THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017 VOL. 74, NO. 19
SERVING FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. AND SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES
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2016 CRIME STATS AT A GLANCE
KILLBILLIES SHRUG OFF NIGHTMARES
THE ENDURING SPIRIT OF SISTERHOOD
NEWS A3
SPORTS B1
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Election results
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This week’s edition of the Alaska Highway News went to press Tuesday afternoon before polls closed in the 2017 B.C. election. Full results and reaction can be found at alaskahighwaynews.ca and next week’s edition will feature further analysis and coverage of the vote that was.
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Rusty Meidlinger was one of dozens of volunteers who turned out to the Beatton River valley May 9 for a community cleanup. A donated dumpster was filled to the brim, while an estimated 10 truck loads of garbage was hauled out.
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Rusty Meidlinger hasn’t spent much time in the Beatton River valley since moving to Fort St. John five years ago, but he certainly knows how easy it is for families to be driven away from the once popular recreation area a short drive north of town. In fact, his second visit to the valley last Sunday afternoon was spent alongside dozens of others to clean up and cart out a burned out camper, innumerable glass shards, beer cans and coffee cups,
mattresses, and discarded construction materials that have piled up along the river and adjacent Cecil Lake Road. “This is absolutely disgusting,” Meidlinger said, as he gathered up a handful of discarded coffee cups and pop bottles scattered about the camper. When it was all said and done, an estimated 10 truck loads of garbage were carried out, a donated dumpster was crammed to the top, and the camper was dismantled and carried out on a flatbed. “It makes me kind of sad for people who want to use this
(area),” Meidlinger said. “If you have kids and want to come play down here, you’re going to have to limit where they can go. You’re going to have to be conscious of them stepping on glass and rusty metal, and getting tetanus or something. “People have pets they want to walk down here,” he added. Like most everyone who turned out Sunday, Meidlinger was drawn to the cleanup by a new community group called We Are The People, which put a call out on social media. See CLEANUP on A8
Firefighters raise $50K at annual ball MATT PREPROST editor@ahnfsj.ca
Fort St. John firefighters continue to climb the philanthropic ladder, raising an estimated $50,000 at this year’s 9th annual charity ball. Firefighters, police officers, city councillors, business owners and residents turned out to the Pomeroy Hotel on Saturday, May 6, to support this year’s ball, the first that local firefighters have hosted under the newly formed Fort St. John Firefighters Charitable Society banner. Proceeds are being split between the BC Professional Fire Fighters Association Burn Fund and local initiatives in Fort St. John. “We give our time back as much as we can, that’s just part of what it is to be a firefighter,” said Matt Troiano, a five-year
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Fort St. John firefighters Matt Troiano, Matt Crompton, and Ryan Bowie were all smiles at the 9th Annual Firefighters Charity Ball on May 6.
member of the department who helped organize this year’s event. “I definitely can’t take credit for all of this. Everybody here
has a major role.” “We’re grateful to everyone who shows us their support,” he added.
See FIREFIGHTERS on A15
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Advance votes up in PRN Nearly one-fifth of registered voters cast their ballots early in Peace River North during six days of advance voting over the last two weeks. There were 4,253 votes cast out of 24,620 registered voters, according to Elections BC, or 17.2 per cent of the electorate. That’s up from 2013, when 2,933 out of 24,854 voters showed up to the polls early, or 11.8 per cent, over four days of advance voting. Local polling stations saw the highest turnout this year on May 6, where 925 voters cast a ballot. Turnout numbers, as reported by Elections BC, are as follows: April 29 - 707 April 30 - 538 May 3 - 729 May 4 - 631 May 5 - 723 May 6 - 925 Provincially, there were 614,389 advance votes cast, or 19.4 per cent of 3.1 million registered voters.
123 votes cast at dam poll Meanwhile, 123 voters cast ballots at a mobile polling station at the Site C work camp on May 4, according to Elections BC. The agency says 13 of the voters were residents of Peace River North, while 110 were from other parts of B.C. “Voters cast ballots for their riding of residence,” communications manager Andrew Watson said in an email. “So if, for example, you live in Victoria but voted at the camp, you would have voted for your local candidates in Victoria using a write-in ballot.” —AHN
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