Beer store parking lot bust

A car crash in a Goderich Beer Store parking lot led to impaired driving charges for a Central Huron woman.
A Huron OPP officer investigating a driver who allegedly struck a parked vehicle at the Beer Store Tuesday morning arrested the driver after she failed a breathalyzer test, said police.
The suspect was taken to the Huron OPP detachment where further tests showed her blood alcohol was over the legal 80-milligram limit.
A 46-year-old woman is charged with impaired driving.

The Sarnia Road bridge is on the move

The CP rail bridge was been lifted off its foundations over the CP Rail line between Hyde Park Road and Wonderland Road Thursday.
The 50,000 lb., steel-truss, one-lane bridge, in place since 1909, was lifted out of the way by crane.
The new railway crossing is expected to be finished in the fall.
The one-lane bridge was blamed for frequent bottlenecks.

Second body found

WOODSTOCK - Investigators at the scene of a Woodstock apartment fire confirmed a second grim discovery Thursday morning.
Officers discovered the remains of a second victim at approximately 9:35 a.m
With the remains of the two victims recovered, and no other residents unaccounted for, Freeman said the investigation will now focus on the cause of the explosion and fire that engulfed the three-story, 45-unit apartment building.
It's believed a gas dryer caused the explosion that killed two and injured seven.

Terror suspect arrested at Pearson airport

TORONTO - The RCMP say information from the Somali community helped them arrest a former University of Toronto student for terror-related offences as he was about to board a flight at Pearson airport to Egypt and then Somalia.

Police seized undisclosed items from Mohamed Hersi, 25, of Toronto, before charging him with planning to participate in terrorist activities and counseling another person to do the same.

Second body may have been found

WOODSTOCK - Emergency workers at the scene of the Victoria Street apartment fire may have made another grim discovery.
Just before 6 p.m., two police officers carried a white bag from the rubble of the gutted building and gently placed it in the back of a black minivan.
The minivan, which was being driven by Jeff Glendinning, the owner of Plattsville's Glendinning Funeral Home, slowly left the apartment complex parking lot. Standing near the exit to the apartment complex.

Western to expand student residences

The University of Western Ontario is expanding its students residences with a plan to add upwards of 1,000 beds.
The move comes in response to the Ontario government’s promise last year and again this week in its budget to increase access to post-secondary institutions by 60,000 places by the 2015-2016 school year.
The new residence, would provide beds to mostly first-year students, but also provide space for upper-year and international students. The goal is to have it open in September 2013.

Body found in rubble

A body found in the ruins of a Woodstock apartment building damaged by an explosion and fire will be removed Wednesday, police said.
The remains were found Tuesday at about 5 p.m., more than two days after Sunday's blast that injured seven people. Two others, Margaret Gillett, 73, and Bill Watmough, 79, have been missing since the explosion and are presumed dead.

Harper holding rally in London Sunday

The federal election will heat up in London this weekend with Stephen Harper blazing a trail into the city Sunday.
Sources say the prime minister is expected to attend a Conservative rally at a London hotel - marking one of the first campaign appearances in this politically fertile region by a major party leader.
Harper's planned visit includes a rally at 4 p.m. Sunday in the Four Points Sheraton on Wellington Rd.

One if four student have mental issues

In excess of one in four students in the Thames Valley District school board suffers from mental health issues — most strongly linked to bullying — a study has found.
In what some consider a ground-breaking report for the board’s mental health strategic plan, researchers say there must be a more consistent way to deal with student anxiety, depression, substance abuse and other issues that have been surfacing repeatedly in classrooms.

Two missing identified

Police have confirmed the identities of the two people still unaccounted for following the Victoria South Street explosion and fire.
The family members of Bill Watmough, 79, and Margaret Gillett, 73, have been contacted by police and told to brace for bad news.
Woodstock Police Const. Steve McEwen said officers from the OPP Forensic Unit have not found any human remains in the ruble at this point.

Rabid fox on loose

A police officer fired shots at a suspected rabid fox in the Lockwood Park area shortly after 2 p.m., but the animal escaped uninjured.
Animal control and police were tracking a sick fox on Upper Queens St., near Mitches Park, after concerned residents reported seeing the animal walking around in broad daylight.
Police wouldn’t say how many shots were fired, but a bystander reported hearing multiple gunshots.
Anyone who sees the fox should call police or animal control.

Son charged in parents murder.

SPRINGWATER TWP., Ont. — A man has been charged Monday for the murder and dismemberment of his own parents, discovered hacked to pieces in their rural on Sunday.
Gregory S. White, 26, described by a neighbour as an "oddball," is charged with first-degree murder and indecently interfering with a human body.
Police went to the White's home after a co-worker reported Donald White had failed to show up for work.
Officers entered the home and found what they believed to be human remains

3.5-magnitude quake near Ontario nuclear facility

A tremor has been recorded near the Atomic Energy Canada Ltd. nuclear laboratories in Chalk River, Ont.
Earthquakes Canada reported the 3.5-magnitude quake happened about 70 km northeast of Chalk River, around 12:04 p.m. Tuesday.
Chalk River is about 200 km northwest of Ottawa.
The Chalk River nuclear reactor is run by AECL, which produces medical isotopes at the site. It is also home to the national research universal reactor, which produces neutrons used by the National Research Council's Neutron Beam Centre.

19 Hells Angels still at large

MONTREAL - Nineteen Hells Angels members and associates remain on the lam nearly two years after they escaped the biggest biker bust in Canadian history. 
The names and faces of the wanted men have been posted on the websites of the RCMP and Interpol, the international crime-fighting agency that’s active in 188 countries.

Project Sharqc involved 1,200 police officers and led to the arrests of 137 bikers and associates in April 2009. Defendants will be prosecuted in groups of eight or nine.

Train overpass on Adelaide St discussed.

Some councillors are urging staff to make a train overpass on Adelaide St. a top priority, but were told such a project isn't outlined in any budget for at least a decade. The matter was raised by Coun. Stephen Orser, who said the existing level train crossing cuts off east London from downtown for up to 20 minutes at a time and causes as much trouble as the now-resolved Hale-Trafalgar crossing. With that overpass done, and the Sarnia Rd. bridge project underway, this is the top priority for a "grade separation," staff say. Councillors recommended having staff seek funding for the project's start in 2012.

The 51st Kiwanis Music Festival

The 51st Kiwanis Music Festival of London is the honouring of one of its unsung heroes at another organization’s awards night.
With 2,438 entries in place, the 2011 Kiwanis fest opened Monday and continues through April 15 at more than a dozen London venues.
Over the decades, the festival has been the place where such future stars of Canadian music as Angela Park, Scott St. John, Kevin McMillan and Jennifer Orchard won its top individual prize, the Rose Bowl, as young musicians.

Steve-O arrested in Calgary.

Jackass franchise star Steve-O was arrested in Calgary on Sunday.
The world-infamous stunt performer, born Stephen Gilchrist Glover, 36, was taken into custody at Calgary International Airport on an outstanding warrant of assault with a weapon.
“He was taken down to our arrest processing centre yesterday and appeared before a justice of the pace and released on a $10,000 cash bail," said Insp. Keith Cain of the Calgary Police Service.

Hyde Park comes to aid of fire victims

The single-floor building at 1895 Blue Heron Dr. housed RG Gibson & Sons Hardwood and Flooring, Connections Church and London Trim and Door. The building was destroyed by a fire that’s blamed on a block heater in a vehicle next to the building.
Although the fire destroyed one of Gibson’s trucks and the entire inventory on site, he was busy on Monday redirecting shipments and ordering new equipment and supplies to ensure he doesn’t have to lay off any of his six full-time employees.

Houser’s in a 50-save zone

Michael Houser’s in a 50-save zone right now.
So the London Knights will try to leave their star stopper to his own devices for the moment.
“We’re very conscious of him needing his rest,” London goaltending coach Bill Dark said ahead of Game 3 Tuesday back in Owen Sound
Still only two games in, the Knights haven’t seen playoff goaltending like this since Steve Mason backstopped London to the Western Conference final in 2007.

Hope fades for missing seniors

WOODSTOCK - Smoke wafted from a hole in a section of roof still intact as a large backhoe outfitted with a claw began pulling down the brick walls and concrete floors.
Half of what was a well-kept, three-story walk-up apartment building inhabited by dozens of senior citizens on Woodstock’s Victoria St. is a burned out, collapsed pile of rubble.
Nearby, residents of a sister apartment building about 50 meters across a parking lot watched anxiously, hoping for word that the two missing residents would be found, alive.

Diamond aircraft layoffs

After months of waiting for a federal loan to manufacture its new D-Jet, the head of Diamond Aircraft says he is suspending the program and temporarily laying off 213 people, more than half the remaining staff at the plant.
“We are disappointed and frustrated in the extreme to take this drastic action. We had deferred this action as long as possible,” said Diamond President Peter Maurer.
Maurer said the workers would be recalled if the federal government comes through with the $35 million loan.

2 remain missing in Woodstock explosion

WOODSTOCK - The number of unaccounted people from the Victoria Street South explosion and fire has dropped to two.
Rod Freeman, Chief of the Woodstock Police Services met with media outside of the police headquarters at 8:30 a.m. Monday.
"Two are still unaccounted for. Twenty-four hours has passed. We must prepare ourselves for what might be a tragic day," Freeman said.
The five people listed as unaccounted were located through resources including the Criminal Investigation Unit and the Red Cross Family Reunification Program.

2M fire investigated

The cause of a $2-million fire that damaged three Hyde Park businesses is under investigation.
London firefighters were called to London Trim and Door at about 1:15 a.m. Sunday. Firefighters reported heavy smoke and flames on the north portion of the building at 1895 Blue Heron Dr. near Hyde Park and Fanshawe Park roads as they arrived.
The fire department brought in three large-capacity water tankers to help fight the blaze and stop it from spreading to the south side of the building.

‘I’m behind Tim 110%,’ says Anne Marie

An emotional day: Ex- London Mayor Anne Marie DeCicco-Best professes love for husband

She said her husband was “very emotional right now, as we all are, our family.”
“You know, we’ll hope for the best once the appeal process has started,” she said.
Then, her throat tightened and her eyes watered.
“Certainly, I’m behind Tim 110%,” she said.
“He is my husband and I love him very much and we will get through this as we have gotten through the past two years.”

Tim Best off to jail

Best, 49, hung his head as Superior Court Justice Bruce Thomas passed sentence in a packed London courtroom. Then, Best was led away to the cells, without turning back to look at his tearful wife, Anne Marie DeCicco-Best, the city’s former mayor, and his mother and other friends.
Best — guilty of impaired driving causing bodily harm, dangerous driving and two counts of failing to remain at the scene of a crash for events on Hwy. 401 and in Dorchester — begged to avoid jail time.

Best to file for appeal

Tim Best could be out on bail and back in the community next week, once lawyers prepare a notice to appeal his conviction.
Best’s defence lawyer, Richard Braiden, said outside the courthouse after Best was sentenced to six months in jail Friday that he plans to contact an appeal lawyer to argue against the conviction.
 Braiden said Court Justice Bruce Thomas’s sentencing decision was “reasoned,” but he was disappointed he couldn’t convince the judge to render a 90-day sentence to be served intermittently