Man in Custody on Attempt Murder Charge

(A section of Scott Street was blocked off due to Saturday's a lengthy stand-off between a man and police)


A man will return to Fort Frances court next Monday on several charges including attempted murder.

Richard Kabatay made an initial court appearance yesterday.

It comes following an incident in which a man was seriously injured during an assault Saturday in Fort Frances and another man barricaded himself inside a home for several hours before surrendering to police.

OPP, though, have not confirmed whether Kabatay is connected to that incident.

More Snow

Motorists across the Rainy River district are being advised to use caution when on the roads this morning.

Heavy snow blanketed the region overnight with more expected today.

Environment Canada says Atikokan snowfall totals for yesterday reached 12 centimetres.

Fort Frances received about six.

There are two school bus cancellations to report.

The Stanjikoming First Nation and the Seine River Handicap buses will not be running.

Initiatives in Place to Slow Motorist Down

Two new initiatives have been launched aimed at slowing motorists down on Fort Frances roads.

OPP Constable Anne McCoy says one seeks motorists to sign up as part of a Pace Car Initiative.

"When one signs up you make a commitment to obeying the speed limits and other rules of the road," says McCoy, "and you literally setting the example for other motorists."

The other program, "Ticket or Teaching," allows motorists caught breaking the law to avoid a ticket by attending a class showing them the importance of obeying the rules of the road.

Library Struck by Vandals

The new Fort Frances Public Library and Technology Centre has been the target of vandals.

Chief Librarian Margaret Sedgwick says some small trees and an outdoor chess table were broken while a letter was taken from its sign in recent months.

"We have such a beautiful building," says Sedgwick. "It's really disheartening to think that people have broken off some of our small birch trees and jumped on one of the chess tables."

Sedgwick says they are now looking at installing surveillance cameras in hopes of determining further acts.

They're also appealing to resident to watch over the building, especially on weekends.

F.H. Huffman Purchase Finalized

Fort Frances town council has finalized its purchase of the former F.H. Huffman School.

The $158-thousand for the purchase will come out of reserves.

Mayor Roy Avis says its still undecided what they will do with the site.

"We've lost some park space with the new library going next to the arena," says Avis. "Could be consideration for a subdivision plan. There are many things we could do with the building and council felt it was in the best interest that we purchase that property."

Avis says the town also plans to maintain and cover the costs of heating the former school.

Health Unit Accredited

The Northwestern Health Unit says its the first in the region to be accredited by the Ontario Council on Community Health Accreditation.

Alex Berry was the team lead for the accreditation process and says it took about three years to complete.

"What it really tells the community is that we have met the standards of excellence for public health in Ontario," says Berry, "and that as an organization we are committed to ongoing quality improvement and ongoing managing of our services and evaluating of ours services to know that we are doing good work."

Of the 36 health units in the province, just fourteen are accredited.