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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1984-08-22, Page 1E.bT Alam F100,11413 QQ1ViriO # If'TY N IN•PApE* 111. oANAil A [Circulation Clasa 00 - 45QQ) c•G N•A Better Newspaper Competition 1984 136 YEAR -34 (1'1ODERICH, ONTARIO, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22, 1984 • 50 CENTS PER COPY Thousands flock to Goderich to viewships The romance of the tall ships! And that romance was much in evidence in Goderich last week as it lured thousands of people to the harbour for a glimpse of the ships that sail the high seas. A total of five ships rounded out the flotilla that arrived in Goderich Thursday and thousands of people flocked to the south pier for a peek at the famed vessels and an opportunity to buy souvenirs and talk with captains and crew members. Some boarded the ships for a first-hand view. There was some early activity and speculation in the harbour Tuesday as the Ciudad de Inca, the British ship, stopped briefly outside the breakwall before heading out on Lake Huron destined for Tobermory. Later it had to be removed from a shoal at Inverhuron by one of the'American vessels, the Norfolk Rebel. The first ship to arrive in Goderich Harbour was the Polish ship Gedania from Gdansk. The ship's captain, Wojtek Wierzbicki, explained that while his ship was only constructed in the Gdansk shipyards in 1975, it has since been on numerous scientific and related research missions in the Antarctic and Arctic. Prevented from sailing through the Northwest Passage by the Canadian Government in 1975, the'Gedania sailed south, through • the Panama Canal, around South America and back to New York where it participated in special Bicentennial celelbrations in the summer of 1976. Captain Wojtek appeared before Goderich town council Wednesday and outlined the history of his vessel and recounted the numerous missions it has undertaken. The captain and crew will now set sail for Poland, arriving in Gdansk in a few months. The major attraction was the 125 -foot Ciudad die Inca from Great Britain. With a total sail area of 8,500 square feet; the Inca was an impressive sight as it led the hastily organized sail past held Friday ' afternoon. 'The Inca left harbour under full sail Friday afternoon leading a host of ships in the sail past. The flotilla also included two American vessels; the 60 foot Norfolk Rebel and the 66 -foot Sheila Yeates from Duluth. The only Canadian tall ship m the contingent was the Joanna I from Quebec which boasted an all -female crew, a most popular . attraction. Four of the ships, while not expected here Until late Thursday, pulled into harbour in the early morning. The Sheila Yeates was the last ship to arrive. The early arrival speeded up plans and the road leading to the main beach and harbour was barricaded' early in the day. By Thursday afternoon the south pier was crowded with onlookers as the shuttle bus service transported people from Suncoast Mall to the harbour. The traffic and crowd increased substantially Friday and thousands of people line the south pier, and banks overlooking Lake Huron in the afternoon as the flotilla participated in a sail past. Joined by numerous smaller sail boats and power craft, the sail past made for an impressive and memorable display. The captains and crew members were treated to meals and receptions by the municipality and local merchants. Crew members interviewed all agreed that their Goderich visit was a most enjoyable one. The tall ships cleared harbour in the early hours of Friday morning and sailed south to Sarnia where they were part of the city's Bicentennial celebrations. Piper calls the tune mayor says j4uestions concerning the press conference announcing the $17 million harbour expansion project detonated a heated exchange between Mayor Eileen Palmer and councillor Jim Sealrs Wedr esday. At the conclusion of the August council session last Wednesday, • Searis asked the mayor who had arranged the press conference to announce the harbour expansion project and who was invited to attend the Monday, August 13 press conference in the council chambers. He asked why Conservative MP for Huron -Bruce, Murray Cardiff or Liberal MPP for Huron -Middlesex Jack Riddell, were not in attendance. In response to the queries froth Searls, Palmer said the whole thing was arranged by Minister of Agriculture Ralph Ferguson for Transport Canada. "Number one, the piper who pays the bills calls the tune," she said. "Ferguson's office arranged the press conference and he acted as a spokesman for Transport Canada. I don't know why the other members weren't here." Searls blurted out that it was just a "bunch of Liberal politics" and Palmer yelled back that "you'd be a damn fool if you think it's not political" adding that she thought Searl's questions were "infantile." Later Palmer suggested that Searls was only mouthing questioris put to him by former councillor Elsa Haydon. "Elsa Haydon can ask her own questions, she phoned every councillor," the mayor said. Same members of council indicated they had not been contacted by Haydon about the press conference. Searls demanded that Palmer retract the statement but the matter we's not pursued. The press conference announcing the harbour expansion project was held. in council chambers Monday, August 13. Mayor Palmier read a press release from Minister Ferguson's office and subsequent to that Ferguson talked with Palmer on the telephone and basically read the release again announcing the funding for the expansion. The press release was delivered to town hall by Liberal candidate Bruce McDonald who sat beside mayor Palmer. A few council members and representatives of Domtar and Goderich Elevator __.tet- i. -^Z-r �A'�$'�,i71�i� fY'i'�d,��'el �iiY... tfr • The Ciudad de Inca The famed tall ships were in'Goderich for two days last week and the highlight of the visit here Was the hastily -organized sail past Friday afternoon. The flotilla ot five ships, accompanied by a host of local sailboats and power craft, was impressive when under cull :call on Lake Huron. In the above photo, the 125 -foot Ciudad de Inca from Great ...__�.,.F-.a,.a.„,yy., ..._...-_.._. ..... _ ..., ,1911 ' "'fit - -, •c,xM "y a,s accepted ..«.r.,.,r,y,.,q• l by, town council Goderich town council accepted a bid ' from Lavis Contracting Ltd. of Olin'tn oir •,' storm sewer and street recd .it. work in the Mary'- Oxford-Hineks Stye t. The Lavis bid of $127,987 was the loweat of four received by the town and will require approval of the Ministry of Transportation and Communication. The other bids included; Area Construction, $trathroy, $139,762; Lima Construction, Bolton, $147,228; and L-82 Construction, London, $133,207. Commissioner of Works Iden Hunter informed council that $150,000 had been budgeted for the project, a figure which included $20,000 for engineering costs. Callifyou need us urges PUC manager • The severe thunderstorm that swept through this area on Friday, August 10, uprooting trees and damaging power lines, also brought to light a problem that could be potentially more serious, says Goderich Public Utilities Commission Manager Evert Middel. Middel says the PUC received a number of calls from area residents who depend on electricity to operate life-sustaining medical equipment or for other urgent reasons. The callers said they would have _ to go to the hospital if power was not restored within one half-hour. Unfortunately, says Middel, these calls did not begin coming in until about 3:30 p.m, and the power had been out since around 1:30: "In cases like that, people shouldn't hesitate to call us," says Middel. "In a life or death situation we will drop everything and look after it first." Middel says he has heard of no serious consequences caused by people being without power during the last storm, -but emphasizes that unless people endangered by the blackouts call the PUC, there is nothing they can do to help them., Some people might be reluctant to call the PUC about this kind of problem because, "They don't want to be a bother," says Middel. He would like to discourage that kind of thinking. "If there are urgent problems, those are the areas we will look after first," he said. Day or night, the telephone at the PUC office is always manned during a storm or blackout, said Middel. The numbers to call at such times are: 524-7371 or 524-6583. r INSIDE THE SIGNAL -STAR y �j A p ,,,, - � ba e . #'9 F ." GAGE .-Y;r �i,p,�,,,- d ,fir., ;;'w ,'app HC '3 s •P .. r1 . `•1: Yom-+. '' e yk. i. fieri w ,,r ( 5 Ball tourney The Colborne Township team won the squirts' inter -township ball tourney held in Benmiller on the weekend. Six teams participated. Details and photos from the event can be found in the recreation section. Dun annon Fair The Dungannon Agricultural Society held its 125th Fair on the weekend. Attendance was slightly lower than usual but enthusiasm remained high. Results from all the Fair's contests and judged entries can be found inside this section of the paper, along with photos. Tall Ships Thousands of people saw five of the Tall Ships when they sailed into Goderich ll'-bor last week. Signal -Star editor Dave Sykes was there to record the 1 historic event with his camera. The results of his work can be found on pages 6A and 7A of the recreation section. 9 4 '1'