A three story apartment building on the east side catching on fire over the weekend.
Fire Department Platoon Chief Peter Saab says that when firefighters got to the scene, the building at 507 Michael Crescent was full of smoke and they found that the fire had started in the ceiling area of a bathroom in a second-floor apartment.
Crews extinguished the blaze after confining it to the bathroom, which was smoke, water and fire damaged. The building itself received some smoke damage as well.
After the smoke was cleared, the tenants were allowed to go back to their apartments. There were no injuries and the fire department is looking into what caused the blaze.
They're not pretty pictures, but neither is the city's history of tuberculosis.
Miller Brittain's chaulk murals that were supposed to go into the Saint John Tuberculosis Hospital can be seen at the museum as part of World Tuberculosis Day. Museum conservator Claire Titus tells CHSJ news that the exact reason the commissioned 9x9 foot drawings showing the suffering and treatment of people with the disease weren't constructed isn't known, whether it was money, politics, or simply that they found a cure.
The museum is commemorating the day from 12:30 until 4:30 p.m., you can meet the museum staff who are conserving the drawings, watch a presentation on the murals, and learn about the past and present of tuberculosis. You can also participate in the creation of a mural documenting the day.
A blaze engulfing and extensively damaging a bungalow on 22 Jordan Avenue in Moncton. The homeowner was outside walking her dog when the building caught fire, so she wasn't hurt.
No word from Moncton Fire Department officials on the actual cause of the fire, which is under investigation, but it looks like the flames started in the basement, gutted part of the main level and then spread into to the attic.
Common Council making a decision on Monday night on whether to go ahead with the first steps toward adopting a public private partnership for revamping the city's water utility.
Common Councillor Ray Strowbridge tells CHSJ News he has yet to hear from someone protesting a P3 who fully understands what it is — and no matter what funding model the city chooses it's still going to be the private sector that does the work.
At the end of the day, the city only makes the application — it's up to P3 Canada to accept or reject it.
Because of a snowy rampage by mother nature, the original date for the Investor's Group Skate to Care fundraiser had to be postponed. The rescheduled fundraiser is kicking off tomorrow morning at Harbour Station.
Donna Gates of the Saint John Regional Hospital Foundation tells CHSJ news that she doesn't think the rescheduling will deter skaters.
The Mind Care event raises money for multiple mental health projects in the community, including the YMCA's Rainbows program, which helps kids deal with death and divorce. This year's theme is mental health superheroes. It starts at 10 a.m. and runs until 2 p.m.
With a ton of "for rent" signs in windows and hammered into front lawns, it's clear that the supply of apartments doesn't match the demand.
Randy Hatfield, the executive director of the Human Development Council tells CHSJ news that the Harper government's renewed strategy to reduce homelessness could play a part in filling up those vacant units.
Hatfield tells us the Human Development Council will be releasing their annual homelessness report card on Wednesday. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation is reporting that the city has a vacancy rate of 9.7% for apartments, and it's forecasted to go up to 10% in the next two years.
If you were a caught cheating on your wife or husband in the early 1900s, you could have been thrown into the slammer. That tidbit coming from the museum's new presentation, the Road to Wedded Bliss.
Felicity Osepchook, head of the archives and research library tells CHSJ news that they'll be laying out all kinds of matrimonial material to the public, including snapshots, documents and video.
The full title of the presentation is called the Road to Wedded Bliss: Matrimonial Madness, Blushing Brides & Spousal Scandal, and runs until noon today.
The timing is incredible. A failure in the chlorination system forcing thousands of Saint Johners to boil their water all weekend and the news came on World Water Day. Nancy Moar from the City's Communications Department tells CHSJ News people in Millidgeville are being asked to conserve their water.
She says residents in Millidgeville will be accessing their water through a chlorinated storage tank but they are asking them to limit their usage over the weekend.
Two clear tests 24 hours apart are needed before a boil water order can be lifted.
Moar says it possible testing could begin Saturday night meaning the earliest it could be lifted is Monday. For more info on the boil water order, click here
Corrections Canada is reporting an inmate from Westmorland Institution has died after being found unresponsive in his cell.
Mr. John Allain, 70, was serving a 5-year sentence for Indecent Assault on a woman, and Sexual Interference with a woman under the age of 14. His sentence had commenced on March 6, 2012.
As in all cases where an individual dies while in custody, the police and coroner have been notified and Correctional Service Canada will be looking into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Representatives from Common Causes, the Council of Canadians, and other activist groups gatheredin King square this afternoon to protest the possibility of a public private partnership for the city's water utility.
Former Mayor Ivan Court was in attendance as the activists chanted and played drums. He tells CHSJ News P3 wasn't the only option when council examined the issue before and he doesn't understand why that has changed. Court says the new federal budget indicates there is a billion dollars available in the Canada Fund to help finance the water project. It's widely predicted that Council will decide to go ahead with the application on Monday evening's meeting.
People who criticized the previous common council's decision to build a multi-million dollar justice complex in the middle of a economic recession might have more fodder for their complaints now that the contractor who built Peel Plaza is filing a 7 million dollar lawsuit over claims of unpaid work. Former mayor and current councillor Shirley McAlary tells CHSJ News some cost overruns are to be expected in any major project, particularly when changes were made to the original work order. McAlary says the claims need to be better investigated because at this point it could be either the contractor's fault or the city's.
It's that time of year again when you light candles or sit in the dark for an hour joining the global movement that is Earth Hour.
It's aim is to draw attention to the large impact a small action can have if millions of people participate.
More than 680 employees of the City are being encouraged to take part between 830 and 930 tomorrow night. Sustainable Saint John and its 35 member businesses are also taking part.
Earthhour.org says more than 70 per cent of the world's CO2 emissions is generated by cities.
A "Lights Out" walk around Lily and Fisher Lakes in Rockwood Park is coming up tomorrow. Participants are asked to meet at the Interpretation Centre at 815pm.
The first Earth Hour was held in Sydney, Australia back in 2007 involving 2.2 million and 2100 businesses. It has grown to include 7000 cites and towns in a 152 countries across the globe switching off their lights for Earth Hour.
The city says it can't guarantee the safety of the drinking water after a failure in the chlorination system at Latimer Lake.
Without chlorine, the water isn't being disinfected so a boil water order has been issued for everyone east of Reversing Falls with the exception of part of Millidgeville.
Those water users in Millidgeville not affected live north of Spar Cove Road and Belleview Avenue, north of Millidge Avenue and Ropewalk Road as well as north of the Superstore on Somerset Street.
They're being asked to conserve their water and the city warns the boil water order might be expanded to include them as well.
Saint John M-P Rodney Weston is hoping to see more affordable housing built in the city because the Harper government, in the federal budget, is renewing its strategy to reduce homelessness. Weston says the focus will be on housing first because you can't do much of anything if you don't have a roof over your head.
Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty releasing a stay the course or hold the line budget with tight controls on spending while still projecting a balanced budget by 2015.
Saint John M-P Rodney Weston tells CHSJ News there is money available to help pay for clean drinking water with construction of a water treatment plant on the east side. Weston says whether a deal is struck this year is in the control of the city.
He adds there will also be money available for other projects, like arenas, with the indexing of the gas tax transfer to the cites. Mayor Mel Norton has said a priority for him is to build a multiplex ice surface at Long Wharf. Fundy-Royal M-P Rob Moore says families in his riding will benefit because they won't have to pay higher taxes. Moore claims a family of four is saving 32 hundred dollars a year in tax since the Conservatives assumed power federally and he's hoping to be able to make a funding announcement on the Fundy Trail soon.
Weston takes issue with the contention that transfer payments to the province will be frozen. He argues there will be more federal money for healthcare.
A second person has been arrested and is expected in court sometime today to be charged in the robbery earlier this week at Daly's on Taylor Avenue. A court appearance is expected sometime today.
The first arrest was made two days ago during the storm after a 28 year old man jumped overboard into the bay from the Princess of Acadia ferry.
A 25 year old accused of holding a woman in a home against her will has been charged with assault with a weapon, assault, mischief and forcible confinement.
Joseph Davidson 'Sheldon' Mallaley of Black's Harbour appearing in court in Saint John to answer to the charges after he was arrested in Saint George Wednesday night. St Stephen RCMP getting the call that the woman had been held at the home in Tower Hill against her will, but the man had fled and she was able to call the cops. Police say the man and the woman knew each other.
Mallaley is scheduled to appear in St. Stephen Provincial Court on March 25 for a bail hearing.
Harbour View is the only high school in the province that puts on its very own Relay for Life event to raise money for people with or impacted by cancer. Two assemblies at the school lauching the 2013 event where they hope to raise $18,000. Grade 12 student Brynn Aucoin tells CHSJ News the assemblies are the event's official kickoff.
She tells us she lost a cousin to cancer a few years and most people have been touched by cancer in some way.
Harbour View has raised over $110 thousand dollars in the 7 years they have been taking part. The school, it's students and staff will host a variety of fundraisers including bake sales and coffee houses between now and the event on May 31st at the school.
A warning from the provincial government.....while an ice jam along the Nashwaak River at Stanley Bridge has stabilized, local officials continue to monitor another ice jam is being watched down river at MacLaggan Bridge.
People living or working along streams and rivers should be on the alert for moving ice and the possibility of ice-jams which mean the water will rapidly rise.
A change in weather conditions could lead to localized flooding where drainage systems are blocked by ice and snow. You should take whatever precautions you can to guard your home against flooding at this time of year.
We think of Canada as being more racially accepting than our neighbors to the South; however, in reality there's a history of discrimination with deep roots here in Saint John.We often forget that slavery was even legal in Canada less than 200 years ago.
Randy Dickinson of the New Brunswick Human Rights Commission tells CHSJ News the YMCA used to be whites only--and the Admiral Beatty once refused to let blacks in the front door, even when those blacks were renowned jazz musicians Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. It wasn't until an employee of the Beatty named Lena O'Ree refused to show up for work until she was allowed in the front door that the discriminatory policy changed.
Today is the International Day For the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and there are number events celebrating equality planned throughout the province.
Following a City man's extended jail sentence for a prison beatdown, the union representing prison workers is raising the red flag about overcrowding. Thomas Jack was attacked by his cellmate Jeremy David in November 2011 and will never work and drive again due to the impact of his injuries. Mike Davidson of CUPE tells CHSJ News they have concerns about the current management at the provincial jail on the Old Black River road.
He says under the current management they have had a riot, an assault on an inmate and the early release of an inmate involved in a homicide.
Davidson calls overcrowding a serious issue and they haven't been too successfull with the province on resolving it. Our newsroom has an interview request into Public Safety Minister Robert Trevors for his take on things.
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is a bit uneasy about the next provincial budget that will be unveiled on Tuesday.
It's Atlantic Director Kevin Lacey fears an increase in taxes and licence fees. He tells CHSJ News to look what's happening with the property assessments which are tax increases by another name. Some homeowners are outraged by the increase they're being hit with. Lacey says it would be a mistake to roll back the 2008 tax reductions that were implemented by the previous Liberal government under then Premier Shawn Graham.
Those tax cuts are seen by some, including Rod Hill of U-N-B Saint John who ran for the NDP, as making the provincial deficit worse and not achieving the economic growth that was hoped for.
More information has been released about the seizure of a package containing unauthorized items on the perimeter of the minimum security Westmorland Institution at Dorchester.
The prison service estimates the contents of the package have an institutional value of more than 30 thousand dollars.
Police have been called in and the Correctional Service is also investigating.
The Correctional Service says the methods it utilises to control the flow of drugs into prisons include ion scanners and drug dogs to search buildings, prisoners and visitors.
The "Y" will be opening up a new Child Care location on the west side. St. Mark's United Church will be the new home for "Y" Child Care to provide preschool programming for children between the ages of 2 and 5 years from Monday to Friday. Full time and part time spaces are now available.
The early learning programs are modeled after the NB Early Learning and Child Care curriculum and the highly regarded YMCA Playing to Learn program.
We're told by the "Y" space is also available in the after school program at Barnhill Memorial School with arts, crafts, organized games, learning centres and sports.
Volunteers are being sought for the Day Care Centre. Adults and seniors interested in interacting with children and assisting with their development are encouraged to contact the Y.
For additional information call the Y at 646-2111.
Slim pickings at our local food banks, with donations hitting a yearly low. But Dianne Daigle, who manages the clothing room and emergency food service for Romero House, says demand, on the other hand, is sky-high.
She tells CHSJ news that because of pricey winter heating bills, people simply don't have the cash to buy groceries.
Daigle says they're always looking for canned milk, pasta and kids snacks. To donate, you can drop off food at the door at 647 Brunswick Drive , or if you're unable to get there, you can call Romero House at 642-7447 and a truck driver will pick up the items.
If you've been seeing a lot of notifications lately for something called Facebook Black, don't be fooled. It's actually a scam which can hijack your account and use it to spam your friends.
The scam happens when you click wall post with a link stating you can change the color of your Facebook theme from blue to black. After clicking the post, the user is then directed to a website that claims they can change their Facebook color to any color they want. The user is persuaded to click a button that says Change Your Color, and then the site hijacks the used Facebook account and installs a virus to your computer.
At the end of the day, your Facebook colour won't change. If you've fallen for the scam change your password right away and let your Facebook friends know not to click on it.
Thick black smoke and flames could be seen coming from a garage on the east side this morning.
Saint John Fire crews responding to the fire at Crowe's Auto Body on Grandview Avenue.
Platoon chief Eric Garland tells us no one was in the garage at the time or in the nearby house.
He tells crews took an aggressive exterior attack because no one was inside the building not wanting to take a chance on what hazardous materials might be inside.
Garland says they did have concerns about propane tanks in the building but its unclear what caused an explosion but he does not think it was the acetylene. A fire investigator is looking into the cause.
Mispec has been pretty storm-damaged and hard for families to enjoy for a few years now; however, that's going to change as of May 1.
Common Councillor Ray Strowbridge tells CHSJ News the sea wall and walking trails will be repaired, changing and bathrooms will be installed at the East Side beach. The old, cracked asphalt will also be torn up and replaced with gravel.
Since much of the damage was caused by storms, the project qualified for disaster relief funding as well as money from the province.
It's a heck of a way to celebrate the first day of spring.
One man with a warrant out for his arrest decided to risk a swim the frigid waters of the Bay of Fundy--in a blizzard, no less--rather than get arrested.
The man was on the Digby Ferry this morning when he was approached by police looking to collar him for robbing Daly's in the north end earlier this week.
According to Staff Sergeant Mike King he then jumped overboard and had to be rescued from the water. He was checked over in an ambulance but didn't appear to have sustained any injuries. He did, however, need to be brought some dry clothes.
Fire crews are working to knock down a blaze at Crowe's Auto Body which is 1720 Grandview Avenue. Black smoke is visible and some wires are reportedly down.
Crews received that call around 11am to the large working garage with 3 vehicles still inside. The bulk of the fire is knocked down, but there is some still in the roof area they're working to control.
According to early reports there are some acetylene and oxygen tanks in the garage but no propane making it impossible for crews to go in. No one was inside at the time.
Crews are working to open up the roof and vent the building's attic space.
The RCMP getting a 9-1-1 call around 10 last night about a robbery occurring at the Kingston General Store on Route 845 on the Peninsula.
Two men left with an undisclosed amount of cash after confronting the clerk who wasn't hurt but she was tied up with duct tape. The RCMP set up several checkpoints and checked all vehicles coming off of the Gondola Point and Grand Bay-Westfield ferries in an effort to nab the two.
Anyone with information about the holdup to contact Hampton RCMP at 832-5566 or Crimestoppers at www.crimenb.ca or 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
A whopping five trophies going to the Sea Dogs' goaltender. Sebastian Auger getting half of the awards given out at the team's awards banquet. Auger tells CHSJ news that this year hasn't been a breeze for the team, but the hurdles didn't knock the dogs off their feet. Team captain Pierre Durepos winning two awards. He tells CHSJ news that the team is gearing up to hit the ice against the Halifax Mooseheads on Friday, the first game of this year's playoffs. He says they've been practicing hard, and says, "Hopefully we can make a little bit of noise." Alpine Three Stars Award: Sebastian Auger Pepsi Top Scorer Award: Jacob Izacky Scotiabank Community Service Award: Jason Cameron Saint John Airport Academic Athlete of the Year: Pierre Durepos Tim Hortons Most Improved Player Award: Sebastian Auger Irving Oil Team Player Award: Sebastian Auger Sun Life Global Investments Top Defenceman: Pierre Durepos Grant Thornton Rookie of the Year Award: Stephen Anderson and Olivier LeBlanc Children's Wish Foundation Fan Choice Award: Sebastian Auger Bell Aliant Most Valuable Player: Sebastian Auger
The first official day of spring comes in with a bang as a winter storm moves through the province from the Gulf of Maine.
All schools in the Anglophone South School District from Sussex to St. Stephen are closed today because of the storm. All schools in Francophone South, which includes Samuel de Champlain, are closed as well.
Cindy Vallis of Environment Canada tells CHSJ News, as of early this morning, ten centimeters of snow had fallen with another five to ten centimeters still to come, mostly this morning before tapering off to flurries this afternoon. She hasn't seen any sign of freezing rain or ice pellets in the mix but the snowfall warning remains in effect.
A Saint John man has been sentenced to 3 and a half more years in jail after a fight in jail left another man with a traumatic brain injury.
The court heard 36 year old Jeremy Abram David already had a string of thefts and assaults on his record when he got into a fight with his cellmate, Thomas Jack. He pleaded guilty to kicking Jack in the head three times then attempting to hide from the guards why the man was unresponsive.
Jack suffered a traumatic brain injury and will not be able to work or drive again.
David was also charged with possession and breaking a court order which were factored into his sentence.
A couple of Greater Saint John athletes will be inducted into the Provincial sports hall of fame this year.
John Steele of Rothesay gets the nod after a golf career spanning more than 75 years. He is the only golfer to win the New Brunswick/ Prince Edward Island junior golf championship back in 1938. With six holes inone to his name and still scoring less than 100 at age 92, Steele continues to impress on the links.
Dean Hitchcock of Saint John was instrumental in the Canadian Senior's Volleyball Team from 1977 to 1984, helping it win a bronze medal at the 1979 Pan-American Games. He was named to the he Volleyball Canada Hall of Fame in 2001.
The other nominees include 1987-88 Campbellton Tigers who won the Hardy Cup in 1988 and George LeFeuvre of Jemseg who has been involved with cross-country skiing for almost 40 years.
The members will be inducted during a ceremony at Dalhousie Regional High on June 8.
Don't put away your parka just yet. Tomorrow might be the first day of Spring, but we're getting a blast of Winter weather tonight.
Doug Mercer from the Atlantic Storm Prediction Centre tells CHSJ news that a storm system will be making its way up into the southwest corner between late afternoon and early evening.
He says the snowfall will be fairly widespread, but the province's southwest and central areas will be hit the hardest. There's going to be 15-20 centimetres of snow.
Island View School is in the running for a $20,000 outdoor classroom as part of the Majesta Trees of Knowledge contest. The school is one of 10 finalists across the country. Principal Mark Blucher says the money would be used to build a central amphitheater and smaller individual learning spaces.
He says the prize is based on popular vote and they are encouraging everyone to vote not only their students but parents too.
Voting is underway now and goes until April 26th.
If they win, Blucher tells us they will find out by late May.
Some concerned citizens aren't buying the idea that a public private partnership--or P3--could create jobs and cut costs when it comes to revamping the city's water treatment facility.
Andrew Graham of Common Causes tells CHSJ News Saint John has the oldest municipally-owned water system in Canada and it makes sense to keep it that way. He says by enlisting the help of multi-national corporations we're effectively ensuring any cost-savings or efficiencies we find trickle out of the province. Dustin Bowers tells us he doubts it would be less expensive, saying any big company will be concerned with profit margin first, and delivery of quality services second. Meanwhile City Manager Pat Woods has said there's widespread confusion about exactly what a P3 means, because it's certainly not the same as privatization.
It's rare that Partridge Island is the site of so much activity.
Uptown dwellers may have noticed that the deserted former quarantine station is getting a number of visits from helicopters from yesterday through today.
They're delivering construction equipment to replace the generator for the island's 54-year-old lighthouse.
There hasn't been a lighthouse keeper on the island since the 1980s and the historic foghorn was decommissioned back in 1999.
The maintenance trips are expected to last through today.
27-year-old Caleigh Dawn Shea of Saint John pleading not guilty in a case of a baby being left outside in the January cold.
The baby was found in its carrier in the uptown although Shea has called the entire situation a misunderstanding. Her lawyer, Brian Munro is accusing the prosecution of overreacting
The case has been set over until April 11 at 9:30am.
Crime Stoppers and the RCMP are still trying to identify the body of baby boy found near Salisbury almost four years ago.
The baby boy nicknamed 'Baby Taylor' was discovered in a snow bank on Taylor Road near Monteagle on April 4, 2009. Police believe the body could have been left near the remote logging road anytime between October 2008 and March 2009.
Despite tips from the public and an ongoing police investigation, Baby Taylor's parents have not been identified.
You can provide info through Crime Stoppers and information that helps to solve this case could qualify you for a cash award of up to $2,000.
It's twice the size of Harbour Cleanup, and would mean investment of nearly a quarter of a billion dollars in the community. The issue? Clean drinking water, a project which the city is currently investigating how to fund.
So far city staff appear to be favouring a public private partnership, or P3, which it's claimed could save as much as $84.5 million if no funding is available under a traditional model.
Mayor Mel Norton tells CHSJ News nothing is written in stone unless the numbers add up and the business case is solid; however, the project would be impossible without the $50 million contribution from P3 Canada.
Norton stresses the project could well be the biggest in Saint John's 228-year history, and as such could mean the creation of new jobs. He also wants to debunk the assertion we would no longer own the water, contrary to the claims of local activist groups.
The project is expected to be completed by 2018 and the construction contracts would be awarded next year. Common councildecides whether to take the inaugural steps toward a P3 next Monday.
Everything is back to normal along highway 1 near Spruce Lake after a tanker flipped over onto the median yesterday morning.
The highway was reopened to traffic late last night after 14 thousand litres of propane was transferred from the tanker. The fire department reporting there was no leakage or injuries.
Meantime, a warning for drivers if you're out east today.......You might run into traffic delays at the intersection of Rothesay Avenue and Russell Street because of work being done on the One Mile Interchange.
Common Causes hosting a rally happening today at Loyalist Plaza outlying their opposition against a public private partnership to pay for clean drinking water.
Common Council will be discussing the matter at tonight's meeting, which starts starts at 6pm.
Provincial NDP leader Dominic Cardy says his hands are already too full to be running in the Kent County byelection....nevertheless he tells CHSJ News he there are several strong candidates who will soon be making their names known.
He says it's just over a year until the provincial election and he is working to build a party province-wide and it's really work on the leader can do.
Cardy tells us since Kent is historically such a Liberal stronghold he understands why Liberal leader Brian Gallant has decided to run.
The Mounties and the Provincial Fire Marshal are looking into a house fire on Queensway Way in St. Stephen early this morning.
RCMP and firefighters from St. Stephen and Calais responded just after midnight. The only person living in the two-storey home saw the fire in a porch area at the rear of the home, but couldn't put it out and went to find help from his neighbours.
The cause of the blaze is considered suspicious. Anyone with information is asked to contact the St. Stephen RCMP or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
