Venue restrictions lifted across Quebec
At a Sept. 30 press conference, Quebec Health and Social Services Minister Christian Dubé announced a further relaxation of public health safety measures in Quebec in response to the increasingly positive outlook in the Province. For venues with assigned seating, such as cinemas and sporting events, limits on the number of vaccinated participants are no longer required. There will be no further audience limits on ceremonies, meetings, assemblies, graduations, and other formal gatherings where a passport is already required.
Head-on collision on Hwy. 148 in Clarendon
A head-on collision involving two vehicles occured on Hwy. 148 east on Oct. 4, at approximately 4:00 p.m., near the 6th concession road in Clarendon. According to . . .
Shawville-Clarendon fire department chief Lee Laframboise, two trucks were dispatched to the scene, where the jaws of life had to be used to extract one of the drivers. SQ spokesperson Marc Tessier reported that the vehicle heading west bound deviated from its lane and hit the vehicle driving eastward. Both drivers were sent to hospital, according to the SQ which reported one driver received minor injuries, and the other sustained more serious, but non life-threatening injuries. The road was closed until approximately 11:00 p.m. while investigators were on the scene to analyze the collision. The investigation is ongoing.
Elections Underway
With the municipal elections fast approaching on Nov. 7, more than 200 people put their names forward to seek municipal office in MRC Pontiac, all competing for 125 possible seats. Seven mayors were re-elected by acclamation after running unopposed. Over 30 percent of candidates were elected by acclamation, down from roughly 40 per cent last election cycle.
Municipality of Pontiac purchasing speed cameras
The municipality of Pontiac held its monthly council meeting on Oct. 5, addressing several large budget items. The purchase of a new water membrane for the water treatment plant was approved by council at a cost of $46,463.48. The membrane filters organic material from the water, which is drawn from the Ottawa River.
Council also approved the purchase of six speed cameras/ radars to be used on Hwy. 148 for the cost of $19,366. The purchase is part of a Ministry of Transport of Quebec (MTQ) road safety program.
New, impermeable boards for Luskville Recreational Park skating rink, were approved unanimously by council members, at a cost of $43,776.73. The boards were damaged and unsafe, according to Mayor Joanne Labadie.
John Dods directs his last symphony
Centenarian John (Jack) Leslie Dods passed away on Sept.18 at the Perley and Rideau Veterans’ Health Centre in Ottawa. John was one of the last-known surviving D-Day Veterans. Jack first attempted to join the Royal Canadian Air Force at the age of 18, but was rejected because he was too slender. So he spent a summer cutting trees for Hydro Quebec to bulk up enough in order to qualify, and he became a pilot in 1939.
John joined the Transport Canada Research and Development team while he worked at the air traffic tower in Ottawa, and when he retired at the age of 77, he got his license to be a glider pilot.
John had taken to painting as an outlet for a lot of his memories of being in the war, with some of them depicting his life when he grew up on the farm. “That’s what a lot of his paintings are about, the things that happened,” remarked his son, Daryl.
Recognizing 16 years of community service
As Mayor John Armstrong has stepped down from his position on Clarendon council, he takes with him many fond memories from his 16 years of service to his community. Armstrong said he is looking forward to spending more time with his wife of 55 years, Marlie (née Sinclair) and his daughters Janet, Lori and Ruth, their husbands, and his four grandchildren.
Councillor Mavis Hanna remarked: “no matter what he was there to help, to support the community and it didn’t matter if it was a big job or a small job, John was there and he was all in. He will be greatly missed.”
Armstrong believes it has been a privilege to have the people of Clarendon place their trust in him through the years and said he has enjoyed it tremendously. “I can walk away with pride knowing I have dedicated myself to his community and in building an excellent rapport with my fellow council members,” he said.
Healthcare workers get a reprieve
The province announced the extension of the deadline for all health practitioners to be fully vaccinated. They have moved the date from Oct. 15 to Nov. 15. Two days before the original deadline, Quebec’s Ministry of Health released a table detailing how many health care workers across the region could be suspended without pay for being unvaccinated as of Oct. 15. For the Outaouais, as of Aug. 26 a total of 1065 employees had not been vaccinated at all, while 763 had received their first dose for a total of 1,828 that had not been sufficiently vaccinated.
Sandra Murray’s Years of Service
Looking back at Shawville native Sandra Murray’s tenure as mayor: Murray has been actively involved in the community for many years. Murray was first elected councillor in 1984, and occupied her position until 1991. She returned as a councillor between the years of 2009 and 2013. “I felt I had more to contribute so I decided to run for mayor at the end of that term,” said Murray. She was subsequently elected mayor in 2013, and remained in the position for two terms.
“I feel that Shawville has a well-run municipality and that’s due to the councils that we’ve had and especially to our staff, who work hard to keep everything running smoothly,” she said. She believes Shawville has many assets that make it a great town and one of her biggest mandates while sitting on council has been the safety of the town’s drinking water. There have been a lot of maintenance and improvements done to the town’s water pipes and sewage lines, according to Murray who said, “ We have to maintain them, this is one of the most important things for the safety of the citizens,” she added.
Local outreach centre for men soon expanding their services
AutonHomme was created in 2009 in response to the pulp and paper mill closure in Portage-du-Fort, as an outreach organization for men. Director Tyler Ladouceur, who’s been working there since 2013 said the organization evolved in the years since his full-time position was created. “We worked on a lot of projects related to suicide prevention because sadly, three out of four suicides are men.”
Some of their other services include helping men pay fines in exchange for community service, or helping them find temporary housing. In addition, they offer resources to help their clients on an ongoing basis. This might include follow-up appointments to speak with a social worker, psychiatrist or psychologist if necessary. “We do the groundwork to get the men the help they need and do follow-ups with them after they’ve gone to therapy, we’re still there to help them out or intervene if needed,” said Ladouceur. They offer a seven-hour training session that teaches participants how recognize signs of suicidal ideation and what to do. This training is offered without cost throughout the Pontiac to interested groups or individuals. He noted that the training is not solely for men.
MRC Pontiac Warden candidates engage in debate
Speaking at an Oct. 21 debate, the two candidates running for the MRC Pontiac warden sat down at Club De L’Age D’Or on rue Baume to discuss various issues facing the Pontiac region. As of the 2017 election, the warden is elected by universal suffrage, rather than chosen by the council of mayors, as it was done in the past.
This year, Mike McCrank was running for warden for the first time, though he had served as warden under the old system. He was a municipal councillor in Litchfield for eight years and then mayor for another 14 years from 2000 to 2013.
His opponent, Jane Toller, is a former Toronto city councillor and Toronto school trustee. In 2017, Toller was the first warden to be elected, taking 47 per cent of ballots cast. Her closest rival, Raymond Durocher, came in second with just under 18 per cent.
Drugs and guns found in two incidents over the past week
Last Wednesday, a search of a residence by the SQ resulted in the discovery of a cache of drugs. During the police search of the home at rue Graveline in Fort Coulonge, police found 430 methamphetamine tablets and 95 grams of cannabis. A 43-year-old man was arrested and is scheduled to return to the Campbell’s Bay Courthouse at a future date where he will face charges of possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking. In an unrelated incident, SQ officers located two firearms with a holster on Hwy 148 near Mansfield-et-Pontefract on Oct. 17. Anyone missing any firearms is asked to call the SQ at 819-648-2141.
Otter Lake man in court for possession of child pornography
Archille Belland, 56, of Otter Lake, has been arrested by Sûreté du Québec and is facing charges pertaining to the “possession and distribution of child pornography, accessing child pornography, and improper storage of a firearm,” according to a French-language press release issued last Wednesday.
Belland appeared in court at the Gatineau Courthouse for a hearing on Oct. 19. He was arrested following an operation conducted by SQ investigators specializing in sexual exploitation of children on the internet in collaboration with MRC Pontiac’s SQ detachment in Campbell’s Bay.
