Local News

GATINEAU, QC, March 2 /CNW/ - The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has deployed a team to today's derailment in Morrisburg, Ontario. TSB senior Rail investigator Tom Griffith is the Investigator-in-Charge and is leading the team. He is accompanied by four TSB investigators.

On 02, March, 2010, at approximately 14:20 local time, a freight train was involved in an accident.

The TSB is an independent agency that investigates marine, pipeline, railway and aviation transportation occurrences. Its sole aim is the advancement of transportation safety. It is not the function of the Board to assign fault or determine civil or criminal liability.

MORRISBURG–There’s a new club in town!

Calling all youth, ages 12 to 18 years. The Morrisburg and District Lions Club is in the process of establishing a LEO Club and is looking for youth who are interested in “making a difference” in their community.

“We have six members now, and we’ll take on as many as we can get,” says Lions Club president Keith Robinson. “We are setting up a LEO Club to provide the youth in our community the opportunity to get involved in volunteerism.”

WILLIAMSBURG – The report stemming from a $4,600 review of council compensation was accepted but shelved at the Feb., 16 South Dundas council meeting.

The MacCrimmon & Associates report was presented at the last regular council meeting.

“It provides some good information,” said South Dundas councillor Del Jones, although he pointed out that some of the consultant’s comparisons were a little misleading.

WILLIAMSBURG – “It’s not too often we get an opportunity like this,” said South Dundas councillor Del Jones, concerning the Ontario Visual Heritage project proposal to create a documentary on this history of the McIntosh apple.

Councillor Jones, South Dundas mayor Robert ‘Rowdy’ Gillard and South Dundas economic development officer Linda Wilson attended the Feb.., 11 meeting which introduced the project to the community. Jones reported back to the other members of South Dundas council at the Feb., 16 regular council meeting.

WINCHESTER – From the outside, Winchester District Memorial Hospital appears to be a shining example of a state of the art community hospital ready to position itself as a regional centre for health care, but what’s on the inside matters too.

Realizing this, Hospital CEO Trudy Reid and the board have taken steps to ensure that the heart of the hospital, its 178 employees, are also industry leaders.

They want WDMH staff to lead health care in bucking the trend of workplace employee stress that runs rampant throughout the industry today.

“Now that everything’s built, what we need is to invest in our people,” said Reid at a Feb. 18 press conference.

Reid explained that rather than react to the province-wide trends, this hospital decided to invest first in finding out exactly what issues are impacting staff at this rural, community hospital.

The Ontario Visual Heritage Project (OVHP) is producing a documentary to share this local history with the province, the nation, even the world.

OVHP director and coordinator Zach Melnick, producer Yvonne Drebert and researcher William Darfler, made a presentation at the McIntosh Inn last Thursday.

Among the local politicians, area organization representatives and history buffs who attended the meeting was the great, great granddaughter of John McIntosh, Nancy McIntosh.

Melnick plans for the high definition documentary, to commemorate the discovery of the McIntosh apple by John McIntosh in 1811, to be released in time for the 200th anniversary of the discovery.

“The story of the McIntosh’s bumpy rise to prominence from a single tree found by John while clearing a farm near Dundela in Eastern Ontario to become the dominant apple variety in North America is a little-known adventure that has the opportunity to become a major source of pride for Canadians,” said Melnick. “The 200th anniversary of this discovery is fast approaching, and now is the time to bring this unique story into the public through a dynamic documentary produced by the non-profit Ontario Visual Heritage Project.”

“There is surprisingly little recorded about this,” said Darfler. He explained that OVHP happened upon the story by accident. “It’s a complex story that I have never seen written together in one place.”

“This is a profound story, and I hope we can do it justice,” added Melnick.

He said this type of little-known Ontario story may have a big reach. When mentioning that big reach, making the connection between the locally discovered fruit and the popular brand of Apple computer was in the minds of some at the meeting.

This project, estimated to cost $125,000, would likely be broadcast on TV Ontario. OVHP will seek funding through various sources and is looking to raise $10,000 locally for the project.

The documentary would be supported by a web site promoting the McIntosh apple’s story, and a course guide connecting the project to the Ontario Curriculum. DVDs and Blu-ray discs will then be distributed for free into all schools in Eastern Ontario, and made available for sale throughout the province.

Melnick explained that this project would have a community-focussed production model. There will be opportunities for local input through the formation of a community-based committee and the use of local actors and local sites for shooting.

To date, the Ontario Visual Heritage Project has partnered with hundreds of non-profits, municipalities, and First Nations to produce 11 historical documentaries, 11 web sites and numerous course guides and DVDs that have been distributed to thousands of Ontario schools, museums and tourist centres.

For more information on the Ontario Visual Heritage Project, www.visualheritage.ca

MORRISBURG (NHL Alumni Assoc.) – NHL Alumni, led by hockey legends Doug Jarvis, Dan Daoust, Mark Napier, and many more will take it to the local Law Enforcement All-stars in an exciting and entertaining game to raise money for Special Olympics Ontario.

This entertaining game for the whole family includes an exciting skills competition, hilarious on-ice gags and some of the most highly profiled former players in the NHL, performing at Morrisburg Arena Feb., 19  at 7 p.m.

MORRISBURG  – Following in a tradition over four years old, several local churches have joined together to present a unique and exciting Ecumenical Ash Wednesday Youth Day on Wednesday, February 17, open to all area children ages 4-18. This year’s Youth Day will be centred in St. James Anglican Church in Morrisburg, and will run from 8:30 a.m. until 3:15 p.m.

The theme for this 2010 Ash Wednesday Youth Day gathering is “Jesus is the Light of the World.”

STAMPVILLE – Users of the Stampville Centre have been given notice that the municipally-owned building will be permanently closed as of September 1, 2010.

The two main users groups in the facility are the Upper Canada Quilters Guild and First Iroquois Scouts.

According to South Dundas chief administrative officer Stephen McDonald, township staff have been in contact with the users groups to make them aware of the pending closure.