Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Rainbow board extends mask-wearing policy to its youngest students:
Following the lead of several other school boards in Ontario, the Rainbow District School Board has extended its mask-wearing policy to its youngest students. Trustees with the school board unanimously passed the following motion Tuesday evening: “With reasonable exceptions, be it resolved that in Rainbow schools, all students Grades 1-12 wear masks, and all kindergarten students wear masks and/or face shields.” The motion to extend mask-wearing to younger students beyond the provincial requirement mandating their use in Grade 4 and up was brought forward by trustee Margaret Stringer. She spent some time researching the topic after the motion was deferred at the last meeting to allow for more information to be gathered. Stringer said a number of other school boards across the province have opted to require masks from kindergarten to Grade 12, and those decisions have not been overruled by the province. Full story here.
Local ETFO pres: School reopening plan places the economy over safety:
The province’s school reopening plan is basically just “an answer to just get the economy open, so that parents can get back to work,” said the president of the Rainbow teacher local of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario. “It’s not in the interest of health and safety that this plan has been made,” said Liana Holm, who represents elementary teachers working for the Rainbow District School Board. “That’s now how it feels.” The local union president made the remarks as four major teachers’ unions plan to file complaints with the Ontario Labour Relations Board, saying the province’s school reopening plan violates its own workplace safety laws. The Association des enseignantes et des enseignants franco-ontariens, the Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario, the Ontario English Catholic Teachers' Association and the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation all allege the school reopening plan does not take "every reasonable precaution" to protect workers from COVID-19. The unions say the province must lower elementary class sizes and fund the reduction, instead of insisting boards dip into their own reserve funds to lease extra space or hire additional staff to promote physical distancing. Find more on this story here.
Sudbury family recovering from traumatic weekend fire:
A Sudbury mother credits her mother for sacrificing her own body to protect her daughter and grandson from the flames, and the quick actions of city firefighters and paramedics, for helping them survive a traumatic weekend fire. The fire occurred in a two-storey apartment building on St. Joseph Street, off Mountain Street near the city’s downtown core. Firefighters received the call about the blaze at 4:30 a.m. on Aug. 30. The blaze destroyed most of the family’s belongings. The fire was determined not to be suspicious in nature, but the exact cause remains under investigation. That single mother, Shaylee Savoie, her toddler and her mother all became trapped by the fire in the second-storey apartment and had to be rescued from the window using a ladder truck. The toddler, however, had to be dropped from the window into the arms of a downstairs neighbour before firefighters arrived. Savoie said she and her family are recovering from the harrowing experience. Her mother, Carol Peddie, remains in a Toronto hospital with second- and third-degree burns over 13 per cent of her body. Savoie said she remains traumatized by the experience, but is grateful to the neighbour who helped get her son to safety, and to the fast-acting firefighters and paramedics who came to their aid. More on this story here.
OPP seeking whereabouts of man who allegedly committed multiple offences including break, enter and theft:
Sudbury Rainbow Crime Stoppers and the Nippissing West Detachment of the OPP are seeking assistance in locating Kristopher Jonathon Lachance. It's alleged that on July 14, Lachance did commit several offences involving a break, enter and theft. Lachance is known to reside in the City of Greater Sudbury and is wanted for: Break and Enter, Mischief (two counts), Utter Threats to Cause Death or Bodily Harm (two counts), Assault, Escape Lawful Custody. If you know the whereabouts of this person you are urged to contact Police. If you wish to remain anonymous contact Crime Stoppers at 705-222-TIPS (8477) or www.sudburycrimestoppers.com. If your information leads to an arrest you could be eligible to earn up to $2,000 in cash. You will remain anonymous and will not have to testify in court.
Additional charges laid against Gore Bay man who was arrested on Aug. 27:
The 43-year-old man who was arrested and charged for attempting to commit murder on Aug. 27 has been hit with additional charges. Northeast Region OPP confirmed on Sept. 2 that the man has also been charged with: Careless Use of Firearm, Weapon, Prohibited Device or Ammunition, Unauthorized Possession of a Prohibited or Restricted Firearm, Discharging Firearm - Recklessness, Uttering Threats - Cause Death or Bodily Harm, Failure to Comply with Release Order - Other Than to Attend Court. The accused remains in custody and is scheduled to appear on Friday, Sept. 4 at the Ontario Court of Justice - Bail Court in Gore Bay. Due to a publication ban ordered by the Ontario Court of Justice, the OPP cannot comment any further on the details of this investigation.
Ontario confirms 133 new COVID cases Wednesday:
Public Health Ontario confirmed 133 new cases of COVID-19, and reported no new deaths Wednesday. The province also reported the three-millionth COVID-19 test processed. There have been 3,013,892 tests processed in Ontario labs since January, with 24,004 processed since yesterday's report. In March, the province was processing fewer than 1,000 tests per day. By the end of April, the province reached between 15,000 and 20,000 test per day, and since then, Ontario labs have processed as many as 34,000 tests in a day. Among Wednesday's 133 new cases, are 57 individuals between 20 and 39 years old, and 41 individuals between 40 and 59 years old. There were no new cases reported in anyone over 80 years old. Get the full story here.
Thursday Weather:
More rain showers in the forecast for Thursday. Clouds expected to roll in near noon and they'll be bringing the rain with them. The high will be around 21 today. Rain is expected to end this evening then partly cloudy overnight. Low will dip down to 13 tonight. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
