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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2012-01-19, Page 1CitizenTh e $1.25 GST included Serving the communities of Blyth and Brussels and northern Huron County Thursday, January 19, 2012 Volume 28 No. 3 BYLAW - Pg. 16New animal controlbylaw approved LIVESTOCK - Pg. 19 Brussels Livestockwelcomes new ownersANNUAL- Pg. 6Beef Producers holdannual meeting in BrusselsPublications Mail Agreement No. 40050141 Return Undeliverable Items to North Huron Publishing Company Inc., P.O. Box 152, BRUSSELS, ON N0G 1H0INSIDE THIS WEEK: Local couple resumes trip after Italian disaster North Huron commits to appeal Prepare the battlements! Students in the Grade 4/5 class at East Wawanosh Public School took fort building to a whole new level. Described as a real group effort, nearly a dozen children came together, formed a hierarchy under “the master council” and proceeded to build a fort that, before succumbing to the jealous hands and feet of older students, was nearly five feet tall. Shown are, from left, Jaida Ruff-Robertson, Tyson Michie, Hayden Robinson, Aaron Zister, Julia Beaven and Grace Caldwell attempting to rebuild their fort to its former glory. (Denny Scott photo) Alan and Laurie Willits, a couple from RR1 Wingham, are now safe and travelling again after the cruise ship they were on ran aground killing at least six people in the process. The Costa Concordia, an Italian cruise ship operated by Costa Crociere which is owned by Carnival Cruise Lines, ran into an area of water populated with reefs and rocks just off the eastern coast of Giglio Island on Friday, Jan. 13. After running aground, the ship flipped on its side, causing a 50 metre expanse of the ship’s hull to be ripped open. At last count 11 people have been confirmed dead due to the incident and just under 30 people are still missing as the search continues. Alan and Laurie’s daughter Jory, 20, said she spoke to her parents on Friday and heard from them that they were safe before she knew the extent of the crash. “I didn’t know how bad the crash was until I found out they were safe,” she said in an interview with The Citizen on Monday. “I was glad to hear that they were ok.” Jory said that her parents were fortunate enough to get off the ship safely. “They were able to get on a lifeboat and get off the ship but they met others who didn’t,” she said. “They met a couple from Calgary that had to swim to the shore.” Jory said that her parents, after a brief layover in Rome, continued their trip despite losing everything on the boat. “They lost all their things but their passports are being replaced,” she said. “They’re continuing on their trip by train, stopping at a few of the places they had planned to stop at.” The trip won’t be the one they had envisioned, according to Jory, who said that they were going to miss several of the ports because of the time lost due to the crash. “They were going to be on the boat for seven days and visit a different port each day,” she said. “They’ve lost the time and some of those ports now.” Willits said that her parents have been on cruises before but usually travel the Caribbean. This was their first time on a European cruise. She was also reported in The Kitchener-Waterloo Record as saying that the experience likely wouldn’t sour the couple on cruises. “My dad’s an adventurist and [Saturday] night... I said, ‘Just look at it like an adventure because you can’t do anything else.” Jory stated that the couple plans on keeping with their trip itinerary as best as they can and returning on Saturday, their original return date. The ship, which was believed to have been carrying more than 4,000 crew and guests, 12 of whom were from Canada, ran aground due to what is being called operator error. Several news sources are reporting that the ship’s Captain Francesco Schettino decided to alter from the pre-programmed course resulting in the ship travelling much closer to Giglio and the “Le Scole” reef area that is safe. The deviation from course resulted in the crash. When any Costa ship deviates from its pre-programmed course Howick Mayor Art Versteeg, an outspoken critic of Huron County’s mandatory septic inspection plan, has put Huron County Council on notice of his intention to oppose the plan. At the Jan. 11 Committee of the Whole meeting Versteeg reported to his fellow councillors that he had been in touch with the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing regarding the mandatory septic plan that was approved last summer. “The county doesn’t have the authority to impose such a policy,” Versteeg said. “I do intend on bringing this issue back for reconsideration.” Versteeg didn’t elaborate much, but said that because Howick is so far from the shoreline and has historically had little to no problems with area septic systems, he felt it was unfair to have the program imposed on such a compliant municipality. “There are some issues,” he said about the current incarnation of the plan. Bluewater’s Bill Dowson endorsed Versteeg’s comments, saying that the program would make a lot of people upgrade who don’t have the funds to do so. Dowson has said that he is against the program in its current state. He said he believes in the intention of the program, but without a form of government assistance for people who have to make costly upgrades to their septic systems, he cannot support it. “I’m totally behind what you want to do,” Dowson said to Versteeg. “There is a lot of work we have to do with it. I support it, I always have, but not until there is government assistance.” Councillors at North Huron believe that representation at the county level is important and have pledged not only their moral support but $2,000 to aid Central Huron and Huron East in their appeal efforts. North Huron Council received a letter from Central Huron requesting support and Reeve Neil Vincent stated that it likely meant both financial and moral support of the appeal of Justice Kelly-Anne Gorman’s decision on the composition of Huron County Council last year. North Huron Council discussed the proposition of helping with the appeal and found that most of them supported it. Vincent stated that if councillors wanted to assist the township, they could set a ceiling on how high their contributions would be. “I know, in having discussed this issue, that other municipalities have set an upset point in their contributions,” he said. “It is possible to make a small contribution to the cause.” Councillor Brock Vodden stated he would definitely support this. “In principle I strongly support this appeal,” he said. “I think we need more representation, not less, at the county level. I think we should offer moral support and I’m comfortable offering assistance up to $2,000.” Councillor Ray Hallahan supported Vodden’s suggestion stating that North Huron needs to “keep their numbers up and be recognized.” Councillor Bernie Bailey supported the bid to appeal the ruling, but wasn’t comfortable attaching a dollar amount to it. “They’re going forward on this with or without us,” he said. “We should keep our money in our pocket. Every extra expense we incur makes it harder to negotiate the budget.” Bailey also stated that, before the next municipal election, the issue will be dealt with and that, even if the appeal is successful, it could be short-lived. “Should they appeal this decision and win, they will, in a year, change the composition of council properly anyway,” he said. Vodden stated that he believed the appellants had a good chance to be successful. “I think the way the appeal has been handled shows that there is a good chance of it going through,” he said. “The original judge [Gorman] wasn’t the appropriate judge to handle the issue and the case didn’t go well. There’s a good chance of a possible win.” Vincent stated that, in discussions with members of both sides, he found that he shared the same By Denny Scott The Citizen Continued on page 10 By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Septic plan returns to county By Denny Scott The Citizen Continued on page 10