Ministry Suggests Water Meters

The Ministry of Environment is recommending the town of Fort Frances install water meters in all homes and businesses.

It's comes out of a recent inspection of the town's water system that found it met all regulations and had no problems.

Along with water metres, the Ministry also suggests the need for a back-up generator at the water treatment plant.

Budget Meeting Attracts Little Interest

There was little interest from the public to a meeting last night on the town of Fort Frances 2012 budget.

A 20 minute presentation was given with only one other person in the audience other than the media.

Council is expected to give formal approval next month to the budget that includes a 2.49 per cent tax levy increase.

Reunion Meeting

A group planning a reunion of Fort Frances residents, past and president, in 2013, is in need of some manpower.

Dave Ashworth says they're holding a meeting tonight in hopes of attracting the interest of local residents.

The meeting at the La Place Rendezvous begins at 6:30 p.m.

There is also a video link to this meeting by clicking www.anytimemeeting.com/ReunionFort1.

Staff Training

Some staff with the Northwest Catholic District School Board will be getting some training around students with mental health needs.

The board is using a $20-thousand provincial grant to send its special education teachers, principals, vice-principals and others to a training program offered by the Canadian Mental Health Association.

Fire Danger Reduced

A weekend of rain and cooler temperatures has reduced the forest fire danger in northeastern Minnesota.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has the danger at moderate with three new fires reported yesterday.

Meantime, the DNR has put in place burning restrictions in several counties.

Burning is permitted in Koochiching County with a permit.

Park Haze

State regulators are preparing to add some enforcement teeth to rules meant to cut the haze that sometimes clouds the views in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park.

The haze comes mostly from the state's older coal-fired power plants and the taconite plants on the Iron Range.

But Environmental groups, along with the National Park Service and U.S. Forest Service, say the proposed changes don't go far enough.

Doctor Shortage Crisis Eased

The threat of a lengthy closure of the Rainy River Health Centre's Emergency department has been eased.

Riverside Health Care Facilities says it's obtained locum coverage for the hospital until the end of August.

The town's lone doctor ends his practice in the middle of next month.

Efforts to attract a new doctor to the community continue.

Suspicious Fire at Fort Frances Store

Ontario Provincial Police have taken over the investigation into a Fort Frances downtown area fire.

Reports of smoke early Saturday morning brought members of the Fort Frances Fire and Rescue Service to Leon's where a fire was identified at the back of the store.

Minimal damage was caused to a rear service door area while the rest of the building and its contents suffered moderate smoke damage.

Ice Fishing Tragedy

Four people are dead following an ice-fishing excursion north of Kenora.

OPP have been at Selkirk Lake since last Thursday when the body of 55-year-old Robert Kantimere was found on the ice.

The the bodies of a man and woman were found Saturday and while another body  discovered yesterday.

All four people were from Kenora

$100,000 List Getting Bigger

The Town of Fort Frances now has four employees earning over 100-thousand dollars annually.

The list of the top public sector wage earners was released Friday.

The Rainy River District School Board has 22 employees on the list, two more than last year.

Riverside Health Care Facilities added four new names to this year's list, up from the eight it had 2011.

Question of the Week

Is it important to you that the salaries of public sector workers be disclosed each year?

Let us know on our website 931TheBorder.ca.

In response to last week's question, 60 per cent of respondents feels the recent warm temperatures experienced in the Rainy River district are a benefit to the our area.

Community Garden Plans

The warm weather this month is helping kick off the planning of another community garden in Fort Frances.

The garden on Lillie Avenue attracted great interest last year.

Krista Neilson of the Northwestern Health Unit says registration for this year takes place April 4 at the Metis Hall.

Neilson says they have plans to expand the size of the garden to permit more participation and have set up a Facebook page to keep gardeners more informed.

Young People Promote Rail Safety

Young people are taking to the airwaves today to promote rail safety.

Students have written and produced a number of radio PSA's as part of an initiative between CN Rail, OPP and Safe Communities Rainy River.

Caitlin Visser, a student of Robert Moore School, says it's important their peers hear their message.

The PSA begin airing on 93.1 The Border  today.

Internet Safety Program

Provincial Police are working to keep the information super highway safe.

They've rolled out a new crime prevention program called Cyber Awareness Protection and Enforcement.

Constable Anne McCoy says it's aimed at sharing information with others in on safe internet use.

A number of area groups have gathered for a two-day workshop in Fort Frances to learn more about the initiative

Tim Hortons Brings Smile to Internet Safety Program

A campaign to promote Internet safety in the classroom has received a financial boost from Tim Hortons in Fort Frances.

43-hundred dollars will go to a "Respect Technology" program, being now promoted by the OPP in schools across the Rainy River district.

The money was raised through a recent sale of Tim Hortons Smile Cookies.

Golf Courses Open

It may be a little wet today, but area golf courses are opening because of the warm weather we've had this month.

Tom O'Connell of the Falls Golf and Country Club says it's the earliest opening for the International Falls course.

Kitchen Creek Golf Course in Alberton was to be ready for play this morning.

Manager Glen Kellar says it comes with a decrease in the membership prices.

Heron Landing will open tomorrow, weather permitting.

Records Falls Again

Weather records continue to fall in the Rainy River district.

Atikokan and Fort Frances ended the day with recorded highs of 20 C, surpassing marks set back in 1987.

The Fort temperature might be higher, but recording equipment at the Fort Frances airport went down during the afternoon when higher temperatures are recorded.

Meantime, International Falls hit 72 F to break a 12 year old record.

Wolf Attack in Kenora

There's been a wolf attack on a pet in the Kenora area.

A dog was allegedly grabbed by the neck by a wolf at a trailer park where several citings has been reported over the past couple of weeks.

The wolf bolted before doing serious harm when a resident slammed a door to scare the animal.

The dog suffered only a couple of bite marks.

Sunshine List Out Today

The so-called sunshine list of Ontario public employees who earned more than $100,000 in 2011 is to be released today.

There were over 71-thousand public sector workers on the 2010 list, up 11 per cent from 2009.

Crop Walk Planned

A walk to raise awareness and money to combat hunger goes in International Falls in May.

The Crop Walk for Hunger has been going on since 1994.

Coordinator Pat Nordy says participants can now register and collect pledges.

You can call Nordy at 218-283-4113 or the First Lutheran Church to register.

A portion of proceeds stays in the Falls to the Salvation Army's Food Shelve.

First Fire of Season Record

Northwestern Ontario has recorded its first fire of 2012.

It was a small grass fire near Ingolf, a small community near the Ontario-Manitoba border.

Ministry of Natural Resources spokesperson Debbie MacLean says with a recent rapid drying of the region, they'll bring on their fire rangers a week earlier than normal.

Health Minister Asked to Resign

The opposition parties are demanding Health Minister Deb Matthews resign after a scathing auditor's report into Ontario's air ambulance service.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath says the report shows the government did a poor job of overseeing executives at Ornge who were using taxpayers money in some questionable deals.

The Progressive Conservatives accuse the Liberals of hiding the findings on Ornge until after last fall's election.

Highway Open

Highway 11 east of Atikokan is now open.

A section between Quetico Park and Kashabowie was closed Wednesday night while emergency personnel dealt with a burning vehicle.

No other details of the incident are immediately available.

New Group Takes Over Canada Day Planning

A new group of volunteers has stepped forward to take on some of the planning for Canada Day celebrations in Fort Frances.

The volunteer group intends to host the parade, children's activities and entertainment at Pither's Point Park.

They came together after the "Fun in the Sun" committee announced earlier this month that it couldn't find the volunteers they needed to continue on.

At least two other well-established organizations have also expressed interest in hosting Canada Day events, but have yet to finalize their plans.

Community Consultation on City Services

International Falls residents will get a chance next month to provide input on how their city delivery's services.

City councillor Cynthia Jacksa says it's part of an event sponsored by the municipal lobby group the League of Minnesota Cities.

The League will hold four community consultations April 11 and 12.

Jacksa says the city is one of a select few chosen for the consultations.

Ashton Gets Support

NDP leadership hopeful Niki Ashton is getting the support of our area MPP.

Kenora-Rainy River's Sarah Campbell says Ashton's understanding of northern and rural issues make her the best person to lead the federal party.

The NDP elect their new party leader Saturday.

More Records Fall

Temperature records continue to fall in the Rainy River.

Fort Frances set its 9th straight record Wednesday when its high reached 20.2 C.

That passes the old mark of 11.7 C set back in 1987.

Atikokan's high of 15.9 C broke a 1987 record of 12.5 C -  the sixth straight weather record for that community.

More Moose Collared

Wildlife officials have captured and collared six more moose in Voyageurs National Park.

It's part of attempts to study the effects of climate change on the animals.

A total of 18 moose are now wearing GPS collars in the park.

Slots Sought for NWO

A long-time proponent of slot machines is lobbying to help try to bring the gaming machines to northwestern Ontario.

Doug Stemkowski, a hotel operator in Kenora, says slots would boost a struggling tourism economy.

The provincial government has indicated its willing to expand the number of slot machines in Ontario.

Accident Brings Impaired Driving Charges

A 52-year-old man will visit an Atikokan court room next month to face impaired driving charges after a single vehicle accident in that community.

It happen in the 300 block of Mackenzie Avenue East Sunday evening.

The driver was not injured, but OPP say breath samples taken found his blood alcohol level to be well above the legal limit.

Cost to Use Natural Gas Coming Down

Look for lower gas bills soon.

Paul Crawford of the Ontario Energy Board says Union Gas has been approved for a rate decrease that takes effect April 1st.

For Rainy River district users, the change translates into savings of $90.21 over a twelve month period.

Crawford says the decrease is due to a lower than expected prices Union Gas will pay for natural gas over the next twelve months.

Weather Record Set Early in the morning.

Most people were sleeping when these weather records were set yesterday.

New highs were set in Fort Frances, Atikokan, surpassing records set back in 1987.

Atikokan hit 17 C while Fort Frances, the country's hot spot on the weekend came in at 16.5 F

International Falls reached 61 F, tying the temperature recorded on March 20, 1987.

In all three cases, the highs were recorded around 2 a.m.

Canadians Flock to American Airports

Grand Forks Int'l Airport photo

A new study suggests Canadians looking for travel bargains are more often finding them by flying out of airports south of the border.

4.8-million one-way trips were made by Canadians to American airports.

87-thousand people from Manitoba and northwestern Ontario caught flights in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

Calls for Mandatory Phys-ed

Cancer Care Ontario and Public Health Ontario want physical education mandatory until Grade 12.

Education Minister Laurel Broten won't commit to the request right now.

Cancer Care Ontario says mandatory phys-ed, along with higher tobacco taxes and more smoking restrictions, will help reduce deaths related to chronic but largely preventable illnesses.

Report into Air Ambulance Scandal

The first report on Ornge, the province's troubled air ambulance service, is to be tabled in the legislature today.

But sources say a lack of co-operation from former Ornge officials may leave Auditor general Jim McCarter  unable to fully address the controversy.

Fairmont Begins Drilling

Fairmont Resources has started drilling property near Atikokan it identified earlier this month to be similar to Oskio Mining's Hammond Reef gold project.

The work within the Marmion South Property will continue through the rest of the month.

The assay results will be released in late April.

Deserter Found at Border

An alleged U.S. military deserter is back in custody after being arrested at the U.S.-Canada border south of Thunder Bay.

21-year-old Caleb May of Biloxi, Mississippi, was arrested by U.S. Customs officers as he tried to return to the U.S. March 10.

He was later turned over to Homeland Security for extradition back to the custody of the U.S. Air Force.

Police Boards Want Hold on Policing Costs

The province's police services boards are looking to Queen's Park to halt the rise in policing costs.

The cost of policing is rising by five to seven per cent a year and that's straining municipal budgets.

The Ontario Association of Police Services Boards says the province should consider centralizing police bargaining.

It also suggests finding ways to eliminate the use of police officers for non-core tasks.

Dead Fish Investigation

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources suspects low oxygen levels caused thousands of fish to die in the Pelican River, near Orr,  over the past several days.

Fisheries supervisor Kevin Peterson says the dead fish include northern pike, smallmouth bass, and crappies.

He says low water levels last fall probably worsened reduced oxygen levels.

More Thin Ice Incidents

Thinning ice conditions resulting from the recent warm temperatures are blamed for a number of vehicles plunging into northwestern Ontario waters.

The most recent incident occurred near Kenora Monday.

Three American residents were able to get out safely before their SUV hauling two brand new snowmachines broke through on an ice-road on Lake of the Woods.

On the weekend, a truck and two ATVs fell the ice around the Fort Frances and International Falls areas.


Meantime, winter roads to many remote First Nations have become victims of the warm March temperatures.

The roads are quickly deterioating and Nishnawbe-Aski Police have had to respond to several incidents.

Most communities have closed their sections of the road network.

Premier to Accept Referendums on Casinos

Premier Dalton McGuinty is going to leave it up to municipalities to hold a referendum if they want a new casino or gaming facility.

His comments come in the wake of a major plan by Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation to expand gambling in the province.

McGuinty says it's not up to the province to let local residents decide.

Fort Frances council suggested last year the province set up casino's in border communities instead of introducing gambling on-line.

Thin Ice Warnings

Authorities are warning to stay off the ice.

The warning comes following separate incidents on both sides of the border in which vehicles went through the ice.

Two people escaped unharmed after a pick-up truck hauling a trailer load of flooring crashed through the ice on Rainy Lake in the area of Five Mile Dock Sunday.

The vehicle, trailer and debris have since been recovered.


Two ATV's broke through the ice in separate incidents on the weekend in Voyageurs National Park.

Friday, two people escaped the icy waters when their four-wheeler when through the ice near Wolf Island.

Then Saturday, five people, including three children, managed to the escape before the ATV they were riding went through ice between Lake Kabetogama and Namakan Lake.

Weather Records Still Falling

More weather records were set across the region for the ninth time in ten days.

Fort Frances high of 26 C shattered the old mark of 10 C set in 2000.

Atikokan's temperature of 23.6 C surpassed the 2003 record of 9.9 C.

International Falls high of 78 F broke a 1918 record of 66 F for March 19

Warm Weather to Continue

Warmer than normal temperatures in the Borderland could continue for the rest of the month.

Environment Canada's Geoff Coulson says it's the result of an intense low pressure system that's stuck over the U.S. plains States and bringing warm southern air into the region.

Coulson says given our past history, they're not ready to rule winter completely dead just yet.

Question of the Week

Do you think the warmer than normal temperatures are a benefit or a hindrance to the our area?

Let us know on our website 931 the border.ca.

Burning Restrictions Set for Minnesota

The Department of Natural Resources is imposing burning restrictions over much of Minnesota next Monday.

The initial restrictions will cover much of central and northern Minnesota.

Additional counties will be added, depending on conditions.

There have been 148 fires so far this year, 27 in northeastern Minnesota

Three small blazes were reported just south of Baudette yesterday.

New Sewer Plant in International Falls

The North Koochiching Sanitary Sewer Board is moving ahead with the construction of a $14-million dollar sewer treatment plant in International Falls.

Executive Director Tim McBride says the new facility will address a number of deficiencies existing with the current 60 year old plant.

Construction will likely begin this summer with part of the funding coming from the State in the form of grants and a low interest loan.

Part of the proposal also includes significant increases in user rate.

Local Hospitals Not Impacted

Riverside Health Care Facilities and Atikokan General Hospital will be among those not impacted by a change in how the province funds hospitals.

Beginning April 1st, ninety-one other health care centres will be reimbursed based on the care they provide, rather than providing only lump sum payments.

Ban on Burning Expanded

The list of communities imposing bans on open-air burning is growing in the Rainy River district.

The townships of Chapple and Alberton, now join Emo, LaVallee, Dawson and Fort Frances in prohibiting burning of grass or brush until at least April 1.

While most don't issue permits until then, dry conditions caused by the recent warm temperatures is forcing municipalities to take action.

Border Plans Held Up

There appears to be a set back in plans to build a new customs facility in International Falls.

During a recent trip to Washington, area officials were told the project likely won't proceed any time soon because of its high costs.

Koochiching County's Commissioner Brian McBride says its disappointing news.

The federal government had hoped to begin construction on the $100-million facility by 2014.