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Friday, September 23, 2016
Ekati back up
Dominion Diamond announced the Ekati process plant resumed running at full capacity on Sept. 21. Dominion had begun rehiring workers who had been temporarily laid off on Sept. 6. A fire at the process plant on June 23 shut down production, resulting in 330 employees being temporarily laid off during repairs. Dominion Diamond estimates the total cost for repairs to the process plant was approximately US $15 million.
- Jessica Davey-Quantick
Housing First seeks donations
The Yellowknife Housing First program is trying to fill its new donation depot, located in the empty lot beside The Raven on 51 Street. The group will host a free barbecue on Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. at the depot.
Anyone can drop off new or gently used items to help Housing First furnish four apartments. Housing First is aiming to house four participants the first week of October, and needs everything from dish towels to furniture.
- Jessica Davey-Quantick
Art show calls for artists
The City of Yellowknife Heritage Committee, working with the Yellowknife Artist Run Community Centre (YKARCC), is looking for proposals for art pieces and installations for their juried art show. Pieces should interpret the theme of Performance in Yellowknife, and will be reviewed by a jury of representatives from the Heritage Committee and YKARCC.
The selected artists will receive an honorarium to create their work for the show, which will be on display at the YKARCC gallery space at 5112 52 St. from Nov. 14 to 19.
- Jessica Davey-Quantick
NTPC explains power outages
High winds are getting the blame for a relatively brief power outage last Saturday in the Yellowknife and North Slave region.
According to NWT Power Corp. spokesperson Pam Coulter, the wind knocked a tree into the lines at the Snare hydroelectric facility early Saturday morning. Power was restored using diesel until the tree could be cleared from the line. Another outage on Monday was caused by an electrical issue at the Snare Falls Plant and is currently being investigated, Coulter stated in an e-mail.
- John McFadden
Thursday, September 22, 2016
Departments may amalgamate
Four of the territorial government's departments will eventually become one, if proposed restructuring goes ahead as planned.
On Sept. 19, the government announced its intention to combine the Department of Finance, Executive, Human Resources and Aboriginal Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations into one.
Likewise, the Department of Public Works and Services would be amalgamated with the Department of Transportation.
According to the announcement, restructuring decisions will not be final until after MLAs consider and vote on the 2017-18 Main Estimates, of which draft business plans for departments will form the basis.
Bompas clubs start up
For children who attend Bompas Elementary School in Fort Simpson, three clubs have begun to offer after-school activities.
Choir is being offered to students from classes 3 to 6 on Wednesdays, while art club will be on Tuesdays for students in the same classes.
French club runs at noon on Tuesdays for students in classes 2, 3 and 4, while students in classes 5 and 6 can join french club on Thursdays at noon.
Two NTPC spills in two days
According to spill reports from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the Northwest Territories Power Corporation had a spill at its Fort Liard plant on Sept 9, followed by a spill at its Fort Simpson plant two days later.
The Fort Liard spill involved 25 litres of propylene glycol leaking from a coupler on an engine onto a cement floor.
In Fort Simpson, 100 litres of diesel spilled after a tank overfilled. The spill was contained on a steel berm under the tank, according to a spill report.
No hazards to persons, property or environment were listed for either spill.
University student gets scholarship
Devan Cli, a university student at MacEwan University in Edmonton, Alta., has been named the recipient of Dehcho Regional Helicopters LP's aviation support services scholarship.
This is the third time Cli, who is from Fort Simpson, has received the $1,500 scholarship since it was created in 2014.
Sunrise Festival planning underway
About a dozen people representing various organizations in town met Sept. 13 to discuss plans for this winter's Sunrise Festival.
Discussion subjects included the locations of various aspects of the festival, fireworks, the concert and other ideas.
The three-day annual event, set to take place in early January, celebrates the return of the sun to Inuvik.
Safety concerns, especially in regards to placement of the fireworks show and making sure people do not go near where the fireworks are being set off, took up much of the discussion at the first planning meeting.
More meetings will follow as the town gears up for the festival.
Student attendance encouraged
Students at East Three Elementary and East Three Secondary are being reminded to attend class during the month of September because of territorial government requirements.
In a post on Facebook, East Three stated that September attendance is vital to school funding and has a large impact on the number of staff and activities the schools can have each year.
At the end of September, the Department of Education looks at the school's enrolment and attendance statistics. Only students who attend more than 60 per cent of classes will count and get the school the allotted per-student dollars. The result will affect next year's funding and programs.
"In order to get and keep kids in school, we need good-quality programs, good-quality teachers and good-quality facilities," stated the post. "Unless we have these things, kids aren't learning in a safe place, aren't being engaged in their learning and don't have the extra activities that make school a place where they want to be."
Aboriginal film to debut
The Sun At Midnight, a film about an unusual friendship between a hunter obsessed with finding a missing caribou herd and a teenage rebel who gets lost while on the run, will be screened in Fort McPherson on Sept. 25.
The Gwich'in Tribal Council was a key supporter of the film, which is set in Gwich'in traditional territory.
"Collaborating with the Gwich'in on the script began in 2009," stated Kirsten Carthew, the film's writer, director and producer. "It has been a long haul and I think we are in collective awe that the film has now come to life."
Carthew went on to say the film was possible only with the support of the Gwich'in Tribal Council – Department of Culture Heritage, who are associate producers of the film.
The official trailer can be found on The Sun At Midnight's Facebook page.
The film is produced by Jill & Jackfish Productions Inc.
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