News
The Fire Marshall has been called in to investigate the cause of a major fire last night on the South Shore Road in the Adolphustown – Dorland area of Greater Napanee last night. The blaze was called in around 7 pm and by the time Napanee fire crews arrived an 800 foot barn was fully involved. More than 40 firefighters were on scene and Napanee required support from the Loyalist, Stone Mills, Deseronto, and Mohawk Fire Departments to contain and suppress the massive blaze. While the barn was a total loss, fire crews were able to prevent the fire from spreading to adjacent structures. At it’s peak, the fire was visible from Prince Edward County and as far away as Kingston and Quinte West. Damage to the 160,000 square foot barn is estimated at more than $5 million dollars but no injuries to either people or animals have been reported.
A local man is facing drug and alcohol related charges after a traffic stop by Durham police in Oshawa on Saturday. Police discovered open liquor containers in the car which led to a search of the vehicle and the discovery of a significant quantity of cocaine. The 28 year old Picton resident is being held pending a bail hearing.
It looks like the new Gordie Howe International Bridge connecting Windsor and Detroit may finally open. Or not. Prime Minister Mark Carney said today that the bridge will open at the end of this week but Donald Trump cast doubt on that by repeating claims that the US owns the bridge and that it contains no US content. The bridge is in fact publicly owned by the state of Michigan and Canada and was paid for entirely by Canada but built using steel and labour from both countries. The Maroun family that owns the existing Ambassador bridge has close ties to Trump and has been lobbying for years to delay the bridge and maintain their monopoly while Democrats have threatened to investigate political interference by the US administration related to the bridge opening. Even if the new route between highway 401 and Interstate 75 does open this week it may be awhile yet before regular traffic is allowed to use the bridge.
NASA named the crew of the next mission in their program to put people on the moon earlier today. Artemis III will carry three Americans and one Italian on a low earth orbit mission to test critical systems but will not travel to the moon as Artemis II did. The team will be led by American Randy Bresnik who will be supported by Italian pilot Luca Parmitano and American mission specialists Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas. The four men will undergo additional training before Artemis III launches later this summer.
And police have arrested an Air Canada pilot who flew more than 900 flights over a period of 17 years without the proper licence. Fifty-nine year old Barrie resident Geoffrey Wall was charged with fraud after an extensive investigation by Peel Police. Wall apparently used false licences and lied to investigators and the airline about his qualifications but anomalies in his credentials were noticed by Transport Canada during a routine check last year. Air Canada said that Wall was, in fact, a fully qualified commercial copilot, but did not have a licence to act as a captain, a role he filled for 17 years. After the airline became aware of the scam they suspended Wall and conducted an audit but found no other instances of missing or false credentials.
Sports
In tennis news, Leylah Fernandez lost to Britain’s Katie Boulter today eliminating her from the first round singles competition at the HSBC Championships grass court competition in London. Fernandez was scheduled to play a doubles match later today.
Edmonton running back Justin Rankin, Montreal defensive back Robert Kennedy III and Winnipeg defensive lineman Jake Ceresna are the CFL’s week 1 players of the week. Rankin racked up 102 yards and a touchdown against Ottawa, Kennedy took a 54 yard interception in for his first touchdown against Hamilton and Ceresna had three sacks in the Bombers-Stampeders game.
Game four of the Stanley Cup finals gets underway at 8 tonight when the Las Vegas Golden Knights host the Carolina Hurricanes in Las Vegas. The Golden Knights are up two games to one in that series.
The Blue Jays play game two of a three game home stand against the Philadelphia Phill tonight. The Jays are still third in the East and one game out of a wild card spot despite continuing to play sub 500 ball. The Jays will send Dylan Cease up against Zack Wheeler for the Phillies. First pitch goes out at 7:07 in Toronto.
