Today is the rather unusual world-wide event known as “No Pants Subway Ride Day”. Toronto’s edition is hosted by the No Pants Society. Starting at 3 p.m. at Finch Subway Station, courageous Torontonians will ride the rails, with no pants, ending up at Osgoode Station at around 3:50 p.m. You’ve been warned.
15th Annual New Year’s Levee: Join MPP Wynne to celebrate the New Year with refreshments and live entertainment at the 15th Annual New Year’s Levee on Saturday, January 20, 2018 from 1–3 pm at Toronto Botanical Gardens, Floral Hall 777 Lawrence Ave E, Toronto.
Landlord Tenant Town hall at Thorncliffe Park: Please save date for the Landlord Tenant Town hall at Thorncliffe Park for Wednesday, February 7, 2018 from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm to be held at the Thorncliffe Park PS.
9th Annual Volunteer Service Awards: Now accepting nominations! Do you know someone who makes a significant volunteer contribution in Don Valley West or who lives in the riding and is a great volunteer elsewhere in the city? MPP Wynne would like to recognize the great work they do to make our city and our communities stronger! Please provide a summary of who your nominee is,where they volunteer, and why you feel they are an excellent recipient for this award. Send nominations to kwynne.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org *Deadline for nominations: February 28, 2018. Selected award winners will be acknowledged at a celebratory ceremony in March, 2018. Questions? call 416-425-6777 or email at kwynne.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org
After enduring the coldest weather some of us have experienced in our lifetime, we will be rewarded with a “January thaw” this week. But first, grab a shovel, we’ll see a bit of white stuff today. Have a look…
Niagara Falls, January 6, 2018 (Photo: Susan Byford)
Last night Niagara Falls was a frosty spectacle but not frozen over. CBC, Huffington Post
Unfortunately, the cold snap proved deadly for an elderly couple in Exeter. The man suffered a heart attack while outside of their home, when his concerned wife went out to look for him, she died from exposure. A truly sad story. Read more in The Star.
A Sunwing plane and a Westjet plane made contact on the tarmac at Pearson International Airport. Emergency evacuation of the Westjet plane was required via the emergency slide. There are no reports of injuries.
In a tweet, WestJet has confirmed that “WS2425, a Boeing 737-800 with 168 guests and six crew onboard, inbound from Cancun to Toronto Pearson, while waiting to proceed to the gate and stationary, was struck by a Sunwing aircraft pushing back from the gate.”
Grand Opening & Ribbon-cutting event is January 6 @ 11:00 am – 11:00 pm. Enjoy Pop-up ice lounges with family friendly activities, pop-up curling with Rock Solid Productions, meet and greet with Canadian pairs silver medalists Lubov Ilyushechkina and Dylan Moscovitch, ice breaking demonstration by the Toronto Ice Skate Group, DJ sets, and much more!
The Mayor’s Skate Party is January 7 @ 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm. Free hot chocolate, skate rentals and family-friendly music.
Tomorrow the City of Toronto opens the Bentway Skate Path, the first part of the Bentway project, that will see the area under the Gardiner Expressway West of Bathurst developed. The ice trail is near the entrance to @fortyork@cityoftoronto#TheBentwaypic.twitter.com/PWYQyahwkT
CityNews reports that mementoes from Justin Bieber’s formative years as an aspiring Canadian singer will go on display at a museum in his hometown of Stratford, Ont. next month. “Steps to Stardom” — a reference to the young singer’s busking shows on the steps outside the local Avon Theatre — opens at the Stratford Perth Museum on Feb. 18. More on CityNews
The January 2018 issue of “Neighbours of Leaside & Bennington Heights” magazine features the Laureola family as their cover story. Carrie Laureola is the proprietor of Bamboo Bay, a small and friendly school for creative expression offering art and music classes for children, teens, and adults. The article, written by Richard S. Todd, credits the Laureola family with bringing the Arts to family and community. “Without art, the world would be bland, boring and devoid of joy.” We agree. Carrie grew up in North Leaside, and if you’ve been around for a while, you may remember her parents’ Bayview restaurant, China Feast. “Leaside is the community that I grew up in and have many fond memories of. It’s still a great place to live and we’re so happy to be part of it.” The heartwarming story of how Carrie met her husband Mike, a dentist running his own practice, and their journey through life as they started a family and grew their careers is well worth the read.
While no official recalls have been issued, some restaurants are ditching romaine lettuce after a deadly E. coli outbreak has hit eastern Canada. The outbreak has been linked to romaine lettuce. Cara Operations Ltd. has stopped serving romaine in their restaurants in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Cara operates Swiss Chalet, Milestones Grill + Bar, Montana’s Cookhouse, Kelsey’s, East Side Mario’s and other chains. Boston Pizza and Sobey’s grocery stores have also jumped on board, removing romaine from their shelves. On December 28th, the Public Health Agency of Canada issued the following statement, “Currently, there are 41 cases of E. coli O157 illness under investigation in five eastern provinces: Ontario (8), Quebec (14), New Brunswick (5), Nova Scotia (1), and Newfoundland and Labrador (13). Individuals became sick in November and early December 2017. Seventeen individuals have been hospitalized. One individual has died. Individuals who became ill are between the ages of 3 and 85 years of age. The majority of cases (73%) are female.” Newstalk 1010, Health Canada Public Notice
I don’t think it comes as a surprise to anyone that it’s cold outside. Here’s the scoop.
This morning’s video wheel focuses on the aftermath of the winter weather bomb that hit the eastern seaboard. The images of frigid floodwaters in Boston are particularly bone chilling to watch. At least seven people have died in weather-related accidents. Global news.
Environment Canada has issued an Extreme Cold Warning for Toronto. A prolonged period of very cold wind chills is expected. Temperatures will fall rapidly this evening to reach lows of minus 20 to 25 degrees celsius. Wind chill values due to northwest winds up to 50 kilometres per hour will be in the minus 35 to 40 range tonight. Temperatures and wind chill values will be slightly lower Friday night. The extreme cold will continue until Saturday or possibly into Sunday morning. Please continue to monitor alerts and forecasts issued by Environment Canada. To report severe weather, send an email to ec.cpio-tempetes-ospc-storms.ec@canada.ca or tweet reports using #ONStorm.
TORONTO WARMING CENTRES
The City of Toronto has announced the opening of two 24/7 warming centres to provide additional relief for homeless individuals and their pets.
“We continue to explore all options and opportunities to protect our city’s most vulnerable residents,” said Mayor John Tory. “These warming centres provide accessible immediate relief during Extreme Cold Weather events and are in addition to the City’s other winter respite services.”
The overnight warming centres, located at Metro Hall, 55 John St., and Regent Park Community Centre, 402 Shuter St., will operate 24/7 daily beginning this evening at 7 p.m. and continuing until the current Extreme Cold Weather Alert is terminated.
The Regent Park Community Centre warming centre will be operated by the City’s Office of Emergency Management in conjunction with the Canadian Red Cross and provide 100 cots, meals, showers, hygiene kits and referrals to additional supports. Metro Hall will be accessible 24/7 for the same time period and provide drop-in access to a warm, welcoming space. Toronto Paramedic Services will have a dedicated resources available at both warming centres in the evenings to provide assistance to those in need.
“Extreme winter weather conditions can turn a heart-breaking situation into a tragedy,” said Councillor James Pasternak (Ward 10 York Centre), Chair of the City’s Community Development and Recreation Committee. “Through action, policy and resources at the City we must do everything to bring hope and save lives.”
The two new warming centres are in addition to six winter respite locations, which make available more than 400 drop-in spaces and operate continuously on a 24/7 basis until April 15.
Yesterday afternoon, the City of Toronto made a formal Request for Assistance through the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre for potential use of the Moss Park Armoury. As per the established process, the Province has relayed the Request for Assistance for use of the Armoury to the Government of Canada for consideration. Discussions are continuing today to expedite the request.
The City continues to explore all available measures and options to ensure services are available for the city’s homeless individuals. Anyone can come in from the cold at all public buildings during regular business hours, including civic centres and libraries. Beginning this evening, TTC operators and first responders have been asked to be alert for anyone in need of homelessness services and to contact 311 to engage outreach support.
The City has enhanced capacity and staff resources at its newest winter respite site at the Better Living Centre on the Exhibition Place grounds. Last night, the City increased the number of cots available at the centre to 150 to accommodate increased demand. Opened on December 21 with an original capacity of 100 beds, the centre had 115 spaces filled as of 4 a.m. this morning.
The City has also reiterated its expectations with front-line City staff as well as agencies delivering homelessness services that anyone who requests City-funded or operated homeless support and respite services will receive it.
Several staff from other areas of the City have been redeployed to support Shelter, Support and Housing Administration staff to review internal communication protocols regarding the sharing of shelter and winter respite service availability throughout the 24-hour period. Call centre staff working for the division and 311 service operators are also involved in this review.
The City will also continue to work with Ombudsman Susan Opler and her staff on their inquiry into these issues.
For emergency shelter, residents should call 311. Toll free in Toronto, it is 1-877-338-3398. Youth and adults can also get a walk-in referral to shelter at the Streets to Homes Assessment and Referral Centre at 129 Peter St.
