Latest news with #StThomas
CTV News
3 days ago
- General
- CTV News
London's Santa's House is on the move
London Watch Santa's House is relocating from London to St. Thomas after founder couldn't find a place for it in London this year. CTV's Brent Lale reports.
CTV News
3 days ago
- General
- CTV News
‘A new chapter': Beloved Santa's House moving from London to St. Thomas this Christmas
Santa's House is moving from London to the Elgin County Railway Museum in St. Thomas for 2025. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) Santa's House is on the move again. Unable to find a permanent home in London, Leo Larizza, the founder of the house, has worked out an agreement with the Elgin County Railway Museum to bring the holiday landmark to St. Thomas. 'I want to thank London for everything they've done these past ten years because they've been amazing,' said Larizza, who raises funds from Santa's House to help terminally ill and sick children through his TLC Foundation. 072825 - Santa's house, St. Thomas Santa's House has helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for terminally ill and sick children. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) 'It's just that we couldn't come up with another home for Santa in London. I don't know why. We raised hundreds of thousands for kids in London, so now it's a new chapter.' The charity operated in Victoria Park for seven years, then has been at the Covent Garden Market for the past three. Now it will be located at the south end of the ECRM. 'We thought it was a great opportunity for the community,' said Will Zufelt, chief operating officer of ECRM. 072825 - Santa's house, St. Thomas The Elgin County Railway Museum will be home to Santa's House in 2025. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) 'Last year we had 350 Christmas trees here. We gave some money back to the Coldest Day of the Year here in town and it's just a great opportunity for businesses to showcase their business. Have the trees up, come in, see the trees and now you're going to see the trees and come see Santa.' Larizza says Zufelt and his team approached him and wanted the house. 'They're behind this 100 per cent and I wanted just for Santa's house to live and to keep going,' said Larizza. 'They do have an amazing Christmas theme where they light up hundreds and hundreds of trees inside their building. This fits with what they do at Christmas. Thousands of people come here now to visit, their festive trees and now thousands more will come and get pictures with Santa.' 072825 - Santa's house, St. Thomas Santa's House will be a perfect compliment to the annual Christmas Tree Spectacular at the Elgin County Railway Museum. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) The plan is to have the house at ECRM for 2025, then search for a permanent location. The dream is to include trains and the rail line. 'We've got bigger plans to bring more people to our community and more tourism for St. Thomas,' said Zufelt. 'We're just going to save those plans for next year. But it's going to happen. Ashley and Lindsey (ECRM staff) are working very hard with the volunteers to make Christmas in 2026 even bigger than 2025, bigger than 2024.' Larizza is excited about this new location, but still feels the best location is in the middle of Victoria Park or Storybook Gardens. 'One or two people complain and say it's an eyesore and the city reacts and says, 'well, we got to get it out of here,'' said Larizza. 'We've got to look at the reason why Santa's house was there to begin with. If their child was sick and we had to take care of them, they would certainly change their views on it being an eyesore. I just think London had its time and now St. Thomas is going to gain something. They've got a big group behind them to make it even more successful.' It's still to be determined how the proceeds from the new location will be distributed.
The Sun
4 days ago
- The Sun
Frantic hunt for missing woman, 22, with tattoos on her neck as cops urge anyone who sees her to call 999 immediately
A FRANTIC hunt is underway for a missing woman with tattoos on her neck as cops urge anyone who sees her to call 999 immediately. An appeal has been launched to locate Sherine Dunn, 22, with police stating there is concern for her welfare. South Wales Police have released a description of Dunn in the hopes of triggering the memory of anyone who may have seen her. A statement from the force reads: "Sherine Dunn 22, from Swansea is missing and there is concern for her welfare. "Sherine is from the city centre but has links to Townhill, St Thomas and Bonymaen. "She is described as 5ft 2 inches tall, slim, with long hair, and has tattoos on her neck." They have urged anyone who knows of her whereabouts, or has any information to share which may be helpful to come forward.
CTV News
6 days ago
- CTV News
Resident escapes attic fire in St. Thomas
A fire broke out in the attic of this home on Malakoff Street in St. Thomas, Ont. on Friday, July 25, 2025. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) On a hot, hazy night, the smoke from a St. Thomas house fire could be smelled across the city. Around 9:30 p.m. Friday, the attic of a home on Malakoff Street caught fire. 'We got multiple 911 calls for a fire at the house,' said Kim Destun, chief fire prevention officer with St Thomas Fire Department (STFD). 'All the occupants were able to escape quickly and there were no animals involved.' The home is surrounded by trees, which made it difficult for the firefighters to attack the persistent blaze. 'A lot of access issues with the trees around it,' said Destun. 'It's been a tough one. It's up in the attic, so firefighters really had to struggle to get it out. Hydro had to come in, and it's a fairly narrow street and we were blocking off most of the space.' ST THOMAS ATTIC FIRE Firefighters battle an attic blaze on Malakoff Street in St. Thomas on Friday, July 25, 2025. (Source: St. Thomas Fire Department) One of the two occupants of the house was home at the time of the fire, and got out right away. Police, EMS and Victim Services were on hand to help the STFD. When firefighters arrived, the smoke was coming through the attic area, and the entire area was under a cloud of haze. 'It was very smoky and because of the wind … it was all down at street level for some reason,' said Destun. 'It's hot tonight and the firefighters really struggled with the heat. It's been a tough go for them.' With Station #1 being only three minutes away, and multiple calls for assistance they were able to get it knocked down quickly. The cause is still being determined, but it is not considered suspicious.
CTV News
24-07-2025
- Health
- CTV News
N.S. public health reporting 30 cases of measles in northern part of province
A dose of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccination awaits the next patient during a vaccine clinic in St. Thomas, Ont., on Tuesday, March 4, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Geoff Robins HALIFAX — Nova Scotia Health says there are now 30 cases of measles in the northern part of the province. The health agency had reported a single case on July 7 in the northern zone, and says it is believed that all 30 infections stem from travel within Canada to regions where measles is known to be circulating. 'Currently, new cases are mainly found in large households and specific, small communities with close contact,' said a Thursday statement from Nova Scotia Health. Health officials said the rise in cases was expected because it's common for secondary infections to appear within seven to 21 days after initial measles cases are identified. Eight of 30 cases in the northern zone have been lab-confirmed and the remaining are considered confirmed based on patients' household exposure and symptoms. Despite the rise in infections, the risk to the general public is still considered low. The provincial health agency is reminding Nova Scotians that the best protection against measles is vaccination, and every person born after 1970 should have two doses of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine after their first birthday. Nova Scotia's Department of Health says 93.4 per cent of children who turned two years old in 2024 had received one dose of the measles vaccine, and 78.6 per cent were fully vaccinated with two doses. A spokesperson with the department says actual measles vaccination rates in Nova Scotia may be higher 'because of under-reporting.' Scientists, meanwhile, say that a population needs a vaccination rate of 95 per cent — with two doses — to stop measles from spreading. In May, a single case of measles was reported in the Halifax Regional Municipality, but there were no secondary infections identified with the original case, now considered 'resolved.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 24, 2025. By Lyndsay Armstrong
