Latest news with #WesternBay
CBC
2 days ago
- General
- CBC
C.B.N parents and students face uncertainty heading into back-to-school season
Some Conception Bay North families already worried about whether they have a home to return to are now facing another uncertainty as September approaches. Some schools in the area are being used as hubs for people evacuated from, or responding to the Kingston fire, and another school — Cabot Academy in Western Bay — was destroyed, along with at least 100 homes and other buildings. "When we officially got the word, it was heartbreaking. That school is just such a main artery of the community," said Scott Chandler, a member of the school's parent council. The school was small and held around 60 students, said Chandler's spouse Robyn Dwyer. Their 7-year-old son was supposed to be start at Cabot Academy in September. "It's almost equally as painful as when we found out we lost our home," said Dwyer. "This was the one safe place left for our child and for the children of that community." The couple is worried that students will be split up, and their son is worried he won't see his friends again. "Please don't separate these kids. Keep them together. They need each other," said Chandler. Wildfire evacuees uncertain about the start of the school year 2 hours ago An elementary school has been destroyed by wildfire, according to N.L.'s education minister. Now, with other schools in the region being used as hubs for firefighters and evacuees, parents and children remain uncertain about the start of the school year. Earlier this week, the Town of Carbonear welcomed evacuees from Grades 1 to 6 to join a summer day camp at the Carbonear Recreation Complex, across the road from the evacuation centre. The town's recreation programmer, Amanda Brady, says children are starting to ask questions about school as the camp comes to an end. "The children are asking me like, 'are we going to be online?'" said Brady. Students at Carbonear Academy, which is currently functioning as an evacuation centre, are also wondering if they'll get their school back. But Brady is trying to keep them positive. "I said, you know, we're going to figure this out," she said. No delays anticipated During the government's fire update new conference Friday morning, Education Minister Bernard Davis said right now, they're not expecting students and staff will be delayed in returning to school. "We understand that many of the families and individuals have been affected by these fires and many are staying in other communities temporarily," said Davis. "Rest assured, all students and staff will have a place in a classroom or a position at a school this upcoming school year." He said the province is developing plans for the different situations schools may face due to the fires. "If a student is in a different community or an educator or staff member can't return to their home, we will welcome you into a school community that is convenient for you," said Davis. If parents and students have questions, Davis said they can call 709-729-2489 or email 2025fires@ Displaced teachers and school staff can also call 709-729-2547 or email hravalon@ Davis also said that the province will be reaching out to the Cabot Academy School with information in the coming days.
CBC
2 days ago
- General
- CBC
Desperate C.B.N. residents question where firefighting assets go, and why
Confusion and frustration over where firefighting assets are deployed — and why — have reached a fever pitch for some residents of Conception Bay North, who believe their communities were left vulnerable when a wildfire began threatening communities near St. John's earlier this week. "With the way the wind was blowing that day, and when they pulled the water bombers to attack Paddy's Pond, the fire erupted into an inferno and pretty much cleaned out my community," said Curtis Penney, a resident of Western Bay. "I'm a firm believer that the north shore was left to burn." Fire crews were already tackling multiple blazes when reports emerged Monday afternoon of a fire that began near a utility line near Paddy's Pond, between the Trans-Canada Highway and Fowler's Road. During a media briefing the following day, Premier John Hogan said all decisions were guided by experts, science and safety. He said the fires in Conception Bay North and Paddy's Pond were fewer than 100 kilometres apart, allowing resources to move quickly between the two fires as requested by fire behaviour specialists and their operations team. "I want everybody to know that every region in this province is important, and at no stage are we prioritizing one region over the other," Hogan said. WATCH | 'It's memories, it's love, it's laughter,' says Kim Whalen about what a home really is: Penney evacuated his home with his girlfriend, children and dog on Aug. 3. He took the urns containing the ashes of his loved ones, some photographs and a couple of lawn chairs. He has been sleeping in his van near the evacuation centre in Carbonear ever since, while his children stay with loved ones. "Obviously the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few," said Penney. "I can see how displacing Paradise and that area in there takes a little bit of precedence, but [there was] absolutely no information about the change of moving water bombers or aerial assets to there at a time when it was critical — critical — for something to be maintaining and beating back the fire in Western Bay." Kim Whalen, also from Western Bay, is sleeping in an RV in the same area. "I felt that because of Paddy's Pond, we were left behind," she said. "We're just as important, you know, we matter." "You take those water bombers away and the fire is going to wipe everything out." Whalen and Penney were not alone in their beliefs, with many on social media expressing similar concerns. Protecting life and property Newfoundland and Labrador's director of wildfire response talked about the allocation of assets during Friday's wildfire briefing. The decision of what assets go where lies with provincial fire behaviour specialists and incident management teams, said Craig Coady. He said those experts have a single overriding principle. "Above all else, protect life and the safety of people. This includes not only the people of the province, but the lives of our ground crews [and] our pilots that are doing these very dangerous jobs," he said. Protecting property and infrastructure comes next. Coady said water bomber pilots need to be able to see other aircraft and terrain at all times, which can be challenging with thick smoke or low clouds. WATCH | How N.L. wildfire response teams decide how to tackle multiple fires: Some people say water bombers are scarce in the C.B.N. fire efforts. Here's how it's decided when they fly 18 hours ago If a fire is deemed five or six on the scale, it's too hot, said Craig Coady, director of N.L. wildfire response. Pilots must be able to see both the terrain and each other at all times, and if the smoke is too thick, flying is a no go. There are other conditions, too, said Coady at Friday's media briefing. In some cases, Coady said, a fire can be too intense to control and contain, as was the scenario multiple times in Conception Bay North when water bombers became ineffective on the front of the fire. "Even with the best plans, we have to be flexible, as weather conditions and fire behaviour change sometimes from minute to minute," Coady said. "Decisions have to be made quickly, calmly and rationally. They must be grounded in science and based on the fire conditions at the time." Meanwhile, Penney and Whalen fear this fire will spell the end of their community and surrounding area. They question whether key pieces of infrastructure, such as the school, will be rebuilt in the same area. In spite of the anger, confusion and sadness, Whalen said she is grateful to those fighting the fire. "God love them. They're trying their best," Whalen said.
CBC
3 days ago
- Climate
- CBC
Wildfire latest: Cabot Academy in Western Bay destroyed, some C.B.N. residents receive news about lost homes
A picture of wildfire damage in Conception Bay North is beginning to emerge, and some of the news is devastating. Some people who fled the area are starting to receive calls about homes lost to fire, and Cabot Academy in Western Bay has been destroyed. The CBC's Zach Goudie has the latest on the wildfire emergency in Newfoundland and Labrador.
CBC
05-08-2025
- Climate
- CBC
Premier Hogan says fire crews in C.B.N. are fighting to prevent more structures from destruction
The fire in Small Point–Adam's Cove–Blackhead–Broad Cove and Kingston tripled in size overnight into Tuesday and structures were destroyed, according to an update from Premier John Hogan, as the evacuation order expanded to include residents in Western Bay.
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The magic of summer camp inspired Charis Cotter's new novel
Charis Cotter says some of her earliest memories are of attending summer camp as a child in Ontario. "We'd have dress-up nights and skits. I loved the skits. And singing, the singing was great. To me [it] was just magical," she said. She draws on these magical memories for her latest novel The Mystery of the Haunted Dance Hall, which tells the story of a girl who goes to summer camp for the first time and encounters a ghostly mystery. The prolific and award-winning author of children's books moved to Western Bay, Newfoundland, about 15 years ago, after spending most of her life in Toronto. She believes the move gave her the same sense of vitality she used to experience in the summers of her childhood. "Growing up in the city, but going out and being in the country, I just felt like I came alive. It was where I belonged. It inspired me," she said. Living next to a large cemetery in Toronto, and then moving into a house situated between two cemeteries in Western Bay, she has always been drawn to the sense of wonder graveyards inspire. "I always want there to be more to life than what you can see and touch, that there's something more mysterious happening, and magical," she said. In her writing, she approaches the idea of the supernatural with a sense of playfulness rather than fear. "To me it's a key to get into a child's imagination. It's with grownups, too. You start talking about ghosts, and immediately everyone is listening." Cotter has authored more than a dozen books for young readers, garnering accolades from the Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards and the Atlantic Book Awards for children's literature, plus national and international awards. Yet, her first passion was acting, and she still brings that early love to her craft through engaging presentations. Cotter especially enjoys visiting children in classrooms. Drawing on her theatre training — she studied acting in Toronto and London, England — she presents dramatic readings in character and helps children learn to tell their own stories. Among her many personas, she has given readings dressed as Queen Elizabeth II and as a housecleaning ghost from Scottish lore. She also does creative writing workshops with school children. Two of her titles, The Ghosts of Baccalieu and The Ghosts of Southwest Arm, are collections of stories arising out of these classroom writing workshops. "I want to stimulate kids' imaginations," she said. "I want them to be creative and lose themselves in daydreams and use their imaginations because I just think it's vital to human existence and creativity." In The Mystery of the Haunted Dance Hall, the young protagonist feels different from other kids and is nervous about attending summer camp for the first time. In fact, many of Cotter's novels feature characters who feel out of step with their peers. "I think a lot of kids feel that way," she said. "I think kids can relate on some level to that feeling of not being sure of yourself and not being sure of your friends … or feeling that you're weird or different." What inspires her to write about these young characters? Cotter believes she is a 10-year-old at heart. "Everybody has an age that they are inside that's not their chronological age, it's their psychological age or the age that they operate from and see the world around them. And I always say that I'm 10 inside," she said. "There's insecurity, hesitation, but the world is opening up." Whether she's writing a new ghost story or telling tales to a room full of fifth graders, Cotter is driven by a deep empathy for the children she engages with. "I want their emotional experience of life to be validated," she said. Sometimes in a classroom setting, a child will disclose their real-life experience of grief. "Somebody will say, my father died last year, or my grandmother died. And then I have to try to respond to them in a way that isn't just playing, it's something more. And it's very moving when that happens." Ultimately, Cotter's goal is to inspire delight in her young readers. "My books are always to do with ghosts, and ghosts have to do with death. So, there is a sadness in my books. But my main purpose in writing is always to give the reader a good time, to entertain them and have fun, and pull them into another world," she said. In the coming months, Cotter will offer signing events in Newfoundland and Ontario. She also hopes to do another school tour in the fall. Copies of The Mystery of the Haunted Dance Hall are available in all bookstores. Her next local book signing will take place at Coles in the Village Mall in St. John's on Saturday, June 14, from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Download our free CBC News app to sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador. Click here to visit our landing page.
