BUSINESS: Ritz Bakery may be closing its doors A5 Wednesday, August 15, 2012 The PGX was a real splashy affair. A3, B1
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Logging truck spills load into Ruby Lake Driver escapes with minor injuries, but is now facing motor vehicle charge ■ Accident
Kelly Little Special to the Free Press
What started as a routine trip for a 28-year-old logging truck driver almost ended with a splash on the Chief Lake Road, mere kilometres from where the trucker was loaded, when he lost control of the vehicle and it rolled. The driver, identified as Chris Thomas, is a new employee of Lo-Bar Transport, hired three months ago. He was not seriously injured and was able to extricate himself from the wreckage. The accident occurred about 1:15 a.m. Monday. The truck toppled over an embankment on Ruby Lake, flipped on its side, logs spilling into the water. Thomas was escorted to the University Hospital of Northern B.C. by his wife in a private vehicle. The driver was diagnosed with a knee injury and minor bruises to the head. Greg Jacob, owner of Lo-Bar Transport, promptly arrived on scene to assess the damage. Jacob himself brought and operated machinery to assist with clean up. “All Lo-Bar trucks are equipped with GPS units that monitor and record a driver’s speed every 15 seconds,” he said. “Hopefully that data will tell the tale; providing it didn’t record a few seconds earlier.” A Work Safe B.C. officer arrived shortly Crews work to clean up the scene of a logging truck crash on Chief Lake Road thereafter but was unavailable for com- injured but is now facing a charge of driving without due care and attention. ment. Police say speed is believed to have in this very spot,” said an unidentified remain anonymous due to familial bonds been a factor in this incident. A violation bystander. with a Lo-Bar employee, reminded ticket for driving without due care and RCMP Const. Turmel, who attended onlookers of an accident years ago attention was issued to the driver. the scene, said a truck carrying tree- involving a three-wheeled ATV. Long-time residents of the area who planters went off the same corner last “Eventually, someone will die here if had concerns regarding contamination year. something isn’t done,” she said. “Maybe were assured by Minister of EnvironA Ron’s Towing driver claimed he then the powers that be will take this ment personnel the body of water suf- had pulled a YRB vehicle out of the ditch issue seriously.” fered no environmental damage. The close to the area where the logging truck Fetterly went on to say that, “not only small amount of oil that did in fact leak toppled over. is speed a factor, but erosion as well. onto the sub-shore was contained imme“This happens all the time,” said area The run-off drain that was installed in diately. resident Sylvia Fetterly. “It was a Black- the road is in the wrong place, doesn’t “Unfortunately this is not the first water logging truck a few years ago.” function correctly and erodes the bank time this type of accident has occurred, Another bystander, who wished to … and people living across the road from
K e lly LITTLE/ Sp e cia l to th e Fre e Pre s s
Monday. The driver was not seriously
the accident still continue to fill in the sloughing banks, by hand.” Turmel said the road is very narrow where the accident occured and that can be problematic as logging trucks and domestic traffic share the road. As a result of these frequent, speedbased accidents, the unidentified bystander has filed numerous complaints with the B.C. Forest Safety Ombudsman. “To date nothing has been corrected and people still drive too fast,” she said. “Perhaps it’s time to install some speed bumps and adjust the low-profile curb.”
Twins stabbed Funds approved for centre Twin brothers were taken to hospital in Prince George following a stabbing late on Aug. 13. At about 10 p.m., RCMP received a call of a stabbing in the area of Quince Street and Milburn Avenue. When they arrived, they found the 23-year-old twins each suffering from what was described in a release as “a single and significant stab wound”. The injuries are not believed to be life-threatening. Police are searching for a man described by witnesses as between 30 and 50 years of age with a pock-marked face, wearing dark clothing and carrying a dark backpack. He was also carrying a small dog, possibly a poodle or pug. Anyone with information is asked to call the Prince George RCMP at 250-561-3300 or, to remain anonymous, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
DeLynda Pilon
newsroom@pgfreepress.com
“We’ve been saved by the bell. Pat Bell,” a grateful Vince Prince, CEO of the Aboriginal Business and Community Development Centre, said last week. Prince received notice through B.C. Bid notification that the ministry Bell is in charge of plans to direct allocate work to aboriginal development centres, including the one in Prince George. The process begins with notification to the public through B.C. Bids and goes out to the public for review. Though there is always a chance another entity could challenge the decision, and though there is no contract yet in hand, in all likeli-
hood the centre will get the contract and be able to keep it’s doors open, with this new funding, through to 2014 at least. Though they had enough funds to last through to spring, federal funding for the centre runs out in August. Denial for continued funding left the centre’s future uncertain, especially considering provincial funding previously came as a matching commitment from the federal government. In fact Prince was researching the appropriate ways to lay people off when news of the funding came through. The money set to come their way funnels through the Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation office, which Bell heads. “At times we were discouraged a bit,” Prince said. “But I’ve always said it doesn’t make any sense they would close our doors.”