Roundup: Fiona cleanup — thousands remain powerless, motorcyclists battle diabetes, Eagle Head Beach construction furor continues
From left: Engineer Mark Peachy joins public-works minister Kim Masland and maintenance director Troy Webb to inspect damage in Pictou County. Photo: CNS
Plus: Halifax’s first marine disaster, and the plucky boy who came to the rescue — recalling the sinking of HMS Tribune
Hundreds of thousands of Nova Scotians are starting another day without electricity, as workers continue to fix hurricane Fiona’s damage.
According to the Nova Scotia Power’s latest numbers, workers reconnected about 36,000 customers in the last 24 hours; at least 7,540 outages remain, leaving 104,936 sites still without electricity as of 8 a.m. Comfort centres, where you can warm up and charge your devices, remain open around the province.
Meanwhile, frustration is growing with Nova Scotia Power’s unreliable and oft-shifting restoration estimates.
“If your restoration times are so broad, do they have any meaning?” tweets Haligonian Tyler Newton. “Everyone just went from 11 p.m. Wednesday to 11 p.m. Saturday. Does this website serve any purpose with regards to restoration time estimates? If not specific, what purpose is it?”
Utility management continues to urge patience.
“The restoration has been more complex than we’ve ever seen before,” says customer-care director Chris Lanteigne. “Once our crews and teams in the field get better information, we’re able to come up with a better estimate.”
Schools are reopening in some hurricane-affected areas, with most Halifax-area students returning today. Classes remain cancelled in the hard-hit Cape Breton and Strait areas, where storm damage to rural and coastal roads remains a hazard.
“Work continues on many other roads and bridges here, and throughout the province,” government spokesperson Marla MacInnis says in an email. “Nova Scotians are encouraged to stay off the roads … These efforts will help improve access to roads for Nova Scotians, will facilitate Nova Scotia Power’s work to restore power, and will make it possible for public works staff to conduct full damage assessments.”
Jake Boudrot has more for the Reporter.
COVID update
The World Health Organization reports 159,563 confirmed new COVID cases around the globe in the last 24 hours. So far, COVID is known to have killed at least 6,517,123 people, including 44,992 in Canada and 534 Nova Scotians.
Eagle Head Beach furor continues
Protestors continue to raise concerns about damage to the coastline, as former Halifax mayor Peter Kelly attempts to build a home on Eagle Head Beach.
“We have all of our environmental permits, we have our development permit, and we have our building permit,” Kelly says. “We are following the rules as they are, to the letter, and we are mindful of where we are building and ensure we don’t damage the pond behind us or anything on the ocean side.”
In June, environment department officials fined both Kelly and the construction company he hired after they violated watercourse protections by extending the edge of the driveway into the pond he references.
Kevin McBain reports for LighthouseNow.
Motorcyclists battle diabetes
Ride for a Cure returned to Pictou County last week, as 90 motorcyclists gathered in Scotsburn and raised $90,000 to help find a cure for juvenile diabetes.
“Fundraising is challenging but the day of the ride makes it all worthwhile,” says organizer Leah Sutherland. “You do what you can.”
Steve Goodwin has the story for the Pictou Advocate.
Halifax’s first marine disaster
In 1793, HMS Tribune — described as “one of the finest frigates” in the Royal Navy — was sailing into Halifax, when Captain Scory Barker decided to forego the usual harbour pilot, and navigate the tricky approach himself.
Minutes later, his ship hit a shoal near Herring Cove, stranding 240 people as a gale rose. Unwilling to admit his error, Barker refused to give the order abandon ship. Onlookers raced into action regardless: leading the impromptu rescue fleet was a 13-year-old in his dory, known to history only by his nickname, “Joe Cracker.”
Bob Gordon looks back in this story from the Unravel Halifax archives.
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