FRASER STRESSES VACCINE PREPAREDNESS WITH TODAY’S NEW “MODERNA” VACCINE
For the second Monday in a row, there’s exciting news about a promising Coronavirus vaccine. The pharmaceutical company known as Moderna says its new vaccine is 94.5% effective against coronavirus. Central Nova M-P Sean Fraser is reacting to that. He says with the recent news of promising COVID vaccine candidates from Pfizer last week and Moderna, this week, the agreements the federal government has signed place Canada as the world leader in vaccine preparedness. That said, the local Liberal M-P is cautioning that even if a vaccine were approved for use tomorrow, it would take months to manufacture, distribute, and inoculate enough people before it could offer major protection to the population. Fraser says in the meantime, it is crucial that we all do our part by following public health advice to keep the spread of the virus down. He notes that here at home we are seeing an uptick in active cases and potential public exposures over the past few weeks across Nova Scotia. (File Photo)
TRAVEL ADVISORY FOR PEI AND NFLD FERRIES
Marine Atlantic and Northumberland Ferries have both cancelled their trips to and from Nova Scotia today because of the windy weather in your Monday forecast.
PICTOU COUNTY DISPUTED BEACH WALL CASE CAN PROCEED – JUDGE
A judge has decided that a case of beach access, erosion and property rights here in Pictou County will go ahead despite the province’s attempts to have it thrown out. A decision from Justice Ann Smith of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court is focused on beachgoers concerned with the province’s stance on an armour stone wall built across James Beach, which is also known as Black Point Beach, north of New Glasgow. The applicants say they’re pleased they’ll now have their day in court. They’re worried about beach access because of Wayne and Helen Chisholm’s rock wall. That wall now reaches across the beach and into the saltwater during high tide. The Chisholms say they added to the wall just this year after a bad storm two years ago this month (Nov. 2018) washed some of it away, along with a chunk of their property. They say it’s a case of protecting their land from erosion. (CBC Photo)
MORE THAN 40 CORONAVIRUS CASES IN THE MARITIMES TO START THE NEW WEEK
We now have more than 40 active coronavirus cases in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, so the numbers bear watching, with 21 active coronavirus infections in Nova Scotia alone right now. This province added two new cases yesterday and 6 new COVID infections in the Saturday update, making Saturday the most serious day for Nova Scotians catching the virus since back in May. Both of the Sunday infections are in the Halifax-Central Health Zone. One is linked to the Clayton Park Cluster. The other person is also connected to a previous COVID case.
Across New Brunswick, there were 3 new COVID infections yesterday, bringing the case count there up to 22. Doctors say that means are now 43 active Coronavirus cases in the two largest Maritime provinces combined.
The list of sites in Halifax where potential exposure to COVID-19 may have occurred grew significantly over the weekend, with 10 locations where exposure may have occurred named by the Nova Scotia Health Authority between Friday and Saturday afternoons.
For one of them — the Local Bar and Restaurant on Gottingen Street, in the Marquee Club building — health officials are now asking that any patrons who were there on Nov. 9 between 4 p.m. and closing call 811 to arrange for COVID-19 testing, whether they have symptoms or not.
For the others, Nova Scotia Health asks patrons to monitor for symptoms of COVID-19 for a period of 14 days following the dates of these potential exposures.
Locations and dates cited by health authorities on Saturday include:
- East Preston Recreation Centre – gym/basketball court (24 Brooks Dr.), Nov. 9 from 8:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.
- Pet Valu (5686 Spring Garden Rd.) Nov. 9 from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
- Aerobics First (6166 Quinpool Rd.) Nov. 7 from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- Mountain Equipment Co-Op (1550 Granville St.) Nov 4 from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
- Real Fake Meats (2278 Gottingen St.) Oct. 31 from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.
- Antojo Tacos and Tequila (1667 Argyle St.) Oct. 31 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
These are in addition to Friday’s previously reported exposures at:
- Tim Hortons (36 Verdi Dr.) Bedford Commons, Nov. 12 from 6:30 to 8 a.m.
- John W. Lindsay YMCA Gym (5640 Sackville St.), Nov. 9 and 10, between 6 and 8 a.m.
- Economy Shoe Shop Bar & Restaurant – Basement venue (1663 Argyle St.) Nov. 8 between 8:30 and 11 p.m.
(with files from NSHA and Saltwire News)
CAPE BRETON DOCTOR SAYS HE SHOULD NEVER HAVE FACED DISCIPLINE
Dr. Chris Milburn of Cape Breton is happy the Nova Scotia College of Physicians and Surgeons is no longer pursuing a complaint against him. But he is worried they even investigated it in the first place. The people who filed it aren’t being named in the college’s decision, after they, alleged Dr. Milburn’s recent public comments on the Herald website and regional TV news were akin to professional misconduct. Milburn says his comments were meant to provide solutions to make the medical system better for Nova Scotians. He believes the opinions he expressed are his right to a public voice and the complaint was nothing more than an attack on his freedom of speech. Milburn says he ‘s not the first victim of “cancel culture” and he likely won’t be the last. He says the governing body’s choice not to pursue the complaint should have instead resulted in a declaration that he was indeed allowed to speak out. And lawyer Lisa Bildy from the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms agrees. (With files from Saltwire News)
SIRT SAYS OFFICER NOT AT FAULT IN AUGUST SHOOTING
Reaction in Pictou County police ranks is a sigh of relief over last week’s decision from the province’s Serious Incident Response Team. The police watchdog told us on Friday that a New Glasgow police officer is not guilty of any wrongdoing in shooting a man three times after a woman in town described her son to officers as being “very, very violent” and “out of control” back in August. The woman told officers her 25-year-old son had been drinking and had left her home after damaging property. When three police officers responded, one ended up finding him walking along a New Glasgow street with a bottle of alcohol in his pocket. SIRT’s ruling makes note of the fact that the man had stolen two bottles of rum from a liquor store earlier that evening. When two officers called for the man to stop, SIRT says he pulled a knife from his jacket and started advancing toward a second police officer, who used his stun gun. When that didn’t work, the officer pulled his gun and fired a the guy. After weeks of investigation and weighing evidence, SIRT’s official ruling is that the policeman who took the shots was right to fear for his safety and his decision to shoot a suspect coming at him with a knife was justified.
ATTEMPTED MURDER CASE IN DIGBY COUNTY MOVES TO COURT TODAY
A 55-year-old man is facing an attempted murder charge stemming from an incident involving three people who knew each other in Digby County on Friday night. Meteghan RCMP say they went to a home and found a man with a serious injury and a woman with a life-threatening wound in the community of Springdale, just before 10:30 Friday evening. They both had to be hospitalized. Stacey Eugene Beals of Springdale was tracked down on Lake Doucette Road. He’s due in Yarmouth Provincial Court today, charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault, uttering threats and resisting arrest.
TATAMAGOUCHE HOSPITAL ADDED TO ONLINE BOOKING LIST
A reminder that Nova Scotia Health announced on Friday it’s expanding its online appointment booking service. Locally, that service will now cover blood collection, EKG testing and X-rays with the Lillian Fraser Hospital in Tatamagouche being added to the provincial list. To reserve your time for those tests in the River John and Tatamagouche areas, the website is “booking.nshealth.ca”
ARREST IN MORANIS ASSAULT CASE
New York City police have arrested a man in connection with an apparently random attack on Canadian actor Rick Moranis more than a month ago. Police are giving the credit to an “eagle-eyed sergeant” from the force’s transit team for helping solve the case in a post on Twitter. 35-year-old Marquis Ventura was arrested Saturday afternoon and, as a result, is facing his 7th assault charge this year. 67-year-old Moranis is well-known for roles in movies like Ghostbusters and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. The Canadian funnyman was walking along a street near Central Park when he was punched in the head and knocked to the ground on Oct. 1st. (AP File Photo and story files from Global News)
IN SPORTS
In an effort to be more diverse, Hockey Canada has hired three women to its board of directors. They’ve announced that Andrea Skinner, Leanne Standryk and Mary Anne Veroba have been added to the national board. All three have a wealth of experience in hockey.
The Amherst Ramblers defeated the Pictou County Weeks Crushers 4-0 on the weekend.
In Under-13 Triple-A Hockey, The Fundy Highland Cyclones started their regular season over the weekend picking up 3 points. Game #1 in Truro on Saturday saw the Metro West Force Blue Knights win it by a score of 3-1. Goals were scored by Sophie Hatchard, Brooklyn Bagnell-Lauther and Allie Williams with assists added by Ada White (2) and Chloe Ferguson. Alana Palmer had the win in nets.
In Sunday’s game, the Cyclones ended up with a 1-1 tie with the loan unassisted goal scored by Sophie Hatchard.
