Two young boys were seriously injured Monday after a bouncy castle they were playing in flew metres into the air and tossed them to the concrete below. It happened in South Glen Falls, New York, as three young children were playing in the inflatable “bounce house” when a gust flung it into the air. Two boys, aged five and six, dropped out of the structure from a height of about five metres. Also today, researchers writing in the U.S. professional journal Pediatrics say the popular “Bouncy Castle” phenomenon can result in fractures, strains and sprains among their young users. The study says hospital statistics in the U.S. found a 15-fold increase in wounds including broken bones, head injuries and cuts since 1995. The researchers says this is probably because more children are using the bouncy structures. The article recommends that bouncy structures be examined to see if improvements can be made. It also suggests greater adult supervision and that when more than one child uses the structure they should be of about the same age and size. Spectator
Person of Interest in Bennington Heights arsons
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Toronto Police are requesting the assistance of the public to help identify a Person of Interest in a video taken the night of the Bennington Heights fires. That was Friday, May 9, 2014 and as the video shows, the individual walks past this garage at 2.43 a.m. He is wearing a dark knapsack, dark pants, shirt and ball cap. He is holding what appears to be a cup or bottle in his left hand and has a distinct walk. Members of the public are encouraged to contact police if they recognize this person or have any information. This person of interest is encouraged to come forward and assist the investigators in solving this crime.
Sears Holdings to sell control of Sears Canada
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Reuters is reporting Wednesday (May 14, 2014) that Sears Holdings is looking to sell its 51 percent stake in Sears Canada. This might also signal that the whole Canadian department store is up for sale. Sears Holdings, which operates nearly 2,500 stores in the United States and Canada, said it would hire an investment bank to help explore alternatives for its stake in the Canadian company.
Rights of NSS kids not even slightly violated
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The civil liberties association must be using writers from Jimmy Kimmel. This self-important body has pronounced upon the perfectly sensible and harmless decision by the principal of Northern Secondary School to insist on a breathalyzer sample from kids arriving at the senior prom. Like most such “rights” bodies the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) wants to be on the side of doing the right thing while telling principals, teachers and most parents that there is really no solution to the problem. Hilariously, the CCLA says it fully recognizes that “schools have an obligation to provide a safe and secure learning environment and (has) no hesitation supporting that goal.” How nice of them but let’s be frank. These empty words are a smarmy load of rubbish. The CCLA is conjuring up the law as it goes along. There is no conclusive rendering on whether a breath test at the door to the prom is a violation of anything, except maybe the wayward need to get fried in front of your teachers. The majority of Northern students know this in their hearts.
Count of dead miners spins to 238 in Turkey
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An explosion at a coal mine in western Turkey has left 238 workers dead by the latest count. Energy Ministry Taner Yildiz said 787 people had been inside the mine at Soma in Manisa province when an electrical fault triggered the blast. A huge rescue operation is under way to reach hundreds more miners still trapped underground. Voice of America
Hard-working cleaner wins $50 million Lotto Max
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| Sophie Rizavas |
A North York grandmother who works four jobs including as a hospital cleaning woman, has won the $50 million Lotto Max draw. Sophie Rizavas and her husband came to Canada from Greece in 1970 and have both worked here the entire time. She dropped into the corner store to check her numbers on Saturday and was unable to believe the huge winning jackpot that spun out in front of her eyes. The man who helped process her winning ticket was crying and gave her a big hug, Rizavas said, She and her husband, Tom, announced the win to the family at dinner on Mother’s Day. Ms. Rizavas says a family vacation is the first thing on their list. “We’ve never had a proper family vacation. We’ve tried over the years but someone always had to stay home to work.” She noted the coincidence of the date. “My husband and I came to Canada from Greece on May 10, 1970, and 44 years later, May 10, 2014, we find out that we are multimillionaires.”
Train blasts out onto Yonge — mattresses and all!
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A promotion for what must be the umpty-jillionth film appearance of Godzilla has a sliced up TTC car — one of the old Bombardier numbers — poking up out of the street (or seeming to) on Yonge St. near Elm St. The movie opens the middle of this month so there’s no time to lose. Run for your life! That’s the way it’s been with Godzilla, a product of the fertile minds of Japanese monster-makers in the post-war world of movie escapism. This TTC subway car comes with some nice accessories — like old mattresses and what not to keep the car in place No seriously, it was apparently torched into two pieces on an angle at some factory in Hamilton to create the effect of “the tube train from down there.” Lots of fun. Gareth Edwards, the director of Godzilla, and some of the cast will be appearing at the disaster scene Thursday night ahead of the movie’s premier at the Yonge-Dundas IMAX. Destruction enthusiasts will be allowed to pose with the wreckage until Sunday, when the whole thing will be dismantled. Warner Bros. is also producing a short film about the promotion. Wikipedia notes on Godzilla are fun too.
Developer will restore 1893 Broadview Hotel
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| Broadview Hotel now and 1945 |
The Broadview Hotel on Queen Street East at Broadview Ave has been bought for restoration by Streetcar Developments, a Toronto company dedicated to this type of work. The imposing 1893 Romanesque-style building has been notable in recent decades only for its rundown condition and as the home of Jilly’s Strip Club. In a news release Tuesday (May 13, 2014) Streetcar says it will not be turning the Riverdale landmark into condominiums but will rather be “focusing all our efforts on making the building safe and restoring it to reflect its place in Toronto’s history.” The company’s CEO, Les Mallins “We will first be focusing all our efforts on making the building safe and restoring it to reflect its place in Toronto’s history,” he added. Since at least 2004, rumours have circulated that the building will be bought and renovated to become a version of the Drake or the Gladstone, boutique hotel/bar/performance art venues on Queen St. W. So far, however, there are no signs of this actually happening. Still operating as a hotel, the lower floor is Jilly’s, “a rough and tumble strip club.” (Wikipedia). The operation was the scene of a barmaid stabbing in the early 1990s.
3 railway men charged in Lac Megantic fire
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Three employees of the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway have been charged in connection with criminal negligence in connection with the disastrous Lac Megantic derailment and fire in July, 2013. They are: Thomas Harding, the lone engineer in charge of the train on July 6, and MMA employees Jean Demaître and Richard Labrie. They will appear in court in Lac Megantic Tuesday.
Brothers to bake pies in Leaside and New Zealand
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Further to The Bulldog’s post of May 7, 2014 about the arrival of Wisey’s Pies and Bakehouse, the owner of this interesting business says he expects to have his storefront at Eglinton Ave. E. and Laird Drive open in three weeks. Gary Wise is the creator of the successful business concept as it thrives in Napier, New Zealand. “I left my brother in charge there,” says Mr. Wise. He said things seemed right to begin his concept in Leaside and environs. So with his Canadian wife, Karen, he has set about the task next door to the Starbucks which is in the old T-D Bank building on the corner. Wisey’s is one door west not far from the Service Ontario office. Good location and Mr. Wise says local reaction has been very welcoming The Bulldog will be back to Wisey’s soon with a fuller profile of this enterprising couple. Previous post
Workers in hazmat suits clear filthy Beach home
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| Amanda Ferguson at the clean-up |
Toronto Fire and Health Department workers dressed in white hazmat suits have spent the day clearing a nightmare combination of cats feces and combustible junk from a home on Beech Ave. in the Beach neighborhood this Monday. A court order was obtained by the city to enter and begin to make the home safe for human habitation. The residence has been the target of years of complaints, according to neighbors, because of countless cats and their stench, garbage, newspapers, cardboard, wood, blankets and other discarded objects overflowing onto the front yard. The cleanup crew looked much like those who cleared a hoarders home in Manor Rd earlier this year. They said the amount of combustible materials lying around was well above standards set by the Ontario Fire Code. Reporter Amanda Ferguson of City-tv said this house has been the focus of other raids. In the fall, some 47 cats were taken from the property. Today, she said, was an attempt to make the place fit for humans to stay in. The National Post reported that cat feces was three inches thick in some places in the basement. The occupant of the home is present and entreating city officials to let her keep certain items which she hopes to sell.
No. 53 Division Open House on FaceBook
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No. 53 Division Open House took place on Saturday, May 10, 2014. There is a nice FaceBook gallery here.