All schools are
closed in the Anglophone South School District and the Anglophone West
School District along with the Francophone South School District which
includes Samuel de Champlain.
The Saint John campus of the Community College is closed.
Classes at the Community College campus in St. Andrews will not be starting until 10:30 this morning.
Somerset pre-school is closed for the day.
Eastern College and Eastern Trades College are both closed.
The Academy of Hair Design is closed.
All five libraries in the Saint John region are closed.
Grand Manan Library, 1144 Rte 776, for the whole day
Kennebecasis Public Library, 1 Landing Ct., for the whole day
Le Cormoran Library, 67 Ragged Point Rd., for the whole day
Saint John Free Public Library, Central Branch, 1 Market Square, for the whole day
Saint John Free Public Library, East Branch, 545 Westmorland Rd., for the whole day
Saint John Free Public Library, West Branch, 621 Fairville Blvd., for the whole day
The S-N-B Wood Co-op in Sussex is closed.
Family Ties Daycare will be closed.
Dr Mark Lowney's Office
Boys and girls Club closed and all programs - cancelled for the day
Habitat Re-Store closed.
AJ's on the West Side closed
Classes at Ready Arc Welding are closed
All classes at the Atlantica Centre for the Arts are cancelled.
The Princess of Acadia crossing today has been cancelled because of the high winds.
Now that the Alward Government has released its regulations to move forward with shale gas exploration, the big question is whether the public, by and large, will buy in.
The President of the Atlantica Centre for Energy John Herron tells CHSJ News the government will need what he calls "social licence" to make this a go.
To achieve that, Herron says the provincial government will have to show it's willing to enforce its own regulations because without enforcement, they're not worth the paper they're written on and if something does go wrong, the government will have to demonstrate it's got the landowner's back.
Common Council is being urged by city staff to turn over management and operation of the North End Community Centre on Victoria Street, officially named the Nick Nicole Community Centre, to One Change which is promising an increased level of service.
One Change says it can operate the community centre with a yearly budget of more than 184 thousand dollars, over 158 thousand dollars of which would be provided by the city.
The recommendation calls for One Change to take over at the beginning of June. The Centre will be closed for 6 to 8 months for work to be done to the exterior of the building.
Security at schools in the Anglophone South School District is being enhanced in the wake of the shootings in Newtown, Connecticut before Christmas.
There will be new I-D badges for school district workers who are not attached to any particular school but perform jobs at several of them when the need arises.
Superintendent Zoe Watson tells CHSJ News school safety is always uppermost in their minds at the school district and there are some schools in Saint John which have an intercom outside and you have to be buzzed in.
The new logo for the school district was designed by a grade 9 studeent at Hampton High, Melanie Levesque in her art class.
Saint John got 25 centimeters of snow in the latest winter storm to batter the region.
All schools are closed in the Anglophone South School District and the Anglophone West School District along with the Francophone South School District which includes Samuel de Champlain.
The Saint John campus of the New Brunswick Community College is closed today.
George Parkes of Environment Canada calls it a significant storm with winds gusting to a maximum of 87 kilometers an hour.
He tells CHSJ News we might still see a couple of more centimeters of snow this morning snow before its said and done.
The high winds will remain with us all day long with gusts up to 70 kilometers an hour. Parkes expects they will start to diminish tonight and become light by noon tomorrow.
As of early this morning, NB Power is reporting 11 outages throughout the Rothesay region affecting more than 600 customers from Nauwigewauk and Darling's Island to the Kingston Peninsula.
The first two flights of the day from Saint John Airport to Toronto and Montreal have been cancelled. he flights to and from Halifax are delayed.
We are told there will be traffic delays at Rothesay Avenue and Russell Street today, not so much because of the nasty weather but construction work that's taking place on the One Mile Interchange project.
Common Councillor John McKenzie describes the stretch of Main Street North from Lansdowne Avenue to the L-B-R as the gateway to the uptown but more recently it resembles a place where traffic races through on the way to somewhere else.
He tells CHSJ News Main Street is much wider than it needs to be.
He says there is a lot of valuable space that is wasted. He says it would be safer to reduce the lanes to two and add some trees and bike lanes.
MacKenzie envisions condos and more retail in that part of the north end and he will be asking the City Manager and people in planning to formulate a draft plan with proposals on how to make that happen.
Whatever you have to do today, you might want to get it done early.
Up to 25 centimetres of snow is due to fall in the Saint John area before it wraps up tomorrow morning.
Environment
Canada meteorologist Jeremy March tells CHSJ News the main area of low
pressure is still deepening and well to the southwest of us.
He
expects the snow will pick up around noon and tonight it will be pretty
nasty with more snow and wind gusts to 90 kilometres an hour.
While
the storm system is a rain event for Nova Scotia, the folks in Kings
County and the KV are looking at up to 35 centimetres of snow.
March says Charlotte County is at the western end of the storm and should get 20 centimetres of snow.
Due to the impending storm, the Princess of Acadia will be leaving early at 2pm from Digby for Saint John.
A young mom and her kids were not hurt when fire gutted a house they were renting in Evandale.
It happened yesterday afternoon and Red Cross disaster volunteers are helping the family, which includes a 7 month old baby and a 6 year old, with a place to stay, food and clothing.
No word yet on the cause of the fire at 5841 Highway 102.
16 firefighters on the scene of a fire on Broad Street this morning behind Shawn's Variety.
Platoon Chief Eric Garland says smoke and fire could be seen underneath some decking between the first and third floor at the back of the building.
He tells CHSJ News crews later realized the fire was in the wall.
He says crews had to do a lot of ripping and tearing to open up the walls with a chainsaw to make sure they had contained the fire.
10 people living in the building are currently displaced but Garland is hopeful most of them will get back in today. The damage is restricted to one apartment with some in another unit.
A fire investigator is looking into the cause.
Fire crews are at the scene of an apartment fire on Broad Street.
The building has been evacuated.
Crews are putting out the flames behind a deck/stair structure.
The NDP leader says this Province has a proven track record of writing lots of nice things on pretty peices of paper that never get enforced.
Dominic Cardy points out the shale gas regulations are for new developments not the existing 24 wells in the province.
He says why would exclude the operations that are already in place adding the same standard should be in place wherever you live in the province.
Cardy says he not sure if anyone will want to come drilling here and if they don't, he fears the government may start subsidizing them so they will.
He is also expressing concern about the ratio of chemicals being used in fracking.
An Upper Mills man has been arrested for assaulting three peace officers and resisting arrest in an incident near a home in that area.
At approximately 1:15 p.m. Friday two District 1 RCMP officers were accompanying an SPCA officer to the home for an animal welfare investigation. A 57-year-old man at the home became violent and assaulted the SPCA officer. When police attempted to arrest the man, he resisted and physically assaulted one of the police officers.
The second officer intervened, and the man was eventually taken into custody.
He was later released on a promise to appear in St. Stephen Provincial Court at a later date. He is expected to face charges of assaulting peace officers and resisting arrest.
The RCMP is releasing the names of a man and a woman who were killed in a two-vehicle collision in Salisbury on the evening of February 14.
They are 24-year-old Chad Thorne of Havelock and 69-year-old Rachel Gauvin of Grande-Digue.
The investigation into the collision is ongoing.
More details on a crash in Hammond River that left two people with serious, but what are believed to be non-life-threatening injuries.
The collision occurred when a pickup truck crashed into the back of another vehicle travelling in the same direction. The driver of the truck left the scene, but was later apprehended by police.
The driver of the vehicle that was struck, a 20-year-old woman from Norton, had to be extracted using the Jaws of Life. She and an 18-year-old man from Sussex Corner were transported to hospital by ambulance with serious injuries. They are however not believed to be life-threatening.
Alcohol is believed to have been a contributing factor in the crash.
Anyone who may have witnessed the collision, but who has not yet spoken to police, to contact them at 506-832-5566.
Some highly expensive brass coils have gone missing from the Coleson Cove generating plant.
The Saint John Police Force responded to a call reported the theft of 24- Brass Coils that are described as being 24 x18 inches and look similar to that of a carpenter's square. The theft occurred between December and February 14th.
The brass coils are used to rebuild the generators located at this facility. The total replacement cost for these 24 coils are approximately $66,000.00.
Anyone who has information is asked to contact the Saint John Police Force, Major Crime Unit or Crime Stoppers.
A Fredericton woman charged with faking a home invasion in a bid to murder her husband.
Police in Fredericton say they have charged a 51-year-old woman with the attempted murder. Officers responded to 911 call regarding a break and enter at a home on Anderson Street on the city's south side around 10:45 p.m. Wednesday.
A 57-year-old man was taken to hospital where he was treated and later released. Police say their investigation has determined that there wasn't a break and enter.Police say 51-year-old Rada Veselinovic was subsequently arrested and appeared in court today where she was charged with attempted murder.
A man and a woman are dead and a child serious injured following a two-vehicle crash on the TransCanada Highway near Salisbury.
The collision occurring at around 8:20 p.m. A vehicle heading westbound was hit by a vehicle travelling the wrong way, eastbound in the westbound lane.
Both drivers, a 24-year-old man from Havelock and a 69-year-old woman from Grande-Digue, died at the scene. The woman was the lone occupant in the vehicle that was travelling in the wrong direction on the divided highway.
A 25-year-old woman and two young children, aged three and four, who were passengers in the other vehicle were transported to hospital. One of the children was airlifted to the IWK Hospital in Halifax.
The names of the deceased are not being released at this time pending proper notification of their families.
District Education Councils want a streamlined budget process so they know what numbers they have to work with well in advance.
Rob Fowler, who chairs the Anglophone South District Education Council, tells CHSJ News that point will be made clear to Provincial Education Minister Jody Carr in meetings this weekend.
Fowler would like to see the budget for the next school year soon after the end of next month to make planning easier. The Anglophone South School District is still on budget according to the most up to date figures.
Fowler says another issue he will bring up is the age of school buildings in Saint John and the extra cost needed to maintain them properly.
If and when full scale shale gas production moves ahead in the province and becomes a reality, there has to be better monitoring of air quality at production sites because there isn't any now.
That, according to the Health Watch Advisor for the Conservation Council who points to Penobsquis with its 16 gas well pads and 30 gas wells. Inka Milewski tells CHSJ News government oversight is among the missing despite all the industrialisation with no permanent air quality monitoring regime in place and the province not reporting publicly on how good or bad the air is.
Milewski claims the air at gas production sites is a major public health concern because of the presence of carcinogens in the form of volatile organic compounds like benzine.
More details expected from the RCMP later about a serious crash on Highway 1 which has been described to us as significant.
Fire crews were called to the City Market last night after it closed when the smell of natural gas was detected.
Enbridge Gas was called in and the leak was traced to the City Market's boiler room.
There was alot of smoke which could be seen from a fire in a dumpster early this morning at an overpass which is part of the One Mile Interchange project.
Fire trucks had difficulty getting to the scene and they also had to put out a small fire in a nearby construction trailer.
More than 40 thousand dollars had been raised in the first ever Radiothon at the Regional Hospital when our broadcast finished up at 6 last night.
The Director of the Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation, Victoria Clarke tells CHSJ News the money will be used to make health care in the region better with cutting edge technology.
She says that type of equipment is needed to attract and retain top flight medical personnel.
Clarke says most of of the people who pledged money live in the Greater Saint John area but there were even calls that came in from as far away as Banff and Japan thanks to social media and the broadcast over the internet.
The government of Florida has just announced that the Florida Highway Patrol will not enforce a new law requiring Canadians to have an International Driving Permit.
CAA saying in a statement they are grateful that the state of Florida has responded to pressure from CAA and thousands of concerned Canadians on this issue.
However, they are still seeking clarity from the state on whether this applies to all the over 400 law enforcement agencies that exist in Florida.
In the meantime, CAA advices Canadians travelling in the next few days that it's better safe than sorry and they should get an IDP. Those who will not be travelling for some days, and those already in Florida are advised to wait for developments.
We will issue a release once the situation becomes more clear.
Here's a bit of a political shocker: a former Liberal cabinet minister under then Premier Shawn Graham has joined the NDP.
Kelly Lamrock was Minister of Social Development and led an anti-poverty initiative as well as giving some thought to running for the Liberal party leadership.
Provincial NDP leader Dominic Cardy says Lamrock worked with him on the anti-patronage bills adopted by the Alward government, discovered they had a lot in common and more people could be coming on board.
Lamrock says he's excited to have the chance to work with fellow progressives in developing clear policies that will give New Brunswickers real choices down the road. Lamrock gave some consideration to running for the leadership of the Provincial Liberal Party leadership but decided not to.
Snowbirds and March Break-ers, beware.
aAchange to Florida driving regulations could cramp your style if you're heading South of the border. As of January 1, travellers will now need an International Driver's Permit as well as their Canadian license to get behind the wheel in a move intended to stop confusion over foreign languages on licenses.
CAA spokesman Gary Howard tells CHSJ News it's causing a lot of hassle with long lineup, increased wait-times, and people confused about whether the new rules apply to them.
As it stands you need to have the $25 permit to drive in Florida and could face stiff penalties. Howard called the new regulations wrongheaded because almost all Canadian drivers licenses are issued in English.
The hydro bill could be getting a little steeper for the city's industrial and commercial customers.
Common council hearing on Monday evening the rationale behind switching to a computerized metering system which would eliminate the need for meter readers and ensure the customers aren't being over or under-billed.
Councillor David Merrithew asked deputy commissioner of water Kendall Mason whether businesses aren't getting too sweet a deal, to which Mason responded there is no doubt the city is under-billign those customers.
Negotiating the water rate between the city and big corporations including Irving has been an ongoing issue for a number of years.
There has been concern about how young people in the city who have had contact with former Common Councillor Donnie Snook will react to his fall from grace.
Katina Feggos-Russell of Family Plus Counselling tells CHSJ News the entire community can be affected when a high profile personality gets into trouble and there's a real roller coaster of emotions such as denial, anger, grieving, a sense of betrayal and disillusionment.
She says there are some people who will try to block the person out as a means of coping and advises parents to let their children express how they're feeling openly and honestly.
The mental health of students is beoming more of an issue in the Anglophone South School District.
Superintendent Zoe Watson tells CHSJ News an action plan is going to be developed. Part of that will be more training for teachers and guidance counsellors so they can recognise when a student is having difficulty coping and in need of help. Watson also says psychologists want to give a presentation to the District Education Council.
The "Celebrate What's Right With The World" initiative, launched back in 2008, will continue which attempts to get students to think positively, look for possibilities to do better, fix what's wrong and ride change.
In previous years, the focus had been on obesity and nutrition.
The provincial NDP has itself a new member who just happens to be a former provincial Liberal cabinet Minister.
Kelly Lamrock, who had considered running for the provincial Liberal leadership before deciding against, has joined the New Democrats, saying he's excited to be working with progressives.
Lamrock led an initiative to reduce poverty when he was Social Development Minister under then Premier Shawn Graham.
Provincial NDP leader Dominic Cardy says he and Lamrock found they had a lot in common while working on the anti-patronage bills being adopted by the Alward Government.
Not much of a change with gas prices after the weekly setting.
Self serve regular is selling in the city for $1.31.6 a litre which is virtually unchanged from yesterday.
Diesel did go up by almost a couple of cents to $1.46.2 a litre.
Heating oil did rise by almost 3 cents to a maximum of $1.24.6 a litre.
The high winds from last Saturday's storm caused a problem at St. Rose school on the west side.
Wood ash blew over onto the school property from the nearby pulp mill and the students were not allowed to play outside.
The health and environment departments were called in and it was determined there were no health risks but nevertheless, it was decided to remove the snow which has been happening all week.
The children might be allowed out to play today.
It's believed a fire in the north end last night shortly after 9 was deliberately set.
Platoon Chief Joe Armstrong says the fire at 168 Main Street North began on the outside of the vacant two storey building and that's where it was contained.
This was the second fire at that building in the last thirty days.
The last remaining part of the Boil Water Order for Saint John has been lifted.
Water tests for the residents impacted on Rothesay Avenue have been reviewed by the Department of Health and the Medical Officer of Health who have lifted the boil water order effective immediately.
If you haven't been home since last Saturday, you should run the water in your pipes to let the old water flush out.
The boil water order was necessary after a major water main break on Rothesay Avenue during last Saturday's storm.
The Fundy Region Solid Waste Commission will be entering its first-ever deficit next month due to declining amounts of garbage being dumped since the recession in 2008.
That report came from the second-ever meeting of the Fundy Regional Services Commission. Grand Bay Westfield Mayor Grace Losier tells CHSJ News she's not overly concerned, since the numbers may well stay steady--and if they don't, there's always the option of finding efficiencies within the organization or borrowing the necessary funds.
Losier says despite some important issues being raised the most recent meeting was an improvement after the first meeting of the Fundy Region Services Commission in which tension ran high between the rural areas and bigger municipalities.
It's time to show your hospital some love on Valentine's Day.
The Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation is partnering with Country 94 and the Wave to raise some money in a 12-hour broadcast on both stations.
Foundation director Victoria Clarke tells CHSJ News the aim is to tell the stories of the hospital.
She says they want to tell the stories of gratitude from our patients, of excellence and innovation from their staff and to invite people from the community to make a donation to the hospital foundation.
Country 94 and 97.3 The Wave will be broadcasting live from the Regional hospital from 6am to 6pm tomorrow.
For more info, click here
The charge laid this week against a senior provincial government official for obstruction of justice in an aquaculture investigation involving Deputy Premier Paul Robichaud's brother is raising more questions in the mind of Liberal M-L-A Victor Boudreau.
It was he who got the ball rolling when he received an anonymous letter containing an allegation which he then passed on to the RCMP. Boudreau tells CHSJ News he believes there's more to the story, adding the RCMP have not confirmed whether the investigation is over or whether more charges will be laid.
Boudreau is wondering what Premier David Alward is going to do with his Deputy Premier while all this is going on and whether the integrity of the provincial government is being harmed.
A funeral service will be held this Friday morning at 11 in St. Martins United Church for a man from West Quaco about whom a movie has been made to be released in the spring.
Craig Morrison's ordeal has been turned into a movie called "Still" starring character actor James Cromwell who played the warden in the Tom Hanks' movie "The Green Mile".
Morrison, who passed away at the age of 93, had a running battle with the New Brunswick Royal District Planning Commission about building and staying in his own home without using stamped lumber. The province charged he was not following the national building code.
How New Brunswick can elbow in on the wealth from oil and natural gas has been a major topic of conversation n the province of late.
Mayor Mel Norton is maintaining his usual spirit of optimism about Saint John's economic prospects in that arena.
The Mayor tells CHSJ News he's excited about a future where the Saint Johners who have left for out West can return to work at home. Norton says exploring the options with shale gas and a West-East oil pipeline would create well-paying, long term jobs and that's what this place desperately needs.
City Police are investigating the circumstances after a woman was tossed from a vehicle on Garden Street. She was taken to hospital to be treated for any injuries she suffered.
A drunk driver on the east side led police on a short chase of around a kilometer before being arrested but a police car did sustain a bit of damage.
A woman fell into the water down on Navy Way off Chesley Drive at the Coast Guard site as she was stepping from the wharf into a boat. That prompted a call to the fire department for help.
Platoon Chief Joe Armstrong says she might have been in the water for as long as a couple of minutes but was out by the time fire crews arrived.
She appeared to be none the worse for wear but was taken to hospital as a precaution against hypothermia.
The fire department was also later called to the Transit building on the east side for a leak of natural gas in the boiler room. The building was evacuated and aired out before the people who work inside were allowed back.
Saint John Water rescinding the Boil Water Order for all residents except for Rothesay Avenue between Russell Street and Frederick Street.
The water is now safe to drink in the North end, Millidgeville, Rockwood Park and in the Uptown/South Central Peninsula.
If you have been away from your home, it's recommended you take a few minutes to flush out the water in your plumbing.
Turn on every tap in your house and let it run for a few minutes.
This will remove water that has been sitting in the pipes while you were away drawing cleaner, fresher water into your house.
New Brunswick has a long history of beer-drinking and good times--and the oldest operating bar in the province is marking 50 years in business today.
The Chris Rock Tavern in Moncton opened back in 1963, when women weren't allowed in drinking establishments and beer magnate Derrick Oland installed the draught line himself. The name doesn't have anything to do with the famous comedian; actually, it's combination of the monikers of founders Chris Shaban and “Rocky” Stone.
Owner Wayne Woles tells CHSJ News 50 years ago you couldn't order wine, spirits or indeed anything other than beer. A quarter would buy you one bottle or two small draft, including the server's wages -- a penny per draft. Women were not allowed, and all patrons had to be seated. Operating hours were 10 a.m. to 10:45 p.m., and closed for an hour at suppertime each day as well as Sundays and holidays.
The Three Mile is arguably the oldest operating bar in Saint John, with the AQ coming in a close second.
Pleasant views and a nice residential atmosphere are some of the features being touted about a new nursing home development in Millidgeville, which would be built in part behind the Charles Gorman Arena.
Mayor Mel Norton tells CHSJ News the senior's complex has been proposed by Shannex, the same company that runs the Parkland in the Valley nursing home in Quispamsis. Norton says the proposed development would include town houses and garden homes in addition to the main complex, and would be an excellent use of a large swath of undeveloped land.
No time frame has been provided for the development yet.
For only the fourth time in nearly 600 years, a Pope will resign.
Bishop Robert Harris tells CHSJ News people are understanding of why Pope Benedict has decided to step down.
He says it's a courageous decision inspired by the spirit.
Harris says Pope Benedict is a renowned theologian and a man of prayer.
There is talk that Quebec cardinal Marc Ouellet is in the running but Bishop Harris says while Ouellet is highly respected it's just speculation at this point.
The President of the Atlantica Centre for Energy, John Herron is as enthused about the prospects of future energy growth in Saint John as former Premier Frank McKenna, who spoke to the Board of Trade.
Herron tells CHSJ News Alberta has to find other markets because the U.S. is drying up with the Americans fast becoming energy self sufficient, largely because of shale gas development.
Herron says Alberta's problem is being landlocked which makes it difficult to get oil to the fast developing Asian markets.
Herron describes himself as being optimistic a pipeline will be built to Saint John for Alberta oil but it all depends on whether western producers can get signed deals.
He also speculates such an eventuality could increase refining capacity at the Irving Oil refinery and lead to investments in petrochemicals.
Bradley Saia appeared in court this morning to answer to charges in connection with a violent November home invasion the West Side.
The 21 year old was recently nabbed in Halifax on a Canada-wide warrant. Saia is facing three charges including armed robbery, forcible entry, and masking his face to commit and indictable offence. He was also charged with obstructing an investigation by giving a false name in a separate matter.
About a dozen supporters attended the court appearance, three of which were asked to leave for attempting to gesture and mouth words to the accused. Saia elected to a trial by judge and jury, asking Mr. Justice William McCaroll that all proceedings be open to the public . The judge assured him he would "get all the publicity he needed."
Saia reappears in court on February 26th.
Employees of Saint John Transit are back at work after a strong smell of gas in the building.
It was evacuated as a precaution.
District Chief Joe Armstrong tells the fire department's detection equipment couldn't pick up any smell but it was noticeble and they think it originated from the area around the boiler.
The gas was shut off and Enbridge Gas will take care of the leak itself.
Crews from Saint John Fire remain at the Saint John Transit building on the east side after workers could smell natural gas.
The building has been evacuated as a precaution.
District Chief Joe Armstrong tells CHSJ News the smell was strong in the main boiler room and the gas has since been shut off to the building.
Crews using detection equipment have not been able to get any strong readings in the building and the smell is dissipating.
Enbridge Gas is en route to the area and Armstrong tell us they are in a holding pattern until they arrive.
The Saint John Transit building on the East side has been evacuated after a smell of gas in the building.
You can now drive along Rothesay Avenue which has been reopened to traffic after being closed following the watermain break Saturday morning.
City Police telling CHSJ News the stormy weather early last night around 7 caused something like ten collisions within half an hour and early this morning they made two arrests following a foot chase after some fishing boats at Long Wharf were broken into. A heads up for drivers later on.
NB Southern Railway will be closing Grandview Avenue at its intersection with Bayside Drive between 9 this morning and noonhour to do maintenance at its rail crossing. There will be a detour in place. Traffic flow along Bayside Drive will not be affected but local traffic only will be allowed on Grandview Avenue between Industrial Drive and Bayside Drive and you can expect to be delayed.
After the rupture of a 140-year old water main over the weekend knocked out water to the core of Saint John, updating the city's water infrastructure is a topical issue for many in the Port City.
Mayor Mel Norton met yesterday with the Premier, government ministers and MP Rodney Weston to discuss the funding options and time frame for clean drinking water. The Mayor tells CHSJ News after that tete-a-tete, support from the province on the $260-million project is looking good. The deadline for a funding commitment from the province is early April.
In the meantime, the city is drilling test wells at various groundwater sites, which could be cheaper to treat.
