Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Dealing With All The Rain Possibilities

The City letting us know they are preparing to deal with rainfall and snowmelt from the heavy rain and warm temps.

Transportation and Environment services crews are inspecting catch basins in known trouble spots to ensure they are open and ready to handle any run-off.

The City warns the freeze and thaw cycle can cause ice to form on the street and sidewalks and crews will put down sand and salt where its needed.

To the joy of Saint Johners, that same freeze-and-thaw cycle can bring on potholes in our streets.


Potholes can be reported by calling 658-4455 or email service@saintjohn.ca

3 Dogs Maintain Spots On NHL Scouting Ranks

Three Saint John Sea Dogs are on the list of the NHL Central Scouting Service's final rankings for North American players for this year's NHL Draft.

Olivier LeBlanc, Matthew Highmore and Spencer Smallman were identified earlier this season and have kept their spots in the final ranks.

18 year old Leblanc is at 126 while Highmore who is also 18 is ranked at 155 and the 17 year old Smallman is at 173.

The 2014 NHL Draft starts June 27th in Philadelphia.

Literacy Is An Economic Issue


A full room at the Delta to hear TD Bank's chief economist speak about the valule of literacy and numeracy skills in today's workforce.

The call was made to make literacy an issue in coming provincial election campaign.

Craig Alexander says the you don't get a job for life anymore so you need different skills for several employers. He says literacy skills are the great enabler and if you experience unemployment the greater literacy skills you have will strongly limit how long you are out of work.

Learning difficulties that lead to school failure can increase the risk of absenteeism, dropping out, substance abuse, teen pregnancy all of which keep the cycle of poverty or dependency going.

Police Seize MDMA, Marijuana During Traffic Stop

A 20-year-old man being arrested after police found drugs during a traffic stop in St. George.

RCMP finding a quantity of M-D-M-A, which is often referred to as ecstasy, and a small amount of pot Sunday evening around 7pm, while conducting a traffic stop on Main Street.

The man will be appearing in court in August.

Big Money To Benefit Heart Patients

The provincial Health Department releasing the letter sent to Dr. Marc Pelletier of the New Brunswick Heart Centre at the Regional Hospital about the large infusion of provincial funding which amounts to 4.5 million dollars.

2.3 million dollars will be used to renovate the cardiac care unit and 2.2 million for the purchase of an intervention suite at the heart centre.

In the letter, provincial Health Minister Ted Flemming writes that for too long politics have influenced decision-making in the health care system but now the decisions are being made on the basis of what's best for patients.

He also claims 40 million dollars of savings in healthcare this year alone.

Do Harm-Reduction Initiatives Actually Work?

Do harm-reduction initiatives like needle exchanges actually make a difference in the lives of drug addicts? 

For the Executive Director of AIDS Saint John Julie Dingwell the answer to that question is a no-brainer. She tells Tide News it absolutely does, not only reducing the spread of disease amongst drug users but acting as a connector.

She says once people start using the service on a regular basis, that's when the organization can really begin working with them "to show them that they matter."
 
Dingwell speaking as part of a discussion panel at U-N-B Saint John on community policing and harm-reduction in the city.

Crews Require Jaws Of Life In Sandy Point Road Crash

A scary crash sending 3 adults and a child to hospital after a car left Sandy Point Road ending up in a stream at the bottom of an embankment.

One person was stuck in the backseat of the vehicle so the jaws of life were required to get them out.

It was a challenging rescue for police and fire as they were standing 2-3 feet of water in a small brook. 



Emergency services got the call just before 3:30pm.

Keep An Eye Out For Flooding

With up to 50 millimetres of rain forecasted in the region, New Brunswickers are being warned to keep an eye out and prepare for flooding. 

Richard Keeley of River Watch tells Tide News water levels are expected to peak on Wednesday and Thursday.

Keeley says if you live in a flood-prone area and you have a basement, you should move your belongings to a higher level and be sure that any drainage equipment is functioning properly. 

For a link to more information and updates, click here