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News Briefs: Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Lighting blamed for power outage
The supply of electricity to Yellowknife was disrupted for about one hour yesterday afternoon after lightning struck a transmission line at some point between Yellowknife and the Snare Lake hydro site.
Bob Kelly, communications manager for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, said the power source was switched to diesel and the system was back up to generating full power within an hour.
- Lyndsay Herman
Search and rescue exercise underway
The 435 Transport and Rescue Squadron is hosting exercises this week at the Yellowknife airport to improve the search and rescue skills of volunteers and professionals.
Most exercises, which are taking place until tomorrow, are based in the Ursus Aviation hangar and involve the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary, Yellowknife Search and Rescue and the RCMP, who are working closely with the Royal Canadian Air Force. The Civil Air Search and Rescue Association is heavily involved in the exercises, which include 10 to 20 searches a day using crews from Hay River, Inuvik and Norman Wells, said the association's zone commander, David Taylor, who added having the exercises in Yellowknife is rare.
- Simon Whitehouse
Exploration tax credit extended
National Revenue Minister Gail Shea announced during a visit to Yellowknife on Tuesday that the mineral exploration tax credit will be extended for another year. Shea, who is responsible for the Canada Revenue Agency, met with members of the business community to discuss initiatives the agency has introduced. The 15 per cent, non-refundable credit is intended to promote growth in mineral exploration.
- Sara Wilson
NWT second to last in animal protection
The Animal Legal Defense Fund, an American animal welfare advocacy group, has named the best and worst provinces and territories in Canada for animal welfare legislation. The NWT came in second to last, same as last year.
The group made suggestions to improve the NWT system, including mandatory reporting of suspected animal cruelty by veterinarians. The group also suggested that peace officers should be able to assist in the enforcement of animal protection laws.
- Sara Wilson
Gear for kids
Coral Harbour
The Nunavut Hockey Equipment Drive has announced five brand-new sets of hockey gear will be donated to kids in Coral Harbour, courtesy of the NHLPA's Goals and Dreams fund.
The Nunavut Hockey Equipment Drive was started in 2010 by Kyle Wood, Noel Kaludjak of Coral Harbour and Natalie Babcock. Its goal is to gather new and used hockey gear from southern Canada to send to youth and volunteers in Nunavut communities.
New cabin
Rankin Inlet
Visitors to Rankin Inlet will be treated to a new elder's cabin at Iqalugaarjuup Nunanga Territorial Park this summer.
Plans to replace the existing elder's cabin with a new structure were announced by Nunavut Parks and Special Places this past month. Although the previous cabin was muchbeloved by local residents, it had fallen into a state of disrepair and Nunavut Parks hopes the new building will become a valuable asset to the community.
Geocache hunt
Baker Lake
Kids in Baker Lake took part in a geocaching event organized by Areva Resources this past month.
Two teams of children used a GPS to make their way around the community during the event, finding the secret locations of prizes.
There was no set course, allowing the kids to chart out the best route to get to each stop.
There were eight stops in the geocache hunt, with a prize for each child at every stop. The course took about 90 minutes to complete. The kids had so much fun during the event, Areva has announced it will be holding a geocache event every Saturday this summer until it runs out of prizes.
Health camp
Rankin Inlet
A weeklong Nunavut Health Careers Camp will be held at Nunavut Arctic College's Community Learning Centre in Rankin Inlet from July 2327.
The camp is aimed at youth aged 11 to 13 and features a variety of healthrelated activities.
Participants can expect to be involved in setting up a mock clinic, examining Xrays, working in a lab, taking a behind-the-scenes tour of the health centre and learning how their heart works.
A number of Inuit volunteers will also take part in the camp to share traditional knowledge and cultural experiences with the participants.
Games draw closer
Whale Cove
Traditional athletes across the Kivalliq are reminded the community of Whale Cove will be hosting the Kivalliq Inuit Games during the Sept. 14 weekend.
Each of the seven Kivalliq communities is allowed to enter 10 athletes and is expected to provide one judge for the event.
The games will feature 12 events for both male and female athletes in junior, senior and elder divisions.
Cleaning up
Arviat
The community of Arviat held a successful spring cleanup this past month.
The hamlet-led community initiative featured a colouring contest for kids aged two to nine, a buck-a-bag promotion that paid $1 for every bag of garbage brought to the hamlet by kids aged six to 16, a mostimprovedlot contest, free vehicle removal by the hamlet, and a giant community barbecue held at the local Northern store.
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