engaging and meaningful content in an immersive experience for the global mining industry like no other in the world." More on this story here.
Opinion: Hey city councillors, if you’re going to debate selling our home, at least have the courage to look us in the eye:
Pioneer Manor resident, renowned author and former Northern Life columnist, Mick Lowe, weighs in on a perennial Sudbury question: What to do about Pioneer Manor? "Well, I see the future of my much-loved home, Pioneer Manor, is being kicked around like an old football at city council once again," writes Lowe. "And make no mistake: this is our home, all 433 souls who reside here. We are not just some random collection of accidental tourists. Nor are we mere tenants." A long-time columnist at Northern Life, Mick Lowe served two terms as president of the Residents’ Council at Pioneer Manor from 2011-2014. Read his latest columm here.
Friday Weather:
Snow expected to start the day, ending in the morning then clearing. Friday's high will get up to 2, but it's going to be chilly this morning, feeling like -14. Clear skies overhead tonight with some bitter temperatures returning. Overnight low will get down to -18, feeling like -22 with the wind chill. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
