The Citizen, 1995-04-12, Page 1itizen
The North Huron
Vol, 11 Novl 5
Wednesd ay, April 12 1995
610 + 40 GST 650
Telescopic view
Brisk winds and chilly temperatures Sunday afternoon didn't stop the 30 nature lovers who
gathered at the Hullett Provincial Wildlife Area to catch a glimpse of migrating water fowl.
Harvey Wightman gives Lee Watkins of Londesboro a hand in adjusting the sights. Other
observers are Jody Godfrey, left, and Becky Archambault.
Raccon rabies on the move
Steckle speaks out
By Janice Becker
"Even if I had known I would be removed
from the committee, I would have voted the
same way. I feel good about it and wouldn't
have changed a thing."
Those were the reactions of Huron-Bruce
MP Paul Steckle after learning he had been
removed from the Standing Committee for
Agriculture and Agri-Food on April 6.
"It would seem that this is a direct result
from my voting against my party's main
motion on the Gun Control Bill, however when
I ran for the office I told the people of Huron-
Bruce that I would be their voice in Ottawa."
The 2,000 phone calls to his constituency
office led Steckle to vote against the bill, one of only three MPs to do so.
There are three main reasons Steckle says he voted against the bill.
The principle of registration doesn't work, he says.
"Since 1932, approximately 960,000 guns have been registered in this
country. Last year, no more than four of those registered weapons were
used in the commission of a homicide. Guns are perceived to be more
dangerous than knives or other weapons, but look at the recent beating of
an elderly couple with a baseball bat."
More people are killed by drunk drivers with "registered cars on
registered highways and they have bought registered liquor and have a
registered license."
"If we could save even one life or 100, it would be worth it," says
Steckle.
The proposed legislation could cost between half a billion and one
billion dollars, he says.
"We have to look at the cost of the program in relation to the return. We
can't ask the police to divide their limited funds further to support and
implement the program. The cost will fall on the gun owners."
The right of the government to confiscate guns upon the death of the
registered owner was the second factor in the gun bill which Steckle
opposed. The guns cannot be passed to a relative, but must be disposed of
to a licensed person, to avoid confiscation, he says.
The bill would also permit criminal charges to be laid against those who
did not register their guns.
When the bill was first brought forward, it did not reflect the report
developed over the past several months, says Steckle.
He will continue to work for changes to the bill, says Steckle.
"We need to stop and reflect upon the laws we already have. We should
ensure those are being enforced."
The public outcry which he heard through his office came not only from
the farmers, but from all professions, he says.
"It is a case of principles. Some one has to stand up for those people. It
is broader than just Huron-Bruce."
Despite removal from the standing committee, Steckle says he remains a
staunch Liberal and he accepts the Prime Minister's decision.
His one regret is that he will not be able to work directly with the
agriculture programs, however he hopes to be re-instated as soon as
possible.
Community
Staff at The Ark
gears up for full calendar
of summer activites
See page 2
Government
MPP Paul Klopp responds
to Ontarians for
Responsible Gov't claims
See page 6
Farm
Panel tells farmers they
have little to fear from
Bill 163
See page 13
Blyth fire calls move
to central dispatch
By Bonnie Gropp
"This meeting scared the hell out
of me."
This was the comment of
Blyth/Brussels Animal Control
Officer Bob Trick after a workshop
held in Walkerton last month to
begin working on a Raccoon
`Citizen' closes
for holiday
In recognition of Good Fri-
day, the Blyth and Brussels
offices of The Citizen will be
closed April 14.
It will be business as usual on
Monday.
Rabies Community Contingency
Plan. Another meeting is scheduled
for next week.
The strain, which is similar to the
Arctic Fox strain common to
Ontario, is spread primarily
through raccoons and causes death
in raccoons and warm blooded ani-
mals. It began in Florida in 1990,
and at present has not reached
Ontario.
According to Mr. Trick, it is
anticipated that by spreading at a
rate of 40 to 60 km a year it could
reach this area by the end of the
decade.
"The problem is that raccoon
rabies is more dangerous because
of the high number of raccoon in
Ontario, which increased the
By Bonnie Gropp
Efficiency in emergency is part
of the motivation behind the move
to central dispatch for Blyth fire
calls.
Fire Chief Paul Josling explained
that a new system was put in place
at Seaforth Hospital recently that
will answer calls for the Blyth,
Clinton, Exeter and Seaforth fire
departments.
In the old system, Josling says
when the calls came in they were
answered by one of the firefighter's.
wives, who was responsible for the
fire phone, or during business hours
at Howson's Mills. "This tied peo-
ple to the phone 24 hours a day,
while five operators alternated
weekends," he said.
Now, when a call is received it is
immediately forwarded to Seaforth
Hospital dispatch. "They take the
call, get the information and punch
a code into the radio system, which
activates our pagers and siren," said
Josling.
The message is relayed twice, he
said. A test one showed that it took
15 seconds from the first page to
the second with a voice message.
Each department has a separate
line. ''You dial Blyth and the dis-
patcher in Seaforth will know what
area it is even before they answer,"
Josling explained. Firefighters also
have a phone link and radio to the
Seaforth Hospital to get more infor-
mation if needed.
For the public the change means
that though they still phone the
Blyth number 523-4211, they must
provide their complete address,
including lot and concession if
applicable, telephone number and
name. "This is very important to
saving time as the dispatcher does-
n't know whether we would know
where to find this person. If they
don't provide the information, they
will be asked which will take extra,
maybe valuable time," Josling said.
Not only will the system be more
time efficient, but it should save
money as well, says Josling. "The
operating costs are $242 a month,
which is down from the fire phone
system. Also, we paid the fire
phone operators $375 a year, so
basically over a two-year period
this new system should pay for
itself."
With a central dispatch Josling
says they are working towards 9-1-
1, which he hopes will definitely be
in Huron at some point in the
future. "Rather than if, I am going
to say when it comes, because I
want to see it, but this system will
flow right into it."
chance of exposure for both pets
and people," says Trick.
Kevin Coultes of the Ministry of
Natural Resources says that rac-
coon rabies is not a serious threat at
this point, and that all precautions
are being taken to ensure that.
Instances have been reported 20
km from the Niagara border and a
joint effort contingency plan is
underway between the MNR rabies
unit, Agriculture and Agri-Food
Canada and the Ministry of Health,
Coultes says.
Infected raccoons could enter
Ontario through natural movement
or hitchhiking onto vehicles, a fact
that customs officials have been
alerted to so they arc on the lookout
Continued on page 10