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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes-Advocate, 1983-12-14, Page 1Akio s �TT URE Inmrings Fhone 235-1964 Turnip plant fire loss could hit $ Investigators from the On- tario Fire Marshal's office have as yet been unable to establish the cause of a fire which broke out at Exeter Produce & Storage Co. early Friday night, although they suspect it was caused by a malfunction in some of the waxing equipment. Damage in the blaze, despite being quickly contain- ed by members of the Exeter & Area fire department, could go as high as $250,000, depen- ding on structural tests to be undertaken on the building and an assessment of some 30,000 bushels of turnips by federal food and drug ad- ministration personnel. An additional 2,000 boxes of turnips which were ready for shipment have already been discarded and the extent of smoke damage to the remain- ing produce will determine whether it suffers the same fate or can still be shipped. The fire at the plant at the CNR crossing on Highway 83 west was first spotted by a couple of unidentified youths around 8:00 p.m. Ward Kraft, who was heading to the rec centre for a hockey game at the same time, said 10 -foot flames were jumping out of the structure near a chimney when he passed by. He stop- ped at Walper's service cen- tre to call in the alarm and found the two youths were already doing that. Those who arrived on the scene early said flames were leaping off the floor in the vicinity of the waxing equip- ment and the structure was full of dense, choking smoke. Flames broke out through the roof in two places in the south-east section of the building as firemen engaged in a four-hour battle to save the plant. Owner Len Veri said after the fire that the firemen "deserve a lot of credit" for their quick, efficient work in bringing the blaze under con- trol. "They did a helluva good Memory was lost, but youngster not A large number of volunteers engaged in a search in Exeter late Satur- day afternoon for a "lost" five-year-old boy It all ended happily, although somewhat embar- rassingly for, the distraught mother. The boy was found at the home of his grandmother. That's where he had been left by his mother prior to a downtown shopping excur- sion. but she had forgotten that when she became wrap- ped irp in the hectic pace of Christm3r; shopping. She had left her car in the parking lot at the Canadian Tire Store. and when she returned at 5:15 p.m., was surprised to find the youngster was not in the vehicle. The woman notified police and Constable Brad Sadler embarked on a search, and Flames and smoke erupt from plant roof Owner Len Veil surveys damaged equipment Parents given invitation to discuss boozeart a r The parents of about 70 area young people have been invited to a meeting at SHDIIS tonight ( Wednesday) to discuss with Exeter police the ramifications of a party which followed a junior foot- ball game on November 12. in a letter to the parents of the 70 young people in atten- dance at the party in a private home, Police Chief Ted Day indicated most of the young people were under the age of 19 "with some becoming quite intoxicated." An investigation conducted by Sgt. Kevin Short indicated that about seven cases of beer were consumed by those to attendance. in addition to the underage drinking situation, police note that those who brought alcoholic beverages to the party were contravening the act by supplying minors and the owners of the residence could be considered to be con- tributing to juvenile delin- quency contrary to the Juvenile Delinquents Act. The letter was sent to the parents on the basis that they may not have been aware of their son's/daughter's in- volvement, and while those who consumed liquor illegal- ly were not Iden' iQed in police investigation, it was explain- ed that "it is hoped that you can discover this in your discussion which should help you make an informed deci- sion whether you need be con- cerned over your son or daughter's involvement." Chief Day said the depart- ment in future would endeavor to obtain .Stufficient evidence to lay charges in each and every situation." "If one person brings alcoholic beverages to a gathering and merely `allows' it to be consumed by minors, that person will he considered to have directly supplied minors and will be treated ac- cordingly," he said, noting occurrence." that this is considered a Sgt. Short met Wednesday serious offence by the courts with the 70 students who had who consider it to be in socie- been in attendance at the par- ty's interest to impose harsh ty to outline similar informa- penalties. tion to them. He said he was Minors found consuming li- pleased with the reaction he quor will be charged either received at the session and under the Liquor Licence Act also noted he was impressed and, if under 16, the Juvenile by the fact the vast majority Delinquents Act. who had been in attendance at "Any adult person in the party had voluntarily charge of premises where come forth to report their such activities take place, attendance. whether directly involved or SHDIIS principal Bruce not, will be deemed to be Shaw said that as of Monday, negligent in their responsihili- 45 forms had been returned ty to prevent such occur- from the parents of the rences and in violation of the students involved and 30 had Juvenile Delinquents Act," he indicated they would be atten- further advised ding tonight's session In concluding his letter. The session is intended to Day said "it is strongly hoped outline verbally some of the that we can depend upon points made in the written notification of such future in- communication to the parents cidents by parents, students from the police department and other citizens, so we can and to discuss the situation act accordingly. We can more more fully. efficiently control this type of Sgt. Short said no charges situation if we become aware will be laid as a result of the of it before or during its party. after failing to find the youngster after an hour, decided to call for some addi- tional help. About 16 volunteer firemen, some additional town and Provincial policemen and several local citizens respond- ed to the call and commenc- ed a Klock -by -block search for the youngster. The canine patrol from London OPP was on its way. At about 7:00 p.m. the woman finally remembered where the youngster had been left and he was found safe and sound at his grandmother's house. Chief Ted Day expressed the department's apprecia- tion to those who responded to the call for assistance, and while noting it was a strange set of circumstances, said he was relieved that the incident had a happy ending. job," he added. The local developer knows the requirement for speedy action in controlling a blaze in such a facility. The plant was completely razed in blaze on New Year's eve in 1964. In discussing the fire with the T -A on Monday night, Veri said the cost of replacing the equipment damaged in Fri- day's blaze will be close to $7500. A large portion of the roof will have to be replaced and engineers will have to assess what structural damage may have been caused. The value of the 30,000 bushels of turnips whose fate is still unknown, is about 8100,000. The fire had additional con- sequences for the firm because the Christmas season is the peak marketing period for turnips, although with the help of a number of firms in the processing business, the Exeter firm was back in business by Monday. The Centralia plant of Earl Neil was rented to handle the processing and truckloads of turnips were quickly on their way to that site. In addition, firms at Lucan, Mount Carmel and as far away as Tavistock offered assistance. "There are a lot of people helping us and we'll be able to keep our customers happy," Ames Serving South Huron, North Middlesex One Hundred and Eleventh Year Hoping to proceed on double entrance There's still hope that the double entrance planned for the South Huron rec centre can be completed in time to bring about some energy con- servation savings this winter. MF Builders and Designers have provided plans and an offer to construct the new en- trance al .a cost of $8,200. At their meeting, Thursday, the board decided to ap- proach Exeter council regar- ding a proposal to move some funds from the operating budget to the capital budget to allow the project to he undertaken. The budget through to the end of November shows the rec board with an operating profit of 816,421 over budget. While revenues are 818,779 less than anticipated to the end of November, the expen- ditures are down by $35,200 over the budget tabulation for the same time. Facilities manager Cam Stewardson also advised that work has not yet been com- pleted to the changes to the steps leadings into the spec- tator section in the arena. The project had been slow - CHARGED OVER ATTACK Kelly John Schuster, 18, of no fixed address, has been charged with assault•causing bodily harm as a result of an incident in Exeter. Saturday Sgt. Kevin Short and ('on - stable Brad Sadler responded to a call to a local home where a 16 -year-old girl reported she had been assaulted by a male The victim sustained head injuries and was admitted to South Huron Flbspital for treatment. The suspect was arrested. charged and placed in the Stratford jail He appeared in Goderich court on Monday for a bail hearing. ed due to the death of Coun- cillor Don MacGregor., who was assisting. It is expected the work will proceed in the immediate future. He also reported that the cost analysis requested by council for their deliberation on user fees was in progress, but considerable work was in- volved. It is expected that some preliminary figures will be available for the board's inaugural meeting on January 12. Other business from the Thursday meeting included: The first rotation of Katimavik ends on December 22 and the second rotation commences on January 11. Rec director Lynne Far quhar outlined activities planned for the Christmas break and noted that any assistance that could be pro- vided by board members would be appreciated. instructors for the winter programs were approved at a stipend of $17 per hour as follows: dance -fit, Laura Overholt and Anne Robinson; needlepoint, crewel, etc., Gwen Christie; cake decorating, Eva Laing; ballroom dancing, Louie Morello; dough art, Wendy Long; flower arranging, Ben Hoogenboom; calligraphy, Ruth Ann Merner. Approval was given for Farquhar to attend the O.R.S. conference in Toronto from January 25 to 29 and the board agreed to provide each of the staff with an 8" by l0''printof the aerial photo of the complex. In his final comments before retiring. board chair- man Gary Birmingham said he had enjoyed his three years and noted it was time to leave as history was beginn- ing to repeat itself. Words of appreciation were expressed on behalf of the board by Bill Rose. OPEN HOUSE AT AIS Agricultural Information Services held Open House Friday in their new building on Highway 83 west. Shown above ore Exeter reeve Bill Mickle, mayor Bruce Shaw, AIS owners Peter Phillips and Peter Dorbyshire and employee Mary Alderson. T -A photo Veri said, adding that there will be no loss of wages or time for employees. Because most of the equip- mentused in the plant has to be custom-made, it will take the firm until the end of January to resume co nplete operations. Inspectors Brian Mulligan and Bob Adams from the On- tario Fire Marshal's office have already inspected the scene and, after being unable to determine the cause of the blaze, decided to call in ex- perts from their engineering department to check through the blackened equipment to determine if a malfunction in it was the cause. Choking smoke greeted local firemen & North Lambton Since 1873 EXETER, ONTARIO, December 14, 1983 Price Per Copy 50 Cents STUDENTS PARADE — Riding on a J.A.D. McCurdy school float in Sunday's Santa Claus parade at Centralia were Tammy Johnson and Virginia Cable. Dates are established for school closing talk The first public meetings for reviewing accommoda- tion at three Huron County public schools ha •.•e been set for January. The Huron County Board of Education set aside three days in January in which board officials and the public will have an opportunity to discuss the situation at the schools. The dates were set al the board's December 5 meeting. The school accommodation review process starts once a school's enrolment gets below a certain number of students A committee made up of representatives of the public will be involved in the process. The end result could be the eventual closing of the three schools, but director of educa- lion Robert Allan has said that the decision to close a school may not necessarily be taken. The first meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 17 al Vanastra Public School. The second meeting is scheduled for Tuesday. January 24 at Hensall Public School and the third meeting is slated for Tuesday. January 31 at J.A.D. McCur- dy Puhlic School in Huron Park The meetings, being held at the three affected schools, are expected to start al 8 p.m_ The education committee of the Huron County Board of Education will he holding its first six meetings of 1984 at various schools around the county. The last two meetings of the Area man given six months in jail Douglas Heaman, Cen- tralia, was sentenced to a total of six months in jail when he appeared in Goderich court last week for sentencing on two charges stemming from area breakins. The accused had been con- victed previously in Exeter court and had been remand- ed in custody for sentencing. He was given four months for breaking into an tlsborne home on October 11 and a fur- ther two months for a breakin at the Huron Park IGA on November 1. Jewellery, cash, bonds and a color TV were taken in the tlsborne theft, while cash and cheques were taken from the Huron Park store. The court had been told that the total loot had amounted to about $10,000 and only $3,000 of it had been recovered. Some of the stolen bonds had been burned education committee have been held at public schools. The public is invited to attend the meetings The January meeting will be held at Exeter Public School. the February meeting will be held at Brookside Public School in Ashfield Township. the March meeting will be held at Robertson Memorial Public School in Goderich, the April meeting will be held at Vanastra Please turn to page 2 Lock up... take. keys! Exeter OPP and town police issued a warning to area motorists this week regarding the danger of leav- ing the keys in the ignitions of unattended vehicles as well as leaving vehicles itnlockei when they contain valuables. The warning was issued in the wake of a series of vehi- cle thefts early Sunday mor- ning and a number of thefts from parked vehicles in town All the stolen vehicles were subsequently located. but pickup owned by Basil Glavin was damaged when it was driven up against a fence in the Clandeboye area. Other vehicles stolen from the area were owned by Laverne Flynn. Exeter; Lloyd Rimmer and Cathy Parsons, both of Centralia. The latter vehicle was recovered in St. Marys, while a vehicle stolen from St. Marys, was located in Exeter. The two police forces believe the incidents were related and may have been the work of a group of "joy- riders." Exeter police were advised of eight occurrences during the past week of thefts from unlocked parked vehicles. In mast cases the vehicles had been ransacked in an ap- parent search for the ignition keys. but valuables including tapes and Christmas presents were stolen. in a separate incident. Ron Plyley, RR 1 Exeter, reported the theft of a case containing 30 tapes from his vehicles which had been parked at the rec centre Friday night. The incidents are still under investigation. SANTA VISITS POLICE PARTY — Santa Claus was o welcome visitor Sunday at o party for children of the Exeter OPP detachment and town police. Above, San- to chats with Jennifer Barnes and Carolyn Quinn.