SOOKE
NEWS MIRROR
2010 WINNER
HONOURING PURCELL
SILVER WINNERS
Editorial
The Sooke Philharmonic Chamber Players and Chorus in concert.
Page 8
Entertainment
Page 13
Peewee Thunderbirds bring home the silver.
Sports/stats
Page 24
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Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Agreement #40110541
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Sooke teachers will withdraw some services Teachers protest Bill 22 Sharron Ho
Sooke News Mirror
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Sharron Ho photo
Barrie Hanslip picks through all that is left of her barn after a series of unexplained tremors.
Barn collapses after tremors Sharron Ho
Sooke News Mirror
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barn on the 4000-block of Otter Point Road collapsed after a series of unexplained tremors rumbled through the region on Thursday, March 15. Barrie Hanslip, owner of the 35-acre property where the barn was located, said the steepled barn tumbled downward after a large “boom” and rumble at 11:30 a.m. The large tremor was preceded by two smaller shakes around 9:00 a.m. Hanslip wasn’t home at the time of the collapse, but her niece, Sandra Richardson, said two seconds after the large third rumble, she heard a creak and the barn collapsed.
“I thought my aunt was underneath it and was screaming for her, but I ran up to the barn and saw her car was gone,” Richardson said. Richardson, whose residence is located adjacent to the dilapidated barn, said the earthquake-like rumbles shook the stove pipe in her home. Hanslip said although the barn was 50 years old, it would’ve stood erect if left undisturbed. “It’s fairly old. It was due to come down, but it certainly wouldn’t have fallen down on its own. It was wellbraced,” she said. Alison Bird, seismologist with Natural Resources Canada, said there were no earthquakes in the region during that time, adding there were calls from other residents who reported shak-
ing. Sooke fire chief Steve Sorensen also said the fire department received an onslaught of calls, but did not have further information. Both Richardson and Hanslip said the tremors have been a regular occurrence in the past few weeks. Concerned residents have been commenting on the unknown tremors on the Discover Sooke Facebook page since January 2012. According to resident reports, previous rumbles were felt around Saseenos, East Sooke, Whiffin Spit and Otter Point. Although unconfirmed, residents speculated the tremors are the result of blasts from a company dismantling a dam in Port Angeles across the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
eachers in the Sooke school district with be withdrawing from extracurricular activities immediately in order to protest the passage of Bill 22. “It’s really a desperate act because legally we have nothing we can do to demonstrate our protest,” said Patrick Henry, president of the Sooke Teachers’ Association. “This is literally the last thing we can do legally.” Educators involved in volunteer activities like coaching sports teams, theatre groups and after school programs will stop participation. “It is not a whimisical decision, it’s very difficult for teachers because they love doing those things as much as the kids do,” he said. Henry said Sooke and many other districts have called on parents, volunteers and administrators to act in place of teachers so extracurricular activities can continue. Senior basketball will continue as the teams are already in the finals. Any upcoming paid trips will also continue. In 2002, the BC govern-
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ment passed Bills 27 and 28, which Henry said backtracked on previously agreed on terms from bargaining rounds. Teachers proceeded with court action. In April 2011, the Supreme Court deemed the government violated the teachers’ charter rights, and ordered the government to remediate the 2002 legislation, which resulted in Bill 22. “They essentially showed complete disdain for the collective bargaining process and complete disrespect for contracts being signed,” Henry said. The back-to-work legislation was slated to pass Thursday, which will result in a six-month cooling off period, and appointment of a mediator to resolve the issue within the net-zero mandate. Henry said he expects the action will become provincewide after the BC Teachers’ Federation holds its annual general meeting from March 17-20. The new legislation, passed on March 15 suspends teachers’ strike action, establishes a “cooling off” period and appoints a mediator to work with the parties toward a negotiated agreement. All strike activity must cease when schools resume following spring break.
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