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Jessica Laing

About Jessica Laing

Jessica Laing is a news reporter for Acadia Broadcasting who graduated from the journalism program at Humber College (now known as Humber Polytechnic). She is based in the Port Hawkesbury area of Nova Scotia and is an award-winning photographer. Contact Jessica at LaingJ@radioabl.ca.

Posts by Jessica Laing:

church bell

Reward and plea for return of sentimental church bell in Antigonish

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An Antigonish community member is taking the recovery of a stolen church bell into her own hands.

Kate MacEachern is offering a reward of over $1,200 to find the bell that was discovered missing on Friday afternoon from St. David’s United Church in Cape George.

She shared with our newsroom how the theft affects her and the community.

“It’s an awful feeling to know that we had potentially people creeping around at night stealing things. It’s depraved because it’s an attack really on our community’s history, everything, our identity. It’s not a good feeling,” expressed MacEachern.

She explained how the historical bell was a gift to the church from St. Ninian’s School.

“If you know who has it, if you know of the location, just do the right thing. This is much more than a bell. It’s part of our community,” she explained.

The RCMP say investigators believe someone used a grinder saw to cut the bell out from its base and loaded it onto a truck.

MacEachern also aided in the recovery of another stolen church bell in Antigonish a year ago by offering another reward.

Halifax Harbour Bridges is also currently looking to find out the origin of a Meneely bell that may have been on a church from the Halifax Explosion era.

power outage in Antigonish - Mar 24

Power Outage in County of Antigonish on Tuesday

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There is a power outage in some parts of the County of Antigonish.

The issue was reported around 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday. 

The current estimated time of restoration is 3 p.m. on Tuesday.

The map shows the outage from the north of the Town on Antigonish up Highway 337 to Lakevale and throughout Fairmont and Brophy.

You can see updates on the NS Power outages map here.

church bell

Church bell goes missing from Antigonish

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Community members of Cape George feel a great loss after a church bell was stolen.

That’s according to a neighbour of St. David’s United Church who noticed it missing with a circular saw blade left in its place on Friday afternoon.

Jim Webber-Cook tells our newsroom how it feels to have this historical bell taken.

“Unfortunately, someone had the audacity to take it from not only the church and the cemetery there where it stood, but also, it’s something that means something to the entire community here at Cape George,” shares Webber-Cook.

“It just feels a great loss to the community. It feels like a violation and many people in the neighbourhood here and beyond are upset that someone would go and remove that bell to steal it from the church and from the community.”

He says the over 150-year-old bell was donated to the church by St. Ninian’s School after it closed in June of 1983.

Community member Mary Kate MacEachern has made a Facebook post offering $1,000 reward for the return of the bell.

Premier Tim Houston

N.S. Premier to promote energy resources in Texas

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Premier Tim Houston will be meeting with global energy leaders to promote energy and natural resources in Nova Scotia.

He’s attending the Cambridge Energy Research Associates Week known as CERAWeek that’s taking place in Texas from March 23 to 27.

Houston will be joined by other Canadian premiers and the federal Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Tim Hodgson.

He took over the province’s Energy Minister role last October and attended trade missions in Calgary and Texas in the following weeks and spoke about offshore wind energy at the Oceantic Network forum in New York in February.

“Nova Scotia has a wealth of natural resources that are in high demand, and it’s incredibly important that we take full advantage of them in safe and responsible ways to boost Nova Scotia’s economic and energy security,” he said.

“World events continue to demonstrate the importance of making sure Nova Scotia’s economy is more resilient and ready to play a part in Canada’s energy future by further developing our energy capacity and attracting new investments.”

The province says they are working responsibly to develop offshore resources including oil, natural gas, offshore wind and permanent carbon storage.

“Nova Scotia has attracted some of the largest oil and gas companies from around the world and hosted safe exploration and development for more than 25 years,” says the province in a news release.

Houston will return from the conference on Thursday, March 26.

Money annual budget concept. stacked coins and wooden cubes with word Budget on coins background. Free space for advertising materials

Trustee program supports housing stability in Cape Breton

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If you would like support paying your rent and utilities on time, there is a trustee program that could help you.

New Dawn Enterprises is offering their free and confidential service to Richmond County and Port Hawkesbury residents.

Community Trustee Marguerite Conradie shared with our newsroom how their services are free, voluntary, and confidential.

She says they will receive your money to pay your rent and utilities first and then they disperse the rest back to you.

“It’s open to any adults. I guess the only thing is this person would need to have some kind of income coming in for us to be able to help. It’s open to any adult, who wishes to have support with their finances,” said Conradie.

“One thing I will say is we don’t provide investment advice or handle large sums. It’s really just for basic budgeting and staying housed and finding that stability with what we have coming in.”

She added additional monthly budgeting support and saving funds for bigger expenses are also available.

Conradie says if your income does not cover your bills, they can help you find benefits you may be eligible for or refer you to a community partner.

You can contact New Dawn Enterprises directly if you are interested in their trustee program or find out more information on their website.

doctor holding red stethoscope

Healthcare recruitment supported in Cape Breton South after cuts

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Richmond County and the Town of Port Hawkesbury are not giving up on a Cape Breton healthcare initiative after a huge cut to its funding.

Cape Breton South Recruiting for Health, Program Director, Gina MacDonald confirmed at a Port Hawkesbury council meeting that annual community funding of $2 million was cut by 20 per cent, which is a $400,000 provincial cut.

She explained their goal is to recruit and retain medical professionals and that this area does not get enough recruitment strategy focus.

Deputy Mayor Todd Barrett explained why healthcare is an important piece of a municipality.

“If you’re going to attract people, people need healthcare, it’s part and parcel to the growth of a community. So, you know, a healthy community, you need that for the future,” he expressed.

Mayor Brenda Chisholm-Beaton says although municipalities aren’t the key drivers for finding and keeping medical healthcare, the Town has put funding behind it.

“In Cape Breton South, so Richmond County and the Town of Port Hawkesbury were happy to roll up our sleeves [and] figure out a way that we can impact positive change on the R&R, which is the recruitment and retention of medical healthcare staff,” she shared.

The Cape Breton South Health Infusion project initiative was also created to lure American doctors and healthcare professionals to Canada.

MacDonald said considering the political situation in the United States, a lot of them have made it clear that they will be to make their move to Canada permanent.

She’s created new recruitment packages that give a first impression and share about the community to attract and retain potential new medical professionals.

Cape Breton Regional Police - hit and run - sized

Search for vehicle in fatal hit and run in Cape Breton

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Cape Breton Regional Police are on the search for the vehicle involved in a fatal hit and run in Albert Bridge.

They say they’ve determined it was a 2024 or 2025 Buick Encore Avenir most likely with frontend damage but are unsure of the colour.

Officers found a 23-year-old female victim deceased along the Louisbourg Highway near Kristen Court and Hills Road on Saturday, March 15 before noon.

They determined she the was the victim of a hit and run collision that occurred sometime during the overnight hours of Saturday, March 14.

A GoFundMe is available online for Cassie Reid who it says left behind four beautiful children.

Contact police if you have information or can identify the vehicle.

tap water

Water rate hike may happen in Port Hawkesbury this year

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Port Hawkesbury residents may need to prepare for a hike on their water bill.

Councillor Iaian Langley says he believes it may go up 10 to 20 per cent for the first time in six years and that their rates are set on a cost recovery basis.

He says changes could come later this year after the Nova Scotia Regulatory and Appeals Board’s review in April.

This follows EverWind’s request to Landrie Lake Water Utility for possibly 10 million litres per day to supply their proposed green hydrogen project.

“When you consider the available safe yield, meaning how much can that body of water produce and replenish itself on a daily basis, it’s well within its capacity to do that,” states Langley.

“We know that from the science that we understand, and is approximately round figures, approximately one third of the useable safe yield per day.”

He assures residential customers they are of paramount concern to the utility and other industrial users, which is well laid out in their agreements without any dispute.

Langley says Landrie Lake Water Utility is co-managed by the Town of Port Hawkesbury and the Municipality of the County of Richmond.

“We’ve actually had more studies conducted by hydrologists and engineering firms than has been done prior. including, but not limited to, the bathymetry work, which determines the whole bottom shape of the lake to get acrid volumes,” he shares.

“Things are dynamic, not static. Evaporation rates change, and we’ve made adjustments to evaporation rates change. We’ve updated precipitation amounts, and how the reservoir is refilled.”

He says lake levels were monitored when experienced a summer drought last summer through engineering and hydrological studies to know what affects the average capacity of Landrie Lake.

“No user subsidizes another user. There is no rate increase because of any other single users,” explains Langley.

The Town is planning to hold a public hearing in May.

98th Oscars, Academy Awards

Oscar winning artist credits government funding for her success

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Cape Bretoner Tamara Deverell just won an Oscar, Hollywood’s highest prize, but only because government funding helped her to get there.

The production designer says supporting arts and culture in Nova Scotia is important and should be embraced as we need it as humans.

Our newsroom spoke to Deverell on her plane ride home about her achievement and how recent provincial cuts to arts will disadvantage future generations of artists.

“It’s great to get an Oscar, but I wouldn’t be getting an Oscar if it weren’t for government support while I was a young person growing up,” she expressed.

“It doesn’t affect me so much as an older person, but to all the young people out there who want a career in the arts or in film or in theatre. It will affect them. It’s a hard start. And we need culture.”

There were numerous rallies in response to the cuts to arts and culture across Nova Scotia last week and the budget’s passing is taking the week off for March Break.

Deverell and her co-nominee fellow Nova Scotian Shane Vieau won the Oscar for Best Production Design for their creativity on the Frankenstein movie.

She says we have some top-notch film crews in Canada, which is a reason why filmmakers like Guillermo del Toro come here to film.

Next on the horizon for her, she’s planning to focus on her own artwork and she’s sifting through offers for future production design opportunities.

Cassie Reid JPG

Hit-and-run victim in Cape Breton identified

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A mother is being mourned after a hit-and-run in Albert Bridge.

A GoFundMe for Cassie Reid describes the loss as “heartbreaking” and says she left behind “four beautiful children”.

The money will go towards funeral expenses and to support her children.

“Any amount you are able to contribute would be deeply appreciated,” said friend of the family Cheryl Christmas.

“Thank you for your kindness and support.”

Police say the 23-year-old victim was found on Louisburg Highway near Hills Road around noon on Sunday after what they believe was an overnight collision.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police.

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