Good morning, Greater Sudbury.
Here are some stories to start your day.
Police hoping someone saw something unusual in wake of apparent abduction, assault:
Anything out of the ordinary, no matter how insignificant it might seem, could be important — that's the message the Sudbury OPP want to get across to people in the neighbourhood where a woman was forced from her home and assaulted on Monday. Lillian Russell, who lives on Secord Road in Dill Township off Highway 69 south of the city, was reported missing Monday morning. That same day, police issued a news release about a home invasion in the same area. It turned out the two cases were actually the same case. The OPP canine unit, Emergency Response Team and a helicopter unit assisted in what turned out to be a fruitless search for Russell on Monday. Find more on this story here.
Husband of home invasion victim provides new details on suspect:
The husband of a 51-year-old Dill Township woman who was the victim of an apparent home invasion and assault Monday morning has provided additional details on the suspect, who is still at-large. Sudbury.com spoke to Tim Russell Thursday afternoon at the couple's trailer home on Secord Road, just south of Sudbury between Wanup and Estaire off Highway 69. His wife, Lillian Russell, who did not speak to Sudbury.com as she is still recovering from her ordeal, went missing for over 12 hours Aug. 21 after a man entered the home and forced her out under duress. Tim Russell and the couple's two dogs were not home at the time. Full story can be found here.
Police chief sorry for posing for pic with controversial group:
Greater Sudbury Police Chief Paul Pederson is apologizing for posing for a picture with some local members of the Soldiers of Odin, a group that began in Finland and is accused of being anti-Muslim and anti-immigration. In a statement Thursday afternoon, Pedersen said the photo was taken at a charity event and there was no obvious reason not to agree. “As a non-partisan public official I am often asked to be photographed with members of the community or attendees at events,” the statement said. “At times, these could be with individuals with very polarized political views in the view of some. When such requests are made, they are on the spot, and unless there is an obvious reason why I would respectfully decline, I do agree to such photographing.” Find the full story here.
What is the best hidden gem in Greater Sudbury?
Sadly, summer is coming to an end and so is Sudbury.com's Summer's Best series. A series where we asked you, the readers, to help us find the best our city has to offer. Over the course of eight weeks you've voted for Sudbury's best beach, best chip stand, best golf course, best splash pad, best chicken wing joint, the best patio, and best mural. To wrap-up the series, we now present the final Summer's Best, with a visit to one of Sudbury's best-kept secrets. Find out what Sudbury's best hidden gem is later today.
Thibeault: Money for Hwy. 69 is still there:
In in the 2014 election campaign, it seemed the Liberals and NDP were outdoing themselves in promising to complete the four-laning of Highway 69. When the Liberals promised to complete it by 2017, the NDP said they could do it by 2016. Last week, the Liberals admitted that 2017 was too optimistic, and now say 2021 is the soft target date. Energy Minister and Sudbury MPP Glenn Thibeault said Thursday he heard from a lot of people concerned about what was going on with the project. Find more on this story here.
Pair of Wolves dealt to Attack:
The Sudbury Wolves remained active on the OHL trade market, swapping a pair of players for picks with the Owen Sound Attack. A day after trading defenseman Owen Lalonde to the Guelph Storm the Wolves traded forward Alan Lyszczarczyk, overage goaltender Zack Bowman and, conditionally, their fourth round draft selection in 2018 to the Owen Sound Attack in exchange for a second round draft pick in 2018 (London Knights), their third round draft pick in 2022 and a conditional fourth round pick in 2019. Full story can be found here.
Calls to rename John A. Macdonald schools gets local French public board thinking:
A recommendation by an Ontario teachers' union to pull the name of Canada's first prime minister from all schools in the province has the local French public board thinking about the issue, said the board's director of education. The Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario (ETFO) passed a motion at its annual meeting last week calling on all school districts in Ontario to rename schools and buildings named after Sir John A. Macdonald. The union said it wants the name change because of what it calls Macdonald's role as the "architect of genocide against Indigenous Peoples." More on this story here.
Taking aim at sexual violence against Ontario women:
The Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants (OCASI) & Le Mouvement Ontarien des Femmes Immigrantes Francophones (MOFIF) will reveal the next phase of its celebrated and successful graphic novel on Aug. 25 in Sudbury. The new multilingual editions of "Telling Our Stories: Immigrant Women’s Resilience" will be launched in Sudbury on Friday, Aug. 25 at the Lexington Hotel (25 Brady St.) at 11:30 a.m. Sudbury.com will bring you coverage from today's launch so be sure to check back with us.
Swimming advisory signs removed from one beach, put up at another:
As the summer winds down, the Sudbury and District Health Unit has removed swimming advisory signs at one local beach and posted them at another. Swimming advisory signs have been removed at Nepahwin Park Beach. The most recent water samples taken at the beach by the health unit are within acceptable bacteriological water quality standards for bathing beaches, said a press release. As a result, the beach water quality is once again considered suitable for recreational use at this beach. However, the health unit has now issued a swimming advisory for Bell Grove Beach. As a result of routine water samples exceeding the acceptable bacteriological water quality standards, the health unit has posted swimming advisory signs to inform the public that the beach water quality is not suitable for recreational use at this time.
Friday weather:
Sunny with some foggy patches to start the day today. Fog should dissipate in the morning, and mainly sunny skies will keep the temperature above 20 throughout the day. Clear skies this evening with a low near 9. For current weather conditions, short-term and long-term forecasts visit Sudbury.com's weather page at www.sudbury.com/weather.
