NEWS 3
COMMUNITY 11
Stolen computer sought
ARTS 13
Halloween happenings
Colours of fall at Shadbolt
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WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 28 2015
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THE MOST SINCERE PUMPKIN PATCH: Preschool
teacher Maggie Szelezin and her student Eqbal, 4, talk pumpkins using sign language at a temporary patch set up at South Slope Elementary, which also houses the B.C. Provincial School for the Deaf and the Deaf Children’s Society preschool. The Burnaby Civic Employees’ Union donated $3,000 for fall celebrations – complete with pumpkins, popcorn, hot chocolate, music, decorations and a bubble machine – at South Slope and Douglas Road Elementary this week. The events were organized by South Slope parents Chris and Daniella Revitt, who put together a similar celebration at their kids’ school last year. Chris, who works in the city’s parks and rec department, said one reason for bringing the patch to the school was accessibility because a lot of the students there use wheelchairs, and most pumpkin patches are muddy and inaccessible.
PHOTO CORNELIA NAYLOR
Windstorm cleanup costs mounting Storm cleanup costs had hit $460,000 by end of September – and the work isn’t over yet Jeremy Deutsch
jdeutsch@burnabynow.com
It appears the damage and cleanup from the summer windstorm has cost the City of Burnaby a pretty penny. According to a financial committee report from the city, the cost to clean up the storm as of the end of September had hit $460,000. The final cost won’t be known until the cleanup work is complete. The report also noted the city could also recoup some of the costs through the prov-
ince’s Disaster Recovery Fund. The windstorm, which swept through on Aug. 29, downed trees and cut power to 50,000 customers in Burnaby. The post-mortem on the storm also provided an assessment of the city’s infrastructure and response to the major event, pointing out both strengths and areas to improve. Some of the strengths include the city found dispatch staff (engineering, fire and RCMP) worked well with additional backup staff to handle the “extraordinary” call volume and the emergency power for all key infrastructures and facilities worked as de-
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signed. the public on impacted city services and inThe exception was the Capitol Hill and frastructure. Burnaby Mountain (backup) water pump City staff have put forward a total of nine stations where the power items recommended to eitransfer process failed. ther study or change in the But areas to improve infuture. Lessons have cluded the limited backup “Overall, the city and been learned on power available for traffic RCMP had respondwhat needs to be signals, the need for better ed well and provided the communication and coorcommunity with the best improved dination between city staff possible service under an and RCMP members on extreme weather condiroad closures, signal outtion,” the city’s deputy city age and barricade deploymanager Lambert Chu ment, and a lack of a backup wrote in the report. system for the city’s computer data centres. “Lessons have been learned on what The report also noted a need for more needs to be improved to better prepare the timely communication and notification to Continued on page 4
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