Scott Pettigrew

A provincial grant of just over $216,000 is going to help the Dryden Go-Getters complete renovations to its senior’s centre.

President Judy Crigger says they added a new addition but at the time could not complete everything they planned, especially the lower level.

Kenora Rainy River MPP Greg Rickford, who joined the Go-Getters for a hot bowl of chili on Tuesday, told the crowd the funding will pay for among other things new accessible bathrooms, air conditioning, and furnish the lower level of the centre.

The Dryden Go-Getters operates a facility that offers healthy meals, social activities and wellness programs. As the largest senior centre between Thunder Bay and the Manitoba border, the not-for-profit organization plays a vital role in community engagement and seniors support in the region.

“Dryden Go-Getter’s remains a cornerstone of the community, providing a gathering space equipped with accessible and fun services for seniors in Dryden and the surrounding area,” said Rickford. “This funding is not just for infrastructure upgrades; it is ensuring the Dryden Go-Getters can continue to offer the incredible spaces and services, while modernizing and meeting the growing community demand.”

President Crigger notes their membership has more than doubled since covid to just under 700.

Fire services serving 13 communities in the riding of Kenora – Rainy River will be receiving funding from the province to help keep their firefighters safe.

MPP Greg Rickford, at an announcement at the Dryden Fire Hall on Tuesday, shared this money comes from listening to the local firefighter leadership. He noted it is important we be proactive in limiting exposure to elements that could be harmful to their health is vital. “So making sure that they have every piece of facility support operationally and the gear to do it is, it has to be a top priority,” added Rickford.

The Kenora Rainy River MPP went on to say his government is doing a lot of work on the prevention component of the occupational hazards faced by firefighters. ryden.

The funding announced today will go towards purchasing protective gear ranging from hoods to footwear, fit test machine and bunker gear drying stations here in Dryden plus some capital upgrades to a couple of the facilities in the Rainy River area.

Here is the funding that each fire department will receive:

Municipality of Alberton – $19,626.05
Municipality of Chapple – $32,000
City of Dryden – $34,517.57
Township of Emo – $19,626.05

Town of Fort Frances – $19,626.05
Township of Ignace – $17,372.62
City of Kenora – $52,821.07

Municipality of La Vallee – $16,000
Municipality of Machin – $13,300
Township of Morley – $30,000
Town of Rainy River – $48,000
Sioux Narrows – Nestor Falls – $33,114.89

Dryden Fire Chief Chris Wood noted there is a lot of emphasis being placed on cleaning the firefighters gear when they return from a call to limit any exposure to dangerous chemicals.

The new year is off to a good start for Mark Parker of Kenora.

He got the call on Wednesday that he was the winner of the Lake of the Woods Hospital Foundation’s Holiday 50/50 draw.

Parker will be picking up a cheque for $51,880 – the largest jackpot in the past 4 years for the LWDHF 50/50.

Here is a link to the phone call he received.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y62wlEq5LCY

A company called Samsara has published a list of the 10 worst stretches of highway for winter driving in Canada and the stretch of Highway 17 from Kenora to Dryden ranked number six. The study analyzed data from crashes across the country and to no ones surprise driving in the Rocky Mountains in the winter can be very dangerous as well as in the highway traffic around Toronto.

The stretch of 17 from Kenora to Dryden it noted had a higher risk from long, dark two-lane stretches with limited passing and the constant threat of moose crossing. Highway 11 from Hearst to Kapuskasing also cracked the top ten.

The worst stretch of road though was in southern Ontario between Chatham and Erieau where lake effect snow from Lake Erie, the winding curves along the shoreline and the narrow two lanes increased the risk to motorists.

The week of Christmas found the most crashes happen on December 24th.

Here is the full list:

1. Erieau Road – Erieau Peninsula lakeshore (ON) Lake-effect snow, narrow two-lane geometry, and shoreline curves between Chatham-Kent and Erieau.
2. Trans-Canada Highway – Rogers Pass and Yoho National Park (BC) Steep grades, avalanche exposure, and tight curves between Golden, Rogers Pass, and Lake Louise.
3. Trans-Canada Highway – Banff–Lake Louise (AB/BC border) Heavy tourist and freight mix, wildlife crossings, and frequent snow squalls.
4. Yellowhead Highway – Jasper–Hinton corridor (AB) Elk and moose crossings, forested curves, and fast-changing mountain weather.
5. Yellowhead Highway – McBride–Tête Jaune Cache (BC) Narrow mountain valley, grade changes, and patchy traction.
6. Highway 17 – Kenora–Dryden (ON) Long, dark two-lane stretches through dense moose habitat, with limited passing and shoulders.
7. Highway 11 – Hearst–Kapuskasing (ON) Extreme cold, limited lighting, and wildlife movement along remote boreal forest segments.
8. Queen Elizabeth Way – Burlington Skyway (ON) Crosswinds, elevated structure over Hamilton Harbour, and heavy truck volumes.
9. Highway 401 – Mississauga interchange complex (ON) 401/403/410 interchange zone with dense freight traffic, frequent lane changes, and winter refreeze on ramps.
10. Highway 401 Express/Collectors – Toronto core (ON) Collector–express weave between Pearson and Scarborough with high density, spray, and rapid refreeze on overpasses.

If you bought a ticket for Friday night’s Lotto Max draw in Thunder Bay you should check your ticket.

While no one has the winning ticket for the $80 million grand prize someone in Thunder Bay split a maxmillion worth $500 thousand dollars.

There was a total of 8 maxmillion prizes won in Ontario from Friday night’s draw.

The grand prize for Tuesday’s draw will remain at $80 million but there will be 43 prizes of a million dollars up for grabs.

The Ministry of Transportation is reporting a number of road closures east of Thunder Bay.

Other highways across northern Ontario are reported to be snow packed with icy sections.

As of 6:00 pm eastern:

Hwy 17 has been re-opened from Terrace Bay to Marathon.

HWY 11 has also been re-opened at Nipigon to Longlac, but is closed from Longlac to Timmins.

Highway 17 has also been closed at White River to Batchewana Bay and from Wawa to Chapleau along Highway 101.

Check Ontario 511 for road information.

By: Matt Prokopchuk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Source: TBnewswatch.com

GREENSTONE — Officials with the company that owns the gold mine in the Geraldton area say they’re getting up to full speed.

The mine celebrated its first gold pour in May 2024, and since then “we’ve been ramping up into full production,” Bryan Wilson, the vice president of operations at Equinox Gold’s Greenstone mine, told Newswatch.

“We’re still looking at nameplate capacity for the mill, so we’re going to target that for the end of 2025 and then move into 2026 with the nameplate capacity running at the mill,” he said.

Nameplate capacity is the maximum capability of how much rock the on-site facility can process in a day.

The capacity of the mine mill at Greenstone is 27,000 tons per day, Wilson said, with the desired ore then extracted from that through other processes.

Come 2026, they expect to be able to haul about 215,000 tons of rock out of the pit per day, he added.

The operation is only scheduled to grow. The mine has a stated lifespan of 14 years, and Wilson said the existing open pit will become deeper, and subsequently wider, every year. The mine’s expanding footprint has already ensured Greenstone OPP will be moving to a new detachment, and it has also forced the relocation of other structures.

The pit is expected to go deeper by about eight benches per year, Wilson said. A bench is a horizontal terrace-type structure cut as the pit gets deeper. Wilson said the Greenstone operation is cutting 10-metre tall benches.

As the pit gets deeper, it also has to get wider, he added.

“We’ll continue growing that pit out as we continue to grow,” Wilson said.

Equinox Gold held a public meeting in Geraldton on Dec. 3, where company officials gave an overview of current and projected mine operations and fielded questions from residents. About two dozen people attended, although the Municipality of Greenstone had a separate open house about the municipal budget scheduled at the same time.

The expanding size of the pit came up at Equinox’s meeting, with some concerns about whether it will affect all or part of the Kenogamisis Golf Club.

Wilson told the meeting, given the information he has currently, “the nine holes, we’ll maintain.”

“But we are looking at it — does it engulf the whole golf course? Does it take two holes? I don’t have the answers for that right now,” he said. “The information I have today, the nine holes stay; moving forward though, we’ve made a commitment to the community … we take two holes, we give back two holes.”

“If we have to step into it, then we’ll look at offsetting that,” Wilson told Newswatch. “But right now … it’s too early to tell.”

Also at the meeting, Wilson noted that the Greenstone mine operation has seen a 74 per cent drop in the number of on-site injuries compared to 2024, and attributed that to a constant and daily focus on safety.

Currently, he said, the site has a rate of about 0.6 people requiring medical attention per 200,000 hours worked, compared to a rate of 2.4 in 2024. At the Greenstone mine, Wilson said, 200,000 hours roughly equals one month.

“I think it’s a strong focus on safety,” he told Newswatch of the positive decline. “It’s talking about safety at the beginning of every day.”

Wilson said at the meeting that employees are encouraged to stop a task if they feel something is unsafe or dangerous.

“We’ve got the field-level risk assessment that we’re doing every day, and just the management team engaging with the workforce is a big piece of that.”

For the 35th year Kenora is coming together to help make Christmas a little brighter for many families.
Donations of food, unwrapped toys and cash are being collected at the Q104 and 89.5 Lake studios at 301 1st Avenue South until 6pm.

You can click here to make a donation online.

All donations will go to the Kenora Salvation Army which will be providing Christmas hampers to families in need.

By: Clint Fleury, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Source: TBnewswatch.com

THUNDER BAY — After less than two years at the helm of Thunder Bay Fire and Rescue, Fire Chief Dave Paxton is retiring.

“It’s just something you keep an eye on as you go through a career, and the timing made sense for me and my family. I wanted to give the city enough time to transition to whoever the person that would be replacing me and to have a smooth transition in the administration role,” Paxton told Newswatch.

He said he’ll retire in January 2026.

“I’m gonna maybe enjoy some ice fishing in the middle of the winter. Take some time and catch up on some of the things that maybe fell to the wayside over the last 13 years or so, and just reconnect with some of the things away from work,” Paxton said.

Paxton first joined the local fire service in April 1998 and quickly moved through the ranks. In 2012, he became the duty fire chief, which he served in that role until June 2024, when he took the role of fire chief.

“I started as a student working for the city, really enjoyed that environment and working for the city. I went away and played some hockey. When I came back, the team environment really drew me to the job and the opportunity to do something different every day. So, coming to work and serving the community in that role was really a great opportunity, and I enjoyed it all the way through,” Paxton said.

Even though Thunder Bay is a small community, serving with other provincial response teams was a rewarding experience, he said.

“I was part of a team of 20 people that responded to the G8 in Huntsville a number of years ago. Working with our partners with the Ontario Fire Marshals Office and Emergency response unit, we’re part of a provincial response for Urban Search and Rescue and Hazmat. So, we get to work with Ottawa, Toronto, Windsor, North Bay, Peterborough, and all the other departments connected to me with many other colleagues, throughout the province,” Paxton said.

The city has posted the position on its careers website, applicants have until early December to turn in their resumes.

Paxton offers some advice to the next person to take on the role of fire chief. He said that one thing he’s learned is “you never get it right every time.”

“You do your best and you make the decisions that you can based on the information in front of you, and really that’s what the career of firefighting is, making decisions with the information in front of you. We try to do the best here as an administration team and as a leadership here at Thunder Bay Fire to really look out for employees, look out for the citizens with the end goal of trying to serve the community as best we could,” Paxton said.