New Westminster Record September 15 2016

Page 1

6

NEWS 3

The history of a home ARTS 11

Massey’s new season SPORTS 34

THINGS TO DO THIS WEEKEND

Hyacks nab first win

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 15, 2016

There’s more online at

NewWestRecord.ca

LOCAL NEWS – LOCAL MATTERS

Y O U R

SEE PAGE 15

H O M E T O W N

N E W S P A P E R

Fire ant bites lead to rare allergic reaction By Tereza Verenca

tverenca@newwestrecord.ca

Anaphylaxis caused by bites from the European fire ant is not something to worry about, says the expert who confirmed their presence in B.C. in 2010. Earlier this month, a daily newspaper reported Ralph Olson of New Westminster was the first case of anaphylaxis due to the invasive species. Olson had been helping a friend change a water pump at a lagoon at the Quay in late July. He decided to sit on a pile of rocks, only to be swarmed by the ants minutes later. “I guess I sat on or near the nest not knowing,” he told the Record. “When I looked down, I could see both my right and left arm were absolutely covered in these ants. I could feel them biting me.” Olson didn’t think much of it after he removed all the bugs. But then began the itch. By midnight, his entire body was swollen. “My tongue was so swollen I could hardly get it out of my mouth. My throat was starting to close up,” he recalled, adding he eventually drove himself to Royal Columbian Hospital. Doctors discharged him that day, but he eventually returned as the itching and swelling continued. He would spend a week in hospital taking anti-histamines. “The anti-histamines would work for about an hour, but then it was back to square one.There were periods of time Continued on page 9

BITTEN: Ralph Olson was swarmed by dozens of European fire ants near a lagoon at the Quay in late July. Later that night, his body had an anaphylactic reaction and swelled up like a balloon. PHOTO JENNIFER GAUTHIER

THE CHANGING CITY

City admits ’Boro streetscape having ‘issues’ By Theresa McManus

tmcmanus@newwestrecord.ca

It’s been a bumpy road for the Ewen Avenue project, but the city is hoping for a smoother path in the final phase of construction. Roger Emanuels, the city’s manager of design and construction, said the city is well aware of some

“coordination issues” that have occurred in Phase 2 of the Ewen Avenue streetscape improvement project. He said the project has coincided with a record year of development in Queensborough, which has led to issues such as traffic congestion and buses being rerouted to side streets. “We had a couple of large de-

velopments along Phase 2 that were having to fill sites.They were having 100 trucks a day coming and going from that site while the contractor was trying to build the road at the same time.We are aware of those things,” Emanuels said. “Could we have done a better job? Probably. Phase 3 – will we do a better job? We better.”

The project includes a multi-use path, new sidewalks, street- and pedestrian-level lighting, traffic calming elements aimed at deterring traffic from speeding down the street and bypassing the highways system, a new traffic signal at Howes Street and Ewen, upgrades to water and sewer mains, underground electrical systems, and

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