THURSDAY, MAY 11, 2017
THE PICTON
Gazette
4
Volume 187, Week 19
Canada’s oldest non-daily newspaper
26
Derby draws interest give their AUDITIONS Prospects rainy weather all in Wellington ANGLERS despite
Follow-up report on barge spill completed
Board alters its consolidation plan for county
Salvage effort sees 1,500 L of fuel recovered
Kente spared, K-12 school delayed a year JASON PARKS
JASON PARKS
STAFF WRITER
The Cougar, the Tiger, the Lion, the Spartan and the Cyclone were officially let out of the bag Friday as the Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board posted the agenda for its May 8 student enrolment and school capacity subcommittee meeting. Within that agenda lay senior administration's final report and recommendation with regards to the Accommodation Review Committee process for Prince Edward County. The board, grappling with a gauntlet of declining enrolment, poor school utilization rates, aging infrastructure and clawbacks and reduction of provincial funding that was assisting rural school boards address their geographic circumstances, started the school consolidation exercise in late fall and is just one of several rural school boards in the province undertaking the task. The final Prince Edward County recommendation to public school board trustees by senior administration is a departure from the initial recommendation and does answer some concerns parents posed to board officials during the public intake sessions this winter but comes with its own sets of issues and drawbacks for parents of students in the local system.
See SCHOOLS, page 38
STAFF WRITER
A total of about 1,500 L of mixed petroleum products were recovered during the week-long salvage operations in the after math of the Pitts Carillon partial sinking in Picton Bay in late March. Portions of a report from McKiel Marine issued to the Coast Guard and the Municipality late last week were obtained by the Gazette and the excerpts were confirmed by McKeil's director of projects and salvage master Chris Kirby. The barge, owned by Galcon Marine and chartered by McKeil, was to be utilized as a dolphin or temporary landing point for industrial wind turbine construction on Amherst Island before it started taking on water in the early morning hours of March 24 and ended up partially submerged at the Picton Terminals dock. Salvage operations were undertaken by McKiel under the watch of the Canadian Coast Guard and the barge was finally re-floated April 1. Approximately 30 L of mixed petrochemicals were released prior to pollution booms and containment measures being put in place.
REINFORCEMENTS Gilles and Janet Landry built a wall of 215 sand bags on their Goodman Crescent property near Smiht’s Bay last Thursday.Wednesday morning, they were back at the County’s utilities yard on Lake Street to fill an additional 100 bags to block rising water. (Adam Bramburger/Gazette staff)
Rising water levels a municipal emergency Residents relying on sand bags as continuous rainfall contributes to flooding throughout county CHAD IBBOTSON STAFF WRITER
While the region responds to rising water levels and copious amounts of rain, Prince Edward County has had its own issues and declared a state of emergency on Tuesday evening.
Mayor Robert Quaiff announced during Tuesday's council meeting that he has declared a state of emergency due to localized flooding and the rising water levels in the Bay of Quinte and Lake Ontario. Quaiff said the County's
emergency control group has been activated and will continue to monitor conditions. “The County of Prince Edward is surrounded by water with over 800 km of shoreline,” Quaiff said, reading from a prepared statement. “There has been localized
flooding on the shoreline around Prince Edward County and as lake waters rise there is a strong probability that there will be further flooding of homes and potential damage to municipal infrastructure.”
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See SPILL, page 38
See FLOODING, page 38
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