Get ready to laugh at some ‘Nunsense’ at Mercury Theatre in Duncan Falling at home: an ounce of prevention worth a pound of cure
A&E, Page 16
NORTH OF 50, Page 20
WEDNESDAY
B.C. CHAMPS! T-BIRDS BACK ON TOP /25
Serving the Cowichan Valley
www.cowichanvalleycitizen.com
Wednesday, November 18, 2015
WILD WIND CUTS POWER TO THOUSANDS Thousands of Valley residents were left without power as wild winds whipped the Cowichan Valley Tuesday morning, toppling trees like this one across Cowichan Lake Road and causing power outages from as early at 7 a.m. in heavily forested areas like Riverbottom Road, Maple Bay, Genoa Bay, Youbou, Mesachie Lake, Cowichan Station, and Shawnigan Lake and making driving treacherous with strong gusts and flying branches found around every corner. By noon, BC Hydro had issued the following statement: ‘Severe weather is causing significant damage resulting in outages affecting the Victoria and Duncan areas. Our crews are continuing restoration efforts and will be providing updated restoration times as damage is assessed. Thank you for your patience.’ [LEXI BAINAS/CITIZEN]
Shawnigan irate over water contamination SARAH SIMPSON CITIZEN
The message was loud and clear from Island Health: do not use or draw water from the south end of Shawnigan Lake for “residential or commercial use including bathing/personal hygiene, drinking, and food preparation.” The reason? A suspected overflow of water from the South Island Aggregates site into the lake. The affected area, according to Island Health, is south of Butler
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Avenue on the west side of the lake and south of Verlon Road on the east side of the lake. The Shawnigan Residents’ Association is now saying “I told you so” to Environment Minister Mary Polak after warning her for the last three years of this very possibility. “While the breach does not appear to have come from the currently active lot, it underscores what the Association has been saying all along. The proponents and operators of the site, along
with the Ministry of the Environment, have not properly assessed the risks of the operation and have exposed the residents to an unacceptable danger,” said an SRA press release. “It has been foretold all along that heavy rain would endanger the site and the lake. Now in the toxic dump’s first real season, and real test, with the first ‘normal’ rain event, a breach has occurred to force a drinking water advisory.” The Residents’ Association
is again calling for the courts to issue a stay in the dumping permit and for the Ministry to rescind the permit and for Polack to stop siding with South Island Aggregates. Island Health spokesperson Kellie Hudson confirmed the Ministry of Environment had staff at the site on Saturday to assess compliance and that samples were collected at various locations. For much of the last week, protesters have set up outside
See ENGINEERING, Page 3
Bad Driver Award #177: Future Hood Ornament Tuned-out pedestrians like Hugo bring us careful drivers like you. So watch out for guys like him (and never be one yourself)! And when you need collision repair, remember BC’s favourite bodyshop, Craftsman Collision. ®™ Trademark of AIR MILES International Trading B.V. Used under licence by LoyaltyOne, Inc. and Craftsman Collision Ltd.
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the SIA operations on Stebbings Road in Shawnigan Lake. Tensions have increased to the point where on Friday, two demonstrators were even arrested at the site. Another big turnout showed up to oppose the latest shipment of sulphur-laden soils from Port Moody on Monday morning, said to Cowichan Valley Regional District Shawnigan Lake area director Sonia Furstenau.
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