HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2016-04-07, Page 1INSIDE
THIS WEEK:
SPORTS - Pg. 9
The Citizen' honours
local winter sports teams
AWARDS - Pg. 16
Founder of local charity
honoured provincially
CHARITY - Pg. 27
Brussels family chosen as
face of Alzheimer's Walk
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Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, April 7, 2016
Wind storm tears roof off Howson building
An expensive storm
Two transport trucks and a fuel depot were damaged at the
Howson Transportation site on County Road 25 at the east
side of Blyth on March 31 when an intense wind event tore
the roof off the building and landed it on the trucks. A
transport trailer was also blown over during the storm. The
Fire Department of North Huron responded to the scene to make
sure the building was safe and there was no fuel leak. While the
damage is certainly substantial, Howson representatives were
unsure of the actual dollar amount at press time, as insurance
employees were still busy assessing the damage. (Dennyscottphoto)
Festival regulars highlight 2016 cast
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
With opening night on the horizon
and rehearsals scheduled to begin
soon, the casts are set for the Blyth
Festival's 2016 year with a healthy
mix of new and familiar faces.
In what Artistic Director Gil
Garratt says was his toughest casting
decision to date, newcomer Jesse
LaVercombe will play Matthew
Dinning, the Wingham native who
was killed in Afghanistan in 2006, in
Our Beautiful Sons: Remembering
Matthew Dinning.
Garratt, who will also direct the
season's opening show, says he saw
LaVercombe perform a one-man
show in Toronto last winter and was
immediately drawn in by the
charisma and power of
LaVercombe's performance.
LaVercombe also, Garratt said,
strikes a remarkable resemblance to
Lincoln Dinning, Matthew's father.
Lincoln will be played by Festival
regular J.D. Nicholsen, while
Laurie, Matthew's mother, will be
played by Rebecca Auerbach.
Nicholsen has been performing at
the Blyth Festival for years, acting in
shows like Death of the Hired Man
and Barndance Live! and more
recently Billy Bishop Goes To War
and Dear Johnny Deere.
Just two seasons ago, Nicholsen
performed in St. Anne's Reel
alongside David Fox, a role written
by Garratt specifically for
Nicholsen.
Auerbach is also a multi-year
veteran of the Festival, acting in
2006's Another Season's Harvest
and Dear Johnny Deere, among
others.
Both Auerbach and Nicholsen are
two of the Festival's most
recognizable faces over the last 10
years.
Joining them will be another pair
of the Festival's most familiar faces
in recent years, Catherine Fitch and
Tony Munch.
Fitch, of Courting Johanna and A
Killing Snow fame, is a Gemini
Award-winning actress who has
been performing at the Festival for a
number of years. She will play Gail,
one of Laurie's good friends.
Munch, who performing in The
Lonely Diner: Al Capone in
Euphemia Township and Beyond The
Farm Show, will play Mario, the
real-life veteran who met Laurie
Dinning while they were both
Continued on page 26
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
The Howson Transportation Inc.
site on County Road 25 at the east
end of Blyth suffered severe wind
damage on March 31 evening.
The roof was torn off the building,
which damaged two trucks and
destroyed significant portions of the
on-site fuel depot and a third truck
was blown onto its side as a result of
a brief, but intense high -wind event.
Company representative Jeff
Howson explained that the
company's insurance provider, on
Monday, was still evaluating the
damage to the site so no dollar
amount was available, however he
did detail the significant damage to
the site.
"The insurance company is still
quoting repairs on the roof, which
was completely ripped off the wash
and maintenance facility," he said.
"The trucks are also still being
appraised. Two power units were
damaged when the roof fell on them
and one van was flipped over onto
its side."
The fuel depot's underground
storage and computer operations are
still fine, according to Howson,
however new pumps and lights are
going to be necessary before it is
operational again. The damage
occurred very quickly, Howson
said.
"A family member was passing by
the site around 9 p.m. and noticed
how strong the wind was," he said.
"The doors were buckling and it
wasn't letting up, so they came right
to my house. By the time I got there,
the roof was off and the damage was
done."
Howson said there would have
been less than one minute between
him receiving the news and getting
to the site.
"It just happened that fast," he
said. The structural integrity of the
building wasn't affected, Howson
said.
Fire Department of North Huron
Chief David Sparling reported that
the fire department was on scene
shortly after the event, and checked
for any damage in the surrounding
properties.
"There was a lot of damage at this
specific location, but nowhere else,"
Deputy -Chief Matt Townsend said.
"Fortunately there was no fuel leak
from the island."
Vodden suggests arena repurposing study
By Denny Scott
The Citizen
Councillor Brock Vodden wants
some research done by North Huron
staff to see if repurposing local
arenas without their ice surfaces
could save the municipality some
money at budget time.
"We're looking at a very, very
difficult budget," he said. "It's very,
very difficult to find large amounts
of savings in any direction. I think it
would be interesting if we knew how
much could be saved by not putting
ice in any of our arenas."
Vodden asked council to support
his idea.
"If council would agree with me, I
would like to ask staff to put
together a little study on that as to
how much would be saved if we
ceased putting ice in arenas and
changing the use of the arena in the
winter time to other sports
activities," he said.
Vodden said he was making his
statement as a notice of motion,
meaning it could be brought back as
a motion at council's April 18
meeting.
Councillor Trevor Seip asked if
Vodden's suggestion was for a
municipality -wide study or if it was
to study specific community centres.
"If you're asking for a study for all
ice in every arena to be taken out, I
don't think that's realistic," Seip
said.
"It doesn't hurt to request to know
the cost of having the ice in for a
season to understand. We do have
three arenas. I need clarification for
Continued on page 8