Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Christmas Eve gathering linked to recent COVID-19 cases in Sudbury:
Just ahead of New Year’s Eve, Public Health Sudbury & Districts is reporting eight new cases of COVID-19 in residents in Greater Sudbury. This brings the total to 21 new cases reported since Dec. 21 and 275 since the beginning of the pandemic. Ontario reported a record-high 2,923 cases on Dec. 30. There are currently 17 active cases in Public Health Sudbury & Districts’ service area. Through contact tracing, Public Health has determined that eight of the cases reported over the holiday season are related to common exposures including a Christmas Eve gathering. “Seeing cases that come from activities that are frankly against public health advice and current shutdown measures is frustrating at best,” said Dr. Penny Sutcliffe, Medical Officer of Health with Public Health Sudbury & Districts. “Lives and livelihoods literally are in the balance. With recent surges in the Timiskaming area, Thunder Bay, and Simcoe Muskoka, we don’t have to look far to know we’re also at risk. Think twice about your New Year’s celebrations—lower your and your loved ones’ risk and start the New Year right.” Get the full story here.
Man stabbed multiple times in Boxing Day homicide in the Donovan:
Greater Sudbury Police confirmed that the death of a 75-year-old man on Dec. 26 at a residence on Kathleen Street was a homicide. This is the fourth homicide in Greater Sudbury in 2020. Detective Insp. John Valtonen provided an update on the investigation on Dec. 30, stating that police have confirmed the incident as a homicide and that 75-year-old Robert Keskinen died of multiple stab wounds. "A number of witnesses have come forward but we know that there are others still out there," said Valtonen in a video that was release on the police service's Twitter feed at around 10:45 a.m. Dec. 30. "Detectives will continue to canvass the neighbourhood and search the area and the scene until the end of the day." Valtonen stated that police believe the threat to public safety remains low at this time as there are strong indications that the incident was targeted. "That being said, the person or persons responsible are still unknown and it is for that reason that I ask anyone with even the slightest bit of information to contact the Greater Sudbury Police Criminal Investigation Division or Crime Stoppers," said Valtonen. "As in every case like this, along with the families who are grieving, the entire community is hurting and this is when we all pull together to find those responsible."
Council cans Signoretti motion to cancel wage increases for themselves, managers:
City council voted down a motion that would have removed a general wage increase for mayor and council, along with all non-union city employees in 2021. Ward 1 Coun. Mark Signoretti brought the motion to the table on Dec. 21 during a meeting of the finance and administration committee, after more than three hours of discussion among councillors about where staff should be directed to look for savings in order to create a budget that results in a property tax increase of no more than 3.9 per cent. The city is facing its largest budget gap ever, due largely to COVID-19, and must find ways to close a $14-million funding hole in order to pass their budget in February or March. The motion directed city staff to remove a general wage increase of two per cent for members of council and all non-union staff, which would result in a net savings of around $550,000. Non-union employees include supervisors, managers, general managers, directors, a small number of analytical staff members and city CAO Ed Archer, who was paid $271,221 in 2019, and the average salary of non-union city employees is around $100,000. Full story can be found here.
Ford says he knew of Phillips' trip 2 weeks ago, should have asked him to return then:
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he found out his finance minister was travelling abroad roughly two week ago, and should have pushed then for his immediate return. Ford says Rod Phillips "never told anyone" he was going to St. Barts on Dec. 13, but the premier learned of the trip shortly after it began. "I did call him shortly after he arrived and I talked to him and asked where he was. He said he was away," the premier said Wednesday. "My mistake. I take full responsibility. At that time, I should have said, 'get your backside back to Ontario,' and I didn't do that." Ford said he will have a serious conversation with Phillips on Thursday upon the minister's return. The premier's comments come as Opposition legislators are calling for Phillips to be removed from cabinet over his international vacation. They say the minister contravened the government's own health guidelines by travelling abroad, and it's not believable he would do so without telling the premier. Phillips said in a statement Tuesday that he left on a trip to St. Barts after the end of the legislative session. The minister said he made the decision to travel not knowing the province would be placed under lockdown on Boxing Day, and "deeply regrets" the move.
Here’s what you need to know about online learning for the first week back to school:
The Government of Ontario has implemented a provincewide shutdown to limit the spread of COVID-19, which means elementary and secondary students will participate in remote learning for one week after the Christmas holidays, from Jan. 4-8. On Dec. 21, 2020, Ontario announced the province will enter a period of public health restrictions beginning on Dec. 26 and lasting 14 days in Northern Ontario (28 days for Southern Ontario). In consultation with Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, the Ministry of Education has directed that in Northern Ontario, all elementary and secondary schools who were attending face to face will engage in remote learning from Jan. 4 – Jan. 8, 2021. Schools in northern public health regions (such as Greater Sudbury) will be permitted to resume in-person instruction Jan. 11 for both elementary and secondary students. Find the full story here.
Early morning fire in Hanmer contained to garage:
Greater Sudbury Fire Service, particularly the crew from Val Therese, quickly got control of an early morning garage fire in Hanmer Wednesday. Deputy Chief Jesse Oshell said the call for service came in around 8:20 a.m. this morning. The fire was located in the detached garage of a home on Michelle Drive in Hanmer. Four stations were dispatched, Oshell said, but the Val Therese crew arrived first and were able to get the fire under control quickly and keep it contained to the garage. Oshell said he has not yet inspected the interior of the structure, so he can’t say how extensive the smoke and flame damage is, so a damage estimate was unavailable this morning. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined. This is the second fire GSFS has battled this week. On Monday night, one person was injured in an apartment fire on Frood Road that is being investigated as arson.
Byfield shines as Canada clobbers Switzerland 10-0:
A sluggish start to the World Junior Hockey Championships was quickly erased on Tuesday night as Sudbury Wolves standout Quinton Byfield piled up six points in a 10-0 win over Switzerland. The second overall pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft was a force on Tuesday evening, tallying two goals and adding four assists en route to being named player of the game for team Canada. Byfield broke out in a big way against the Swiss, after a slow start to the tournament that saw him register just one assist in team Canada's first two games. With the six-point outburst on Tuesday night, Byfield propelled himself into third in tournament scoring with seven points, two back of teammate Dylan Cozens and three back of team USA's Trevor Zegras. The 18-year-old Los Angeles Kings draft pick came flying out of the gate against Switzerland, setting up Philip Tomasino for the opening goal just 1:30 into the game. Byfield would add his second assist in the second period on a goal from Jakob Pelletier, and would grab his third point of the night five minutes later, assisting on Ryan Suzuki's powerplay goal. Already sitting on three points heading into the third period, Byfield would finally pot his first goal of the tournament, tipping in a Jamie Drysdale point shot on the power play five minutes into the final frame. Byfield was at it again three minutes later, slotting home a feed from Jack Quinn to stretch the score to 7-0 for team Canada while pushing his point total to five for the game. If player of the game honours were ever in doubt, Byfield put his stamp on the game with a nifty play where he pick-pocketed a Swiss defender before laying off a close quarters pass to Pelletier who potted his second goal of the night to close out the scoring at 10-0.
Thursday Weather:
Mainly cloudy and cool for the last day of 2020. Overcast skies into the afternoon with the high sitting at -5. It's going to feel like -7 with the wind chill. Partly cloudy this evening with the low dipping to -9. Overnight low will feel like -12. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
