Latest news with #SpencerCoyne
Winnipeg Free Press
14-07-2025
- Climate
- Winnipeg Free Press
In the news today: Over 1,000 people flown from fire-threatened Manitoba community
Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed… Military says over 1,000 people flown from fire-threatened Manitoba community The Canadian Armed Forces says it's evacuated over a thousand residents of a northern Manitoba community threatened by a wildfire, while towns and villages in the province are welcoming cooler weather they say is helping firefighters. The military began removing people from Garden Hill First Nation on CC-130 Hercules transport airplanes on Friday, and it says that as of Sunday afternoon, over 1,550 have been flown to Winnipeg. Capt. Wyatt Shorter with Joint Operations Command says there are no more people waiting to leave Garden Hill, but a Hercules is on standby in Winnipeg in case anyone else needs a flight out. Manitoba declared its second provincewide state of emergency of the year last week as wildfires continue to rage. Wildfire near Princeton prompts evacuation order An out-of-control wildfire near Princeton, B.C., has prompted an evacuation order, affecting about 30 properties in the area. The BC Wildfire Service said the August Lake wildfire, which is burning close to Princeton Golf Club, is now mapped at 14 hectares in size. Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne, who witnessed the fire's growth from the beginning, said the blaze was about the size of a car when it started around 2 p.m. on Saturday. The fire has forced the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen to send out an evacuation order for some areas, urging people in the area to leave, while others are under evacuation alert. Here's what else we're watching… Vehicle carrying migrants crashes near U.S. border Police say they are looking for a group of migrants who were inside a vehicle that collided near the Canada-U.S. border in southern Quebec. Authorities were called early Sunday to the scene in Hemmingford, Que., north of the New York border, where an SUV with two people collided with a vehicle carrying at least 10. The 48-year-old driver of the SUV was arrested for impaired driving. Provincial police spokesperson Sgt. Stéphane Tremblay alleges the people in the second vehicle are believed to be migrants who illegally crossed the border from the United States. Halifax to ask N.S. to discuss strong-mayor powers Halifax's city council has directed the mayor to ask the Nova Scotia government for consultation on whether it is considering strengthening his authority. Council voted last week in favour of the motion to make the request for collaboration in a letter to Municipal Affairs Minister John Lohr, with only Mayor Andy Fillmore voting against it. Coun. Sam Austin presented the motion and told council that a move towards strong-mayor powers would undermine councillors' ability to adequately represent their constituents. In Ontario, so-called strong-mayor powers are in effect in 215 cities or municipalities, allowing their heads of council to propose bylaws and pass them with the support of one-third of councillors, veto bylaws and hire and fire department heads. Obesity rates in Canada increased during pandemic A new report says obesity rates in Canada increased faster during the COVID-19 pandemic than they did over the course of more than a decade beforehand — particularly among young adults. Researchers say they saw an increase of about eight per cent over the first 11 years of the study, from 2009 to 2020, compared to an increase of more than one percentage point a year between 2020 and 2023. Laura Anderson, the study's author and an associate professor at McMaster University, says these findings suggest public health restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic may have had an impact on obesity rates. Dr. Mélanie Henderson with the CHU Sainte-Justine says the closure of gyms, extracurricular programs, schools and workplaces led to an absence of structure, extra screen time and closer proximity to the fridge. Work-from-home starting to look more remote It's not just students who will be commuting more this September. After years of experimentation with hybrid work, an increasing number of companies are whittling down days at home to one, or none at all. Big banks including RBC, Scotiabank and BMO have mandated at least four days in office starting in September, while Canaccord Genuity is reportedly moving to five. Alex Gallacher, managing director of Engage H-R, says there are a lot of companies that are slowly but surely increasing the days required in the office. He says culture is a big part of it — trying to get all employees to be better aligned with the company and what it's trying to do strategically. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 14, 2025.
CTV News
13-07-2025
- Climate
- CTV News
Wildfire near Princeton golf course in B.C. prompts evacuation order
Princeton, B.C., Mayor Spencer Coyne posted this photo to social media showing crews fighting a wildfire near his town. (Credit: Facebook/MayorSpencerCoyne) An out-of-control wildfire near Princeton in British Columbia has prompted an evacuation order. The BC Wildfire Service says the August Lake wildfire, which is burning close to Princeton Golf Club, is now mapped at 14 hectares in size. The wildfire service says about 40 firefighters and three helicopters are on scene to contain the blaze. The fire has forced the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen to send out an evacuation order for some areas, urging people in the area to leave, while others are under evacuation alert. The wildfire service says the August Lake wildfire is exhibiting rank one to two behaviour, meaning flames are visible on the surface but are spreading slowly. Meanwhile, the Young Creek wildfire burning close to the Cathedral Provincial Park, southwest of Keremeos, is being held. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 13, 2025.
CBC
13-05-2025
- Climate
- CBC
FortisBC's wildire prevention plan to cut power in B.C. Interior during extreme heat suspended
Social Sharing The B.C. Utilities Commission has temporarily quashed a FortisBC plan to cut power to some customers in the southern Interior during extreme heat and wind events after a complaint from the Town of Princeton. The commission has suspended FortisBC's new "public safety power shutoff" policy, which Fortis described as a precautionary measure in which it would shut off the power in high-risk fire regions during extreme weather conditions. Fortis said the outages would prevent trees or other vegetation from catching fire when they come into contact with power lines. The BCUC decision comes as a result of complaints from the Town of Princeton that the outages would negatively affect the community. Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne told The Early Edition earlier this week that when he first heard of the Fortis plan, he thought, "What the heck is this?" "The more I looked into it, the more concerned I became," he added. Coyne said an outage could result in a "mass evacuation of the valley." "We'd have to evacuate both hospitals, the one in Princeton and in Keremeos. We'd have to evacuate our care facilities; we'd have to evacuate anybody with high risk." Gary Toft, senior advisor for corporate communications at FortisBC, said electricity utilities across North America have been adopting power shutoffs as a precautionary measure. "It's a tool of last resort we only use during extreme weather events." The outages would only be used in situations with very high winds, high heat, low humidity and tinder-dry vegetation. But Coyne said that kind of situation, a very hot, windy day with low humidity, could be just another day in Princeton. "That's the Silmilkameen Valley for most of August." He expressed concerns for local businesses that might have to spend thousands of dollars to bring in generators to keep their refrigerators running. "That's not acceptable either." Fortis has postponed scheduled community open houses to early June as a result. "While the PSPS [public safety power shutoff] policy remains an integral part of our approach to wildfire safety, we recognize the importance of getting it right," Fortis said in a statement published online.
Global News
02-05-2025
- Business
- Global News
Fortis plan to reduce wildfire risk across Southern Interior raises other safety concerns
FortisBC will be implementing a new initiative for the 2025 wildfire season in an effort to reduce wildfire risk. But as the 'Public Safety Power Shutoff' initiative aims to decrease the chance of wildfires, it's raising other safety concerns. 'It sounds like a good idea, you know, I still have a few questions,' said Princeton mayor Spencer Coyne. Princeton is among 10 communities in the Southern Interior where the plan is being implemented for the 2025 wildfire season. They include Princeton, Midway, Greenwood, Beaverdell, Christian Valley, Westbridge, Rock Creek, Cawston, Keremeos, and Hedley. The communities were deemed 'high-risk' for wildfires by Fortis. The initiative will see Fortis cut off power in the mentioned communities, if warranted, during extreme weather events. Story continues below advertisement 'When you have very high winds, high heat, low humidity and tinder-dry vegetation, we will reach out to local emergency services and make a decision whether we need to turn off power,' said Gary Toft, senior adviser of corporate communications with Fortis. 2:36 L.A. wildfires: Winds, low humidity threaten to fuel fires ravaging county The power outage would prevent branches and trees from falling onto live power lines and igniting. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'We're asking folks to be prepared,' Toft said. 'So make sure you have a backup plan in case of a power outage … for lighting, for staying cool, for preparing food. Make sure you have an emergency kit.' While no one wants to see wildfire destruction, Fortis' plan is being met with concerns as residents could lose power for several days. A staff report presented to the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary (RDKB) board on Wednesday states, 'Emergency Management staff are concerned that the health and safety of residents are being put at risk.' Story continues below advertisement The report adds, 'Many locations identified as cooling centres for extreme heat events do not have backup power generation' The Regional District of Okanagan Similkameen (RDOS) echoed the sentiment, telling Global News, 'it shares many of the concerns.' 'We're talking to emergency services,' Toft said. 'We're in the process of implementing this so people, people have questions, people have concerns, we want to hear that feedback, because that's important and how we implement this.' Fortis will be holding two public information sessions including one in Greenwood (Greenwood Community Hall) on May 14 and the other in Keremeos (Victory Hall) on May 15. Both are scheduled fr0m 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. The company will also hold a virtual public open house on May 22 to provide more information. 'After speaking with them (Fortis), they put a lot of my, you know, uneasiness at rest,' Coyne said 'It's only going to be in certain circumstances, and it's not going to be like weekly, or anything like that. It's strictly to prevent something like California, or you know other places, from happening here.' For more information on the Public Safety Power Shutoff initiative or information on how to prepare for a power outage, you can go to the FortisBC website. Story continues below advertisement
CBC
11-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Support for fossil fuel workers needed alongside climate action, says Princeton mayor
Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne has joined a growing group of Canadian mayors pushing for climate action. He told BC Today guest host Dan Burritt the 2021 floods emphasized the need to shift away from fossil fuels, but added that it's also crucial to support workers in those industries through any changes.
