A husband and wife team from Ontario are in the Musquash Estuary capturing nature. But they're each doing it differently and for different reasons.
Naturalist Fred Schueler, a retired biologist, is conducting biological inventories at the site and will catalogue what he sees. Aleta Karstad, an artist, will be painting the lower Bay of Fundy. Karstad tells CHSJ News it's a marriage of art and science.
She says there are challenges to painting outside, everything you'd expect when you're immersed in the environment; the changing of the light and weather, insects and the cold and wetness have to be taken into consideration when you're painting.
The Nature Conservancy of Canada is inviting the public to meet Schueler and Karstad at an open house today at 1pm in the Musquash Community Centre, 31 Malcolm Meehan Road. At 3:30pm, Karstad will lead a talk on what it's like to paint in the field. The NCC is hosting a free painting workshop tomorrow from 10am to 3pm. To register, call 1-877-231-4400 or e-mail brittany.cliffford@natureconservancy.ca.
Click here to view and bid on Karstad's paintings.
A man is dead after being struck by a train.
Saint John Police tell us it happened at 5:45am near Haymarket Square. An autopsy is being performed this morning. The incident is under investigation by police, though no foul play is suspected.
The hum of fans and air conditioners blasting will be a sound heard in homes province-wide today as the scorching weather continues.
Doug Mercer, lead meteorologist with Environment Canada, tells CHSJ News we can expect more of the same for all of the Maritimes. We'll see temperatures near what we had yesterday for today and tomorrow, with a humidex of between 35°C and 39°C degrees forecasted. A humidex advisory has been issued for Southeastern portion of the province.
Mercer cautions you to stay out of the sun today, and says make sure to do any strenuous activity early in the morning or late in the evening when temperatures have dropped. He says to use common sense when it's hot outside; stay out of the sun, drink lots of water and wear something to cover your head.
Three
heat records were broken in the province yesterday. One in Saint John,
the second in Saint Leonard and the third in Moncton.
A highway crash sending a motorcyclist to hospital.
The 39 year-old man driving the motorcycle collided with a car that was coming onto the highway from a driveway. He was brought to hospital with multiple fractures, while the 53 year-old woman driving the car was not hurt.
The collision happening on Highway 3, near St. Stephen. The Mounties are investigating and say speed was not a factor in the crash.
A boating accident in St. George sending one person to the Saint John Regional Hospital.
RCMP say around 9:30 Thursday night on the Canal Waterway, a boat collided with old cement railway foundation near the Route 770 Bridge and Old St. Andrews Junction.
Sgt. Bob MacKnight tells us one person had a lacerated forehead, while the other passenger in the boat suffered serious head trauma and was transported to hospital.
MacKnight says there was no evidence of drugs or alcohol.
With TRI St. Andrews starting up tomorrow -- comes an announcement that makes this weekend seem like a practice run.
St. Andrews has been chosen for the Challenge Family global series of long distance triathlons.
Race Manager Scott Bevington tells us the team was absolutely floored when they heard the news.
He says they have 21 races around the globe in every corner of the planet with the top pro athletes in the world.
This marks the Challenge Family's 1st half distance triathlon in North America.
The event is set for next July.
You can almost hear the squeals of joy from long suffering West siders.
Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Claude Williams says work will be finished by this fall.
CHSJ News asked Williams if any extra work will be needed on the westbound lanes of the bridge due to a dip and potholes.
He says the company that has the contract will have to do the appropriate rehabilitation that is supposed to be done as part of the contract.
Williams says despite a problem with the original contractor the work will be completed with no extra cost to provincial taxpayers.
It's looking more and more like Alberta crude will be making it's way to the Irving Oil refinery in a few years.
In a big show of support to the project, the province's government is on board with up to 5 billion dollars over 20 years to get the crude east.
The Alberta government has signed a memorandum of understanding to take up to 100,000 barrels-a-day of firm capacity on TransCanada’s proposed Energy East pipeline.
In a tweet, Mayor Mel Norton says the next step is Trans Canada committing to building the pipeline.
You might notice a strong taste and odour of chlorine in your water if you live on the west side.
Work on the Lancaster Water Storage Reservoir on Fundy Drive means more chlorine is being distributed from the Spruce Lake Water Treatment Plant.
The work will continue into next week.
A headsup for drivers.......The eastbound lane on Wright Street, east of Spruce Street in the North End remains closed due to a rock fall. Detour signs has been placed in the area.
The city warns ignoring the signs and concrete barricades could cause a major collision as it's a blind hill in both directions.
Drivers travelling eastbound are advised to left turn to Spruce Street, right to Seeley Street, straight to Allison Road then right to Gilbert Street.
The detour will remain in effect until further notice.
A warning from the Insurance Bureau of Canada for those people in the province in the market for a new or used vehicle........Be wary of buying any vehicle that's been damaged by recent flooding in southern Alberta because insurance companies may consider them to be non-repairable.
Consumers are being advised to buy only from a licensed automotive business.....Look for any discoloured upholstery or carpet that fits poorly or does not match exactly....Have a certified automotive service technician inspect for signs of water or silt in the vehicle's fuse box and electrical junction boxes.....Get information about the history of vehicle from a registry agent and an inspection before you buy.....Check underneath the hood and look for a water line that was marked by mud or silt or for evidence of a recent engine shampoo......Check the heater and air conditioner several times and look in the vents for signs of water or mud.
Either they'll get what they're looking for in Saint John or they will move outside the city. So claims Kamal Debly of Debly Construction who's answering criticism about allowing 80 mini homes outside Plan SJ's prime development area on the east side.
Debly, who says he applauds the effort to get more development closer to the urban core, warns you have to be a bit flexible when deciding these things.
Rick Turner of Hughes Surveys says while housing prices are low in Saint John when compared to other cities, there's a lack of affordable new housing.
He warns if young people are renting, they're more mobile and can leave the area at a moment's notice, taking their skills with them.
Port Saint John has a new building after buying the Harbour Bridge building for about $470,000 from the Province.
Port CEO Jim Quinn tells CHSJ News it gives the port access by land and water and expands the area where they can do business.
He says there are no other ports that have this kind of access.
Quinn calls the building a great operational type facility with garage bays that their maintenance crews can use.
Saint John now has the highest unemployment rate of any city in the national survey by Stats Canada at 11.2 per cent in June, up one percent from May. By contrast, Regina has a jobless rate of only 3.7 per cent.
The provincial jobless rate also rose to 11.2 per cent from 10.5 per cent in May with the loss of 52 hundred jobs.
Provincial Liberal leader Brian Gallant tells CHSJ News the rising unemployment rate, which is now the highest of all the provinces, is proof positive the Alward Government is bankrupt of ideas to get the economy going.
Gallant charges New Brunswick is the only province in the country to experience a decrease in population during the past year and the economic indicators over the next year don't look good.
The organizers of the Salty Jam must be beaming with excitement at the perfect weather this weekend.
Festival Chair Karla Maclean tells CHSJ News the music kicks off at Market Square tonight.
She says Chris Colepaugh is playing on the Boardwalk from 6 to 8pm and the Salty Jam tent opens at 7 with Earthbound Trio, Two Hours Traffic and Hey Rosetta.
The music continues all day Saturday in the City Market, King Square and on the Board and in the tent at night with the Joel Plaskett Emergency, The Reason and Stephen Lewis and the Big Band Of One.
The tent is located on Water street in the Coast Guard parking lot.
For ticket info, click here
The tragic deaths of two toddlers in Ontario and Alberta after being left in hot cars should teach us about the seriousness of extremely hot weather.
A heat wave continues with a humidex of 37 at 11 o'clock this morning at the Saint John Airport.
When you work or play outside in these high temperatures, drink plenty of fluids, apply sunscreen before you head into the sunshine and reapply as you sweat or swim.
Police also advising people not to leave pets or children in a hot vehicle during this heat wave.
Westmorland Road between Northumberland Avenue and Loch Lomand Road is closed to all traffic except for buses and emergency vehicles because of repaving until 8:00 tonight.
A man and woman are safe and sound after some anxious moments in Rockwood Park last night. They lost their bearings after going for a walk along one of the paths.
City police were using their patrol sirens and lights along with cell phone location info to help get the pair safely out just before 11:00.
Luckily, they had a cell phone with them and could keep in contact with 911 operators who then conveyed information to police who were searching for the couple.
It's a grim Independence Day in Calais after a shooting leaves one man dead, and 3 injured, including a 6-week-old baby.
21-year-old Megan Sherrard of Calais is in critical condition at the Eastern Maine Medical Centre in Bangor after being shot twice in the chest.
Her son, Luca, is expected to recover after being grazed by a bullet.
Around 6pm last night, Calais Police Department got a call of shots fired at a home on Main Street.
Police say shortly after arriving on scene, police shot and killed 26-year-old Daniel Pinney, who is the baby's father, and who is believed to have shot the baby and Sherrard.
Calais PD veteran officer John Preston was also grazed by a bullet during the incident and is expected to recover.
An employee from Bells IGA tells CHSJ News Sherrard was a cashier at the store in Calais and Pinney was a bagboy.
It's record-breaking hot out there.
According to Environment Canada, the mercury hit 29 at 2pm and that hasn't happened since 1949.
Meteorologist Claude Cote tells CHSJ News we can expect the heat wave to last until Sunday.
He says the eastern Ontario, Quebec, the Maritimes and the New England states are experiencing a hot humid air mass with temperatures a few degrees above normal.
Cote says the hot spot in the province and the country is Miramichi at 32 degrees.
The Fredericton area is under a heat warning where in the humidex it feels like 35 in the humidex.
It's so hot the changing of the guard ceremony at Officer's Square was cancelled.
Take your lunch, grab a spot on a bench and enjoy some tunes.
That is the idea behind Summer in the Square-a concert series in King Square.
Tracy Hanson of Uptown Saint John tells CHSJ News they wanted to showcase our great local talent.
She says during the month of July the performances will be in the City market and hopefully by August they can move into King Square when the bandstand renovation is finished.
Hanson says during the week people will see hour-long performances by solo artists, theatre groups and on Saturday the performances will be two hours.
An actuary with more than 30 years experience has been chosen to take an independent look at the provincial pension plan.
The provincial finance department is picking up the tab. The decision to do this coming about during discussions between the Alward Government and the Pension Coalition.
Clifford Kennedy of the Pension Coalition tells CHSJ News the retirees want to know if their plan is in such bad shape as the province claims.
The retirees have been skeptical about those claims and the need for the plan to be converted to a shared risk model although they don;t object to it happening on a go forward basis with current retirees exempt.
The review will take a few months to complete.
In business news - Acadia Broadcasting is moving to add another radio station to its stable - the parent company of Country 94 and 97.3 the Wave has filed an application with the Canadian Radio Television and Telecommunications Commission to purchase CKNI-FM - News91.9 in Moncton from Rogers Broadcasting.
The station would be the first for the company in the Hub City and would join Acadia's stations here - St Stephen - Bridgewater - and - five stations and two repeaters in Ontario.
Acadia Vice President Jim MacMullin says he looks forward to bringing our brand of community focused - quality local radio to Moncton.
In a related note, NewCap Radio intends to purchase Saint John's News 88.9.
The C-R-T-C is expected to rule on both applications later this year.
Another slight decrease in the price of self serve regular after the weekly setting.
In the city, it's down by a penny a litre to $1.24.3 while diesel has risen to $1.29.3.
Propane is down by just over a cent to a maximum price of 95.9 cents a litre.
Heating oil rose to a maximum price of $1.12.2 a litre.
There was no driver to be seen after a car flipped over after leaving Loch Lomand Road at around 3:30 yesterday afternoon.
City Police also reporting they spent 4 hours tracking down two teens who ran away from a group home in the Hickey Road area. They were eventually caught along Thorne Avenue and are looking at charges of being unlawfully at large.
City Police announcing they're in the process of launching a social media strategy, in part, to counteract some of the negative postings online. There will be regular twitter updates and You Tube video.
22 year old twin brothers, Brandon and Bradley Saia have been found guilty on charges stemming from a deadly home invasion back in early November which include robbery.
The jury of 7 women and 5 men deliberated for nearly 8 hours before reaching the guilty verdicts.
18 year old A-J Dennison died from a stab wound he suffered during the home invasion on Prince Street West. 22 year old Christopher Reid, who lived in the home, suffered a serious wound to his back from a machete.
A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for August 7th.
A man and woman from Perth-Andover are dead after a crash on Highway 2 in Charlie Lake.
Early Tuesday afternoon, the driver of a pickup heading eastbound lost control hitting the gravel shoulder and flipped throwing two passengers more than 30 metres from the vehicle.
49 year old Donald Alan McQuade and 42-year-old Lisa Dawn Hitchcock both died and the driver, a 44-year-old man from Carlingford, remains in hospital with serious injuries.
The two victims were not wearing seatbelts and RCMP believe the driver was going the speed limit at the time of the crash.
A recent multi-million dollar investment in the New Brunswick Innovation Fund will support work right here in our backyard.
Dr. Karen Kidd is a research chair at UNB Saint John and she tells CHSJ News the money she has received from the NBIF has gone towards equipment giving her students a state of the art facility working in ecotoxicology.
She says because of the fantastic infrastructure the students are able to do world class research and get training that makes them more attractive to future employers.
Kidd and her students are examining the impact of toxins on fish and on the birds or people eating that fish.
The underemployed have some hope this week in the form of a job fair for the new Target store.
A job fair is underway in Saint John at the Loch Lomond Mall until 530pm tonight again tomorrow through to Saturday.
It runs tomorrow from 11:30am to 8:30pm and on Friday and Saturday from 830am to 5:30pm.
Job fairs are also happening in Fredericton and Moncton this week.
Dominic Cardy will be knocking on doors in a neighbourhood where he had a paper route in the 80's.
The Provincial NDP leader announcing he will seek his party's nomination in the riding of Fredericton West-Hanwell in next year's election.
In a release he says he grew up in the area delivering papers so canvassing will be familiar.
The provincial NDP party will hold a nomination meeting in Fredericton West-Hanwell later this year.
The amount of vacant office space in Saint John is double what you will find in other cities around the Maritimes.
Despite that and one of the highest unemployment rates of any city in the national survey by Stats Canada, former Mayor Bob Lockhart tells CHSJ News although things are tough now, he's optimistic about the future, saying the storm clouds that have afflicted Saint John for the past twenty years or so are, in hiw view, on the verge of disappearing.
The amount of vacant office space is a prime reason why city staff opposed the relocation of a small accounting firm with 7 employees to the east side from uptown.
Some members of Common Council were left scratching their heads trying to figure out why city staff opposed a small accounting firm, Padgett Business Services, moving from Hazen Street to Loch Lomand Road close to the City Transit garage.
Councillor Ray Strowbridge says it's not as if it will be the only small business on that part of the street. He views Loch Lomand Road as mixed development with both residential and businesses lumped in together.
Business owner Robert Cole says he wants to move from Hazen Street because of prostitution, vagrancy and drug dealing in the neighbourhood. He has received approval in principle to move ahead.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation predicts the hike on Canada Day in provincial income tax will not only put a damper on economic growth because people will have less money to spend.
The Federation's Atlantic Director Kevin Lacey tells CHSJ News it will send more people from this province out west because people vote with their feet these days. He estimates in the last five years, something like 34 hundred people have left for Alberta from New Brunswick.
Lacey maintains the only way you can get a handle on the deficit and keep people from moving away is to grow the economy but raising taxes won't accomplish that especially when the provincial deficit is expected to rise to 479 million dollars in spite of the provincial income tax going up.
The Conference Board of Canada's Help Wanted Index has dropped in New Brunswick for the second month in a row.
Common Council has overruled both city staff and the Planning Advisory Committee by approving in principle the expansion of the Glen Falls Trailer Park off Glen Road but instead of trailers, 80 mini homes will be constructed.
Ward 4 Common Councillor Ray Strowbridge is on board after hearing there will be an underground pond to store water and ease any concerns over flooding. The other councillor for Ward 4, David Merrithew points out revenue from building permits has dropped off significantly and Councillor at Large Shirley McAlary says Saint John needs this type of development.
Kamal Debly of Debly Construction says it means much needed revenue for city coffers. The project will add 7 million dollars to the city's tax base with additional revenue from building permits for the mini homes that area constructed.
In addition, the city will not be responsible for garbage collection and snow plowing which will be done privately.
The East side has been a hotspot lately, with three buildings catching fire in a little over a week, however the fire department says the individual blazes are not connected.
Division Chief Mark Wilson tells CHSJ News in this case, it's merely a coincidence.
They've determined a shed fire on June 22 was accidental, in the electrical area, however the vacant building blaze on June 27 is suspicious, as is the structure fire on June 30. Both files have been turned over to Saint John Police Department.
The winner of a free cruise that brought over 4,000 page likes to the Cruise Saint John Facebook page is visiting the port today.
Liza Gavigan and her husband Tracy from Lyndonhurst, New York were the lucky winners and are visiting on the Carnival Glory.
The pair will also be going on a kayaking and lobster bake shore excursion through Go Fundy events.
The Carnival Glory is in port until 7pm.
Could you see the fireworks last night?
As some communities postpone their annual July 1st sparkle fest, Saint John's went ahead.
Some of our listeners are wondering why.
Terri thinks they should have waited as they could only see red or green fog once in awhile.
Cindy wishes they could have waited until the next clear day.
Tyler says its not the first time we've had fog in this city and all the people complaining about that will just have to use their heads next year.
Lucinda says her kids loved it adding its hard to please everyone.
The Board of Trade announcing David Duplisea as their new Executive Director.
He has held executive positions in marketing, business development in Saint John, New York and Toronto.
He was a founding member of the Board of Directors of Propel ICT and recently served as a Policy Advisor in Renewable Energy and Energy Innovation with the provincial department of energy.
In a release, the Board thanks Dick Daigle who served as the interim Executive Director over the last six months.
The Saia twins trial in a deadly home invasion on the lower West side is wrapping up, with the jury hearing closing arguments in the case.
The defense saying the case boils down to the three witnesses who testified: Melissa Perry, Christopher Reid and Amber Wilson, as well as the DNA evidence. The defense challenged Perry's credibility, saying she has a record of lying to police and the jury should be careful in believing anything she says.
They also say it's clear DNA evidence is inconclusive, and you can't place guilt on the brothers based on that evidence.
The prosecution comparing the eyewitness accounts to chapters in a book, saying, when you look at all of the evidence, including testimony from Perry, Reid and Wilson, the story comes together.
She says it's clear they intended to and did use violence to take Reid's belongings from his home on Prince Street West on Nov. 3, 2012.
In the summer, people tend to forget about food banks, but the need does not go away.
The Community Food Basket serving central Saint John is low on supplies right now.
Carolyn Dannells tells CHSJ News they really need peanut butter, coffee, salt & pepper, pickles and cereal.
She says right now they don't have any to give out to the families coming in with little kids.
Dannells tells us the number were up in the month of May with 575 orders given out to 1000 people.
If you would like to help the food bank or you need their help, you can drop by on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday between 8am and 3pm at 215 Charlotte Street.
To make a donation of food or money, you can drop by or call 652-2707.
The Department of Transportation telling us they're down to one ferry at Gondola Point because of mechanical problems.
And in another traffic note, a sanitary sewer project in the intersection of the Pettingill Road and Cedar Grove Drive is going to cause a traffic disruption starting today until sometime on Friday.
Construction work will deny access to traffic onto Pettingill Road from Cedar Grove Drive.
Provincial Health Minister Ted Flemming is refuting criticism of provincial income taxes going up as of Canada Day, saying the government's hand was forced because of an irresponsible tax cut implemented by the Liberals under then Premier Shawn Graham in a shameless bid to stay in power.
Flemming charges the Liberals said they would raise the H-S-T and bring back tolls when they lowered taxes but didn't carry through and, as a result, the deficit ballooned to a billion dollars.
Flemming goes on to explain, the tax levels now are what they were back in 2006 under then Premier Bernard Lord, and as such, doesn't really view it as a tax hike.
A big Canada Day announcement in Rothesay.......The Federal and provincial governments are contributing 450 thousand dollars with the town of Rothesay chipping in another 100 thousand to revamp the playhground at Rothesay Elementary School.
Organiser Amanda Fowlie of the Community Park Committee tells CHSJ News the playground is in pretty rough shape and a danger to kids who fall. Fowlie says what you will see is a natural playground setting, which according to the research, results in less bullying and more imaginative play.
She's hoping it will be ready by the fall. The committee started this endeavour back in 2010 and raised 63 thousand dollars on its own.
Using a combination of determination and chemicals, a graffiti-removal duo is cleaning up tags on the lower South end.
Hilari MacLeod is one half of the Graffiti Guys, the other half is her brother. They're part of P.U.L.S.E., or, People United In The Lower South End. The pair has already cleaned up the steps of the Trinity Church, the Enterprise Saint John building and more.
MacLeod tells CHSJ News graffiti in the city has gotten worse. However, she does make a distinction between graffiti and street art. She says if there's something that is skillfully done and inoffensive in a back alley or in an overpass, she doesn't see anything wrong with that. She says it becomes an issue when people spray-paint tags or mark up private property.
MacLeod says Uptown Saint John is now involved in their project, and while the police department was always involved, they're now plugging the Graffiti Guys more frequently when they get calls for graffiti.
Saint John M-P Rodney Weston making the announcement about the federal contribution for the new playground in Rothesay.
Weston also telling the people on hand in Rothesay Common the configuration of the riding is going to change slightly because of redistribution with the name changing to Saint John-Rothesay.
Rothesay has always been part of the riding of Saint John.
The entire town of Quispamsis will now be in Fundy Royal which makes more sense, according to Weston. Previously, a small part of Quispamsis was in the Saint John riding.
TransCanada's
open season is over, they're analyzing their bids and here in the
province we're sitting tight, waiting to hear word on whether a
west-east pipeline is coming to Saint John.
However,
after getting a information folder with the words "Energy East
Pipeline" on the front, Mayor Mel Norton is optimistic. Norton says it's
a sign talks with prospective shippers and receivers were positive.
He tells CHSJ News the packet talks about being responsible in terms of the public engagement process and working with municipalities, unincorporated areas and First Nations communities.
Quispamsis
also received a packet before their last council meeting stating three
new terminals will be built in Quebec and New Brunswick. We should have
official word from TransCanada by mid-August, or earlier.
An air quality advisory has been issued for the province.
Public health officials warning fires blazing in the forests of Quebec could have an affect on air quality in the northern region.
Dr. Eilish Cleary, chief medical officer of health, says people living there should take precautions when heavy smoke affects air quality. She says infants, children, pregnant women, older adults, smokers, and people with chronic heart or lung diseases should stay inside with the windows shut.
It'll be red and white as far as the eye can see today, as the city marks Canada Day.
A greasy, cheesy poutine cook-off, a good ole' Canadian kitchen party and a rocking twelve-hour concert on the boardwalk. It's all been leading up to today's festivities.
Pre-Canada Day events have been happening since June 21st, and Stephany Peterson of the Hardman group tells CHSJ News it all culminates in today's July 1st celebration, which she calls the cherry on top.
There's free transportation from Saint John transit, free admission at the museum all day, and all the day's events are free. The festivities go ahead rain or shine. To see a schedule of events, click here.
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