Fire Department Fights Two Fires On Victoria Street

City fire crews battling two tough fires in the city's north end.

The fire department responding to blazes at 55 and 57 Victoria Street around 3 o'clock.

Fire Chief Kevin Clifford says the fire was extremely difficult to fight and the call was made to pull crew members out.

He says while it's optimal to battle fires from the inside, the risk was too great.



He says the old building gave the fire too much fuel.

Early reports indicate 57 Victoria Street was abandoned.  55 Victoria Street had residents but there are no reports of injuries.

No word yet on a cause.

Crews Still Battling A North End Fire

Firefighters are still at it in the North End battling a stubborn blaze.

The fire started 57 Victoria Street spreading quickly to a building next door

Flames could be scene coming from the upper window earlier.

Crews also trying to stop the fire from spreading to 59 and 61 Victoria Street.

Tug Boats Put On Water Show

Three tugs in the Harbour put on a water show in the moments before today's 21-gun salute for Loyalist's Day

21 Gun Salute At Pugsley Wharf

To celebrate Loyalist Day, local reserve soldiers helping Saint Johners celebrate with a 21-gun salute on Pugsley Wharf.

Soldiers from the 3rd field regiment conducting the salute in observance of the landing of the Loyalist.

Three 105mm C3 Howitzers firing a 21-gun salute at noon today.

North End Fire Keeps Crews Busy

A fire is tying up a lot of resources and creating a traffic headache in the North end.

The call came in just after 2 this afternoon at 55-57 Victoria Street.   The building was evacuated successfully.

The blaze seems to be based in the upper floors of the structure.   

City police are providing traffic control in the area.    Barricades are open and some area streets are closed to traffic.

Vandals Strike Peel Plaza Construction Site

The Peel Plaza work site getting hit by graffiti sometime overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday.

Sgt. Glen Hayward with the Saint John Police Force tells CHSJ News the locker room area got hit with spray paint.

Hayward says he is unsure how much the damages are.

He adds there is security at the site hired by the construction company but the vandals somehow got through.

Murphy Speaks On Poverty Reduction

Provincial Liberal Leadership candidate Mike Murphy launching his poverty reduction strategy if elected to the head of the party.

Murphy spoke to a crowd of Liberal supporters and citizens at the Carleton Community Centre.

One of Murphy's planks is an earned income tax credit.

He says such a credit will help people who are struggling to make ends meet.

Other initiative Murphy is promising is better public oversight of social development money, more legal rights and options for victims of domestic abuse, and a social entrepreneurship program which makes the government implement social programs developed by community groups.

He says his plans can be implemented within our current budget and could even save the government money.

Fire Crews Battling Blaze In The North End

City fire crews are battling a structure fire in the North End.   The call came in just a short time ago.     The blaze is fully involved at 55-57 Victoria Street.    City police are also at the scene providing traffic control in the area.   Some streets in the area are blocked to traffic.

Big Traffic Volumes Expected At Border

The weather forecast for the long holiday weekend couldn't be any better and that means alot of people will be on the road with border crossings expecting more traffic.

Lynn Burns, a Superintendent with Canada Border Services Agency in St. Stephen, tells CHSJ News you will have a smoother crossing if you have all your documentation at hand.

Burns says it could be alot faster for you, as well,  if you use the new St. Stephen bridge. To get there, you exit Route 9 and follow U.S. Highway 1 until you get to the roundabout where you turn left onto the new bridge.

You can also go online to find how long you'll have to wait at each of the border crossings.

http://www.cbsa.gc.ca/

Chaplaincy Office Won't Operate Drop-In Centre

The drop-in centre at Stone Church, if it reopens at some point down the road, won't be run by the Saint John Community Chaplaincy Office.

That word coming from Phillip Ferris who chairs the Community Chaplaincy for ex-offenders and tells CHSJ News there has been some confusion over why this is happening.

Ferris says it closed because of a lack of funding and had nothing whatever to do with the folks at the Stone Church.

Ferris says it was never their mandate to operate the drop-in centre and it became awkward because of restrictions that were imposed on some of the ex-offenders on who they could be seen with or even be around.

Nature Conservancy Of Canada Looking For Clean-Up Volunteers

If you want to spend part of your long weekend helping out Mother Nature then the Nature Conservancy of Canada wants to hear from you.

The group wants volunteers to help clean up the coastal footpath along the Musquash Estuary.

Spokesperson Andrew Holland tells CHSJ News biologists will also be on hand to educated volunteers about the estuary.

Tasks will include trimming branches, putting up trail markers, and collecting garbage off the beach.

Things get underway Saturday morning at 9.  For more information or to sign up, click here.

Purse Snatching Uptown

A purse snatching on King Street last night around 6 resulting in the arrests of two men in their late twenties. 

They were nabbed on the rooftop of a building along Union Street. 

City Police telling CHSJ News they got help from the public in catching up with the pair who will be appearing in court today.

No one was hurt.