Leery about liquid
3
Civic worries persist over oil, LNG at port
Oil and Water
Record number of entries for annual guild show
15
Warm welcome
Program helps newcomers adapt to life in Delta
25
Optimist Delta
Newsstand $1
Czech it out
Humphries off to Prague after signing pro contract
41
Fire danger rises
YOUR SOURCE FOR LOCAL SPORTS, NEWS, WEATHER AND ENTERTAINMENT! WWW.DELTA-OPTIMIST.COM The Voice of Delta since 1922 FRIDAY, JULY 19, 2013
See Page 5
Totem comes down at museum Pole, which is more than 80 years old and posed a safety risk, has been moved temporarily to TFN BY
JESSICA KERR
jkerr@delta-optimist.com
The totem pole in front of the Delta Museum in Ladner Village came down this week. On Thursday morning, a crew worked to secure the totem pole, which is more than 80 years old, before detaching the base and lifting it onto a flat bed truck. Tsawwassen First Nation interim CAO Tom McCarthy said the totem pole was then taken to the TFN Longhouse where it will be temporarily stored until a permanent resting place is chosen. McCarthy said the TFN is consulting with its elders and the Snuneymuxw First Nation, a Coast Salish group in Nanaimo, to determine what should happen to the aging totem pole. Snuneymuxw First Nation Chief Wilkes James carved the totem pole in 1931. It was carved from a large cedar tree felled in North Delta and presented to the Corporation of Delta in the summer of 1932. The five figures represent the journey of Tsaatsen, Tsawwassen’s first settler. James carved the pole as a memento of his wife’s Tsawwassen roots.
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The totem pole that has stood in front of the Delta Museum building on Delta Street in Ladner Village since 1931 was removed yesterday morning. However, more than 80 years exposed to the elements took their toll and earlier this year the
municipality made the decision the totem pole had to come down due to safety concerns.
Ken Kuntz, director of parks, recreation and culture, told Delta council in May there were con-
JESSICA KERR
cerns about the structural integrity and anything above seven metres could fail in high winds.
Fire at Roberts Bank coal port puts one berth out of commission until middle of next week BY
JESSICA KERR
jkerr@delta-optimist.com
PHOTO BY
JERRY BIERENS
Black smoke coming from a small fire at Westshore Terminals Tuesday afternoon could be seen from several areas around South Delta.
Black smoke could be seen for several kilometers after a fire broke out at the Westshore Terminals coal port earlier this week. Vice-president and general manager Denis Horgan said the small fire started on a conveyor belt on a loader at one of the ter-
minal’s two berths just after 12:30 p.m. Tuesday. Delta Fire Department crews responded and the fire was out about 30 minutes later, he said. No one was injured as a result of the fire and the cause is still under investigation. The berth will be out of commission until next Wednesday while it undergoes repairs, Horgan said.
It is the same berth that was damaged when a ship crashed into it late last year. On Dec. 7, the Panama-registered and Japanowned bulk carrier Cape Apricot crashed into a causeway, destroying about 100 metres of the structure. The berth was out of commission for several weeks while the area was cleaned up and the conveyor belt repaired.