Students Earn Visit to South America

Two Confederation College students from the Fort Frances area are looking to further their education opportunities in Chile and Brazil.

Kristina Webb and Sherry Sinclair have been chosen to take part in a summer studies program.

They'll be learning Spanish and Portuguese while teaching English and volunteering on a number of projects.

They're now working to raises money for the trip.

The first year students of the Police, Security and Investigations program will hold a spaghetti dinner next Tuesday at the East End Hall to raise funds for the trip.

Campbell Urge Continued Pressure on Health Minister

Residents are being urged to keep up the pressure on Ontario's Health Minister for changes that resolves a doctor shortage in Rainy River.

Kenora-Rainy River MPP Sarah Campbell says assurances from Deb Matthews that the Rainy River Health Centre's emergency room won't close when the lone doctor leaves is not a complete fix to the problem.

Campbell says a letter campaign started by residents in Rainy River needs to continue to bring more long-term solutions.

Osisko Seeks Public Input

Osisko Mining is exploring the environmental and socio-economic impacts of its planned gold mine near Atikokan.

The company held open houses in Atikokan and Fort Frances on the weekend to gather public input.

Spokesperson Alexandra Drapack says they're working towards completion of a feasibility study.

The company is also undergoing environmental assessment processes with both the federal and provincial governments.

Wage Hike Ups Council Earnings

An increase in salaries helped push up the amount paid out to members of Fort Frances town council last year.

A total of $135-thousand was earned by Mayor Roy Avis and the six councillors through salaries, conference expenses and per diems.

That's about $10-thousand higher that 2010, mostly because of a salary bump approved at the beginning of the four-year term.

Weather Records Set on Weekend

Spring like weather led to records across northwestern Ontario and Koochiching County on the weekend.

Fort Frances' Saturday temperature of 14.4 C surpassed the old mark of 11.1 C set in 1977

Highs of 16.2 C on Sunday in both the Fort and Atikokan shattered previous records set four year ago.

Temperature of 59 F on Saturday and 61 F Sunday were also records for International Falls.

Some Campsites Won't Open

Some campsites within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area won't be open this spring because of a forest fire last year.

The U.S. Forest Service expects as many as 76 campsites on 23 lakes to be unavailable in a hangover from last year's big Pagami Creek fire.

Standing scorched trees and burned latrines among issues still be addressed.

Kony Video Spurs Local Action

A campaign to raise global awareness of a brutal Central Africa rebel leader is gaining attention in Fort Frances.

Dexter Fischuk, who heads the high school group Fort Frances Mobilizers, formerly Saving Faces, says they're initiating a poster campaign to help educate residents about militia leader Joseph Kony.

Fischuk says their action was spurred by a You-Tube video that's attracting millions of viewers each day.

Another Award Nomination for Wilde

More accolades for Atikokan blue's artist Sunday Wilde.

Her Album "What man? Oh THAT man!!!" has been nominated for a Northern Ontario Music and Film in Motions Award.

The winners will be announced April 28 in Sudbury

Highway to Close

A section of Highway 602 near Fort Frances will be closed later this summer.

The Ministry of Transportation intends to replace a culvert located just north of the Bone Road sometime in July or August.

It's looking at installing a modular type system similar to one put in place last year at Wolf Creek, south of Emo.

The work would force Highway 602 between the Bone Road and Oakwood Drive to be closed for two to three weeks.

Atikokan CEO Find New Job

Atikokan is losing its Chief Administrative Officer.

Andre Morin is taking on a position with the city of Stratford at the end of April.

Mayor Dennis Brown says council will discuss how to replace him at its meeting Monday.

Morin has been with the town for the past eight years, initially hired on as its treasurer.

Men Charges in Illegal Gun Trade Investigation

Four men from the Rainy River district have been charged following a four-month police investigation into the illegal transfer of firearms in northwestern Ontario.

Treaty Three Police with the OPP's Provincial Weapons Enforcement Unit, began their probe last November.

The men,  two from Manitou Rapids, one from Barwick and another from Couchiching face a variety of charges.

Police says more charge are pending.

MNR Fighting Invasive Species on Border Waters

The Ministry of Natural Resource says it works regularly with their counterparts in Minnesota in dealing with invasive species impacting border waters in this area.

Spokesperson Michelle Novak says the MNR is also very active with its own initiatives.

Koochiching County commissioners said last week it want more cooperation between the Ontario and Minnesota agencies in protecting the waters from invasive species.

Liberal Cheating with Grad Rates

The opposition parties accuse the Liberals of cheating for saying Ontario's high school graduation rate is 82 per cent because they include students who take five years to finish.

N-D-P Leader Andrea Horwath says the real grad rate under a four year program is really 73 per cent.

Ontario has had a four-year high school curriculum since 2003.

Steggeman Visit

A Canadian entrepreneur says you don't have to be an international conglomerate or a national government to affect change.

That was one of the message's delivered by Barb Steggeman in Fort Frances Thursday.

Steggeman, who launched her perfume business from her home, says it' not always  about making money.

Steggeman's visit coincided with International Women's Day, a day she used two years ago to launch her company.

A Warm February

Environment Canada is backing local observations that February was warmer than usual.


Spokesperson Chantale Cerny says in fact it was the warmest February in more than a decade.


Temperatures were about 4 degrees above the monthly norm.


Snow falls amounts in the district ranged between 25 and 40 centimetres, a normal, Cerny says, for the month.

Hospital Not Closing -Health Minister

Ontario's Health Minister has given assurances that the Rainy River Health Centre's emergency room will not close when the town loses its only doctor next month.

Mayor Deb Ewald says Deb Matthews made the remark during her visit with the Minister last week in Toronto.

Ewald says she didn't get an answer to resolving the town's doctor shortage, but didn't expect to get one at that meeting.

The town wants the Health Ministry to consider a different funding formula that's more attractive to doctors to work in small communities where patient volumes are low.

The town's last remaining doctor is ending his practice April 16.

School Board Expresses Concern with Fuel Prices for Bussing

The Rainy River District School Board wants government to ensure fuel prices in the district are reflected in the rates used in contracts with school bus operators.

That rate is based on a comparison of prices across northern Ontario.

Chair Mike Lewis says it's based on a 98 cent a litre price when local operators are paying closer to $1.30 a litre.

Lewis says government currently does not include prices from the district in its comparison.

Fort Frances Supportive of Registry

Fort Frances is being hailed a leader in a campaign to get a million Ontarians signed to an organ and tissue donor registry.

The Torch of Life passed through yesterday.

Coordinator George Marcello says the town was the first to pass a proclamation supporting the registry.

The registry can be found on the Torch of Life's website.

Koochiching County Looks for State Money

Koochiching County is seeking 12-million dollars from the State of Minnesota bonding bill for its gasification project.

County Commissioner Mike Hanson says the project does has a high ranking by Governor Mark Dayton.

The project proposes to generate energy by burn waste wood and garbage

Possible Gold Deposit Identified

Another possible large gold deposit has been identified in the Rainy River district.

Fairmont Resources believes it's identified, through an aerial survey, property to the east of Atikokan that has similarities to Osisko's Hammond Reef gold project.

Fairmont is planning to follow up on its findings with a drilling project to start this month.

Death Related to End of Oxycontin Reported

A user of Oxycontin in Northwestern Ontario is dead as the result of a possible overdose of a replacement prescription drug.

Regional Coroner Dr. Michael Wilson says the man was prescribed a higher dose of the substitute drug than he should have received.

Wilson wouldn't say where in the region the incident occured.

He is recommending better communication between physicians and pharmacists.

Water Quality Meeting in International Falls

Efforts to improve water quality of Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake will be a focus of attention at a conference today in International Falls.

Researchers and Scientists who will attend,are favourable of the International Joint Commission recommendations.

Todd Sellars of the Lake of the Woods Water Sustainability Foundation says they bode well for the watershed's future.

The IJC's report still needs approval from the Canada and the U.S governments.

Student Trust Land Legislation Worrisome

Koochiching County is worried about the State halting payment in lieu of taxes on so-called student trust lands within the county.

County Land Commissioner Dennis Hummitzch says its part of legislation to change how those lands set up to generate funds for education are managed.

A third of those lands in Minnesota are located within Koochiching County.

Hummitzch says if the legislation goes ahead, the County would lose over half a million dollars.

New Manager Ready for Post

The new Community Services Manager for Fort Frances wants to wait until he's on the job before considering what changes, if any, he'll bring to the position.

Jason Kabel will take over the retiring George Bell April 9.

Kabel makes the move after working in the telecommunications sector for several years.

Torch Run Today

A run to raise awareness of organ and tissue donation makes it way through Fort Frances today.

Members of Step-by-Step will begin the Torch of Life run at Canada Safeway at 10:30 a.m. ending at the Civic Centre at 11:30 a.m..

Members of the public are encouraged to participate.

Uploading Audit Questioned

Fort Frances council is wondering how it's going to explain to government how its using the savings received from the uploading of social services costs.

The Drummond Report suggested municipalities will have to account for those savings.

But Treasurer Laurie Witherspoon says she's not sure how it's going to be done in their case because the town has never seen any of the saving directly.

The province says the town is suppose  to see more than $500-thousand in savings this year alone.

Border Numbers Up

The number of people across the border at Fort Frances was up in January.

The Canada Border Services Agency says more than 50-thousand people in 29-thousand vehicle passed the border in January.

That's a 6 per cent increase in travellers and a 6.5 per cent increase in the number of vehicles compared to January of last yeaer.

Budget Discussions Done.

Some residential ratepayers in Fort Frances can expect an a tax increase of almost 2.5 per cent this year.

Town councillors completed their discussions on the budget last night.

Mayor Roy Avis says it's about as low as they could have gone.

The town will also spend $4.4 million on the capital projects.

Final approval of the budget will come later this month.

DSSAB Dollars Watched

Fort Frances town council will be paying close attention to the amount of money they have to pay to the District's Social Services Administration Board.

A more than $2-million expenditure includes an extra $82-thousand for land ambulance costs if patients must be moved from Rainy River due to its ongoing doctor shortage.

Councillor Paul Ryan doesn't think it should be paid out right way because there's no closure right now.

The town will also ask that the extra levy be is clearly identifed on invoices to ensure it doesn't become a permanent expense.

New Community Services Manager Named

A one-time high school teacher has been named the new community services manager for the town of Fort Frances.

Jason Kabel takes over from the retiring George Bell April 9th.

Kabel started his career as a teacher a Fort Frances High School before relocating to Winnipeg where he became general manager of a techology firm.

He returned to the community a few years working as a contractor for Tech Telcom.

He's also working toward a master's of Business Administration degree.

Coffee Shop Offer

Fort Frances is being eyed as the potential location for another coffee and donut shop.

An offer to establish an outlet of a well-known but unnamed National franchise chain is being made through the on-line site Kijiji.

The offer includes complete training and financing to qualified candidates.

Job Centre Cuts Defended

FedNor Minister Tony Clement is standing by a government decision to cut funding for summer student job centres.

Clement was in Thunder Bay yesterday and says they're offering the same services online.

Clement says there's no need for overhead costs of operating actual offices during the summer.

School Rankings Up in Fraser Report

Schools in the Rainy River district are seeing some improvement in their rankings by the Fraser Institute.

They're still in the middle of the pack compared with their counterparts in southern Ontario.

The Institute's Michael Thompson says whether it's a trend is hard to tell.

J.W. Walker School in Fort Frances ranks highest among area schools based on the results of standardize test scores.

Joint-Committee Supported

The Fort Frances Police Services Board has a clearer understanding on its role in the selection of an OPP detachment commander.

Speaking to the board Friday, OPP Superintendent Ron Van Straalen (STRAW-lenn) says the selection committee has to be a partnership between police, Atikokan and Fort Frances.

[CLIP] 6 seconds OC: everybody else

OPP are in the midst of selecting a new detachment commander for the Rainy River area.

Drugs Taken Off Streets

A busy month for members of the OPP's Fort Frances Community Drug Action Team.

Six people were arrested on drug offences as police seized oxycontin, oxycocet, ectasy, and marijuana in five separate incidents.

Among them, a 25-year-old Emo man who was picked up by police as he exited the Rainy River Post office carrying a parcel sent from British Columbia that contained a quanity of marijuana and cannabis resin.

Transport Driver Charged in Accident

A 40-year-old Thunder Bay man has been charged with driving with impaired following an accident last week near Atikokan.

A tractor trailer unit ended up in the ditch last Tuesday morning on Highway 11.

The driver will appear in court in April.

Help Wanted in Break-In Investigation

OPP in Fort Frances are seeking the public's help in solving a break in that occurred in Rainy River in December.

Police say a pair of gold earrings, a black IPOD and a black flip phone were taken from the home on Second Street back on December 30th.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crimestoppers.

Fort Fails to Reach Hockeyville Finals

Fort Frances failed to make the final list in Kraft's Hockeyville search.

The top 15 finalists were announced Saturday.

It was the first time Fort Frances had been nominated.

Question of the Week - March 5

The Fun in the Sun Committee has been forced to curtail plans for Canada Day in Fort Frances because of a lack of volunteers.

Will you miss events not being held?

Let us know on our website www.931theborder.ca

Last week, 74 per cent of respondents said nutritional guidelines on restaurant menus would not force them to make healthier selections?

Warm and Dry Winter in International Falls

The winter season is turning out to be one of the least snowiest on record for International Falls.

The National Weather Service out of Duluth says a total of 37 inches of snow has fallen in the Falls so far, making it the 58th least snowiest.

The average temperature is 17-point-4 degrees F, more than 9 degrees above normal, making it the second warmest winter to date.

Robocall Probe

Elections Canada says it is reviewing more than 31-thousand complaints about so-called robocalls placed during the May federal election campaign.

The agency says the complaints have been pouring in over the last few weeks as the result of MPs and political parties calling on the public to send information.

The agency won't comment on the specifics around the calls, including where they're from.

Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP John Rafferty told CFOB News earlier this week that he had not heard of such calls in his riding.

Canada Day Committee Stops Work

The group tasked with organizing Canada Day celebrations in Fort Frances is ended its planning.

Organizers with Fun in the Sun says they received a couple of responses to calls for more help, but not enough to continue the group any further.

The July 1st fireworks will still go, depending on funding.

A mini king and queen contest and a volleyball tournament, organized separately, will also likely proceed.

The Committee says it will leave the planning of any other events, including the parade, to others interested.

Job Bank Down

The federal government is taking some heat for its on-line job bank being down.

Human Resources Development Canada shut the site down because of what it describes as a serious security issue effecting a limited number of federal employee accounts.

Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP John Rafferty says the length of the shutdown is not acceptable.

There's been no indication as to when the site may be back on line.

Heritage Fund in Place

Premier's not saying if the Drummond Report will have any effect on funding levels for the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund.

Speaking in Thunder Bay yesterday, Dalton McGuinty would only commit to keeping it in existence.

The fund currently has an annual budget of $100-million.

Nurses Have Plan to Improve Health Care

An Ontario nurses union says it has a plan that will improve health care at a reduced cost.

David McNeil of the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario says their proposal includes creating more nurse practitioner-led clinics especially in northern Ontario.

The nurse's union  pitched their ideas to the Health Minister and a number of MPPs in Toronto Thursday.

Teacher Pay-Freeze Sought

The Ontario government wants to hold the line on teacher's salaries.

A Liberal party circular indicates provincial negotiators will seek a two-year wage freeze and an end to an expensive sick-day perk in their upcoming talks with teachers unions.

Four-year contracts for the province's 115-thousand teachers end in August.

Cooperation on Invasive Species Controls Sought

Koochiching County is worried Minnesota and Ontario aren't working closer enough to protect the area's border waters from invasive species.

Minnesota's Department of Natural Resources will conduct boat inspections on its side of the Rainy Lake and Rainy River this year.

Koochiching County Commissioner Wade Paveleck says it should be a joint effort with Ontario's Ministry of Natural Resources.

Paveleck says agencies on both sides of the border have worked together on other initiatives, but nothing related to invasive species.

Hunting Draws Now Done On-line

The Ministry of Natural Resources is making big game draws for Deer, Elk, and Moose available online.

Spokesperson John Cooper says hunters who feel uncomfortable using the Internet can apply through a telephone hot line or in person at Service Ontario locations.

Cooper says the MNR is no longer accepting applications through the mail.

Official Election Results Now Released

Officials results from last October's provincial election have finally been released.

There's no change to the numbers in Kenora-Rainy River won by the NDP's Sarah Campbell.

Poll-by-poll results do show her greatest support was from the Rainy River district, Dryden, Sioux Lookout and remote First Nations communities.

Robocall Allegations in Provincial Election

Some of the alleged dirty tricks featuring automated calling machines used in the federal election are said to have surfaced in the campaign for last October's provincial election.

 The Ontario Liberals, who were reduced to a minority government, say they were targeted in several ridings with so-called robocalls to voters.

Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak said his party had not heard any complaints targeting Tory candidates, nor did they engage in any of the dirty tricks.

Elections Ontario refuses to say if there were any complaints filed about dirty tricks during the campaign.

Premier Visit

Premier Dalton McGuinty comes to northwestern Ontario today.

He's in Thunder Bay where he'll tour the Thunder Bay Regional Research Institute and visit the Northern Ontario School of Medicine.