TUESDAY
S I N C E
1 8 9 5
OCTOBER 30, 2012
Halloween display haunts bowling alley
Vol. 117, Issue 205
110
$
INCLUDING H.S.T.
Page 2
PROUDLY SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF ROSSLAND, WARFIELD, TRAIL, MONTROSE, FRUITVALE & SALMO
Earthquake highlights importance of local emergency response common sources throughout the area in the event of an emergency. While there is certainly no rea“We have an emergency plan son for West Kootenay residents to for the City of Trail, which was put panic, Saturday’s 7.7-magnitude together back in 2008. They are supearthquake in the Haida Gwaii posed to be revisited every five years. region is definitely a wake-up call to So we’re due next year to revisit all citizens. ours. The regional district did theirs Southeastern B.C. is not immune a year before us, in 2007, so they’re to tremors as recent history can revisiting theirs this year.” attest. He explained that A 2.7 magnitude Vulnerable Risk assess“There are earthquake near ments have been done sections and Osoyoos in January for the region and local guidelines for was felt in the West offices have books and Kootenay and one of binders for all scenarevery type of many over the years. ios. risk we could be However, Saturday’s “There are sections involved in.” major quake, one of the and guidelines for every biggest in Canadian histype of risk we could be LARRY ABENANTE tory, hasn’t prompted a involved in.” run on emergency kits He quoted the secat the local St. John’s Ambulance. tion on earthquakes calling for “No, there doesn’t seem to be an automatic “Level 3 response,” any heightened interest in safety which is a full-fledged alert from alternatives – the earthquake and the Emergency Operations Centre now Hurricane Sandy are far enough (EOC). away for people here to feel safe,” said The alert and response prepares Kyra Hoggan, branch administrator for evacuations, logistics, engineerfor the Trail St. John Ambulance, ing, and communications everything “That’s not to say, though, that “to get things moving and working,” there isn’t the potential for problems said Abenante. here in the Southern Interior – this The EOC, located in the lower summer’s flooding should be evi- level of the Greater Trail Community dence enough of that. Centre, was paid for by funds from “At the risk of sounding pessim- the Joint Emergency Preparedness istic, I don’t think average residents Program, which is under threat of are adequately prepared for any sort federal grant cuts. of emergency situation. Few people The centre features full inter conhave emergency kits with food/ nectivity for fire, police, ambulance water reserves in the event of a nat- and public works, four stations with ural disaster.” full radio capabilities for all jurisdicMeanwhile, folks may be won- tions in this regional district, a backdering if local communities are pre- up generator and a meeting room for pared. government decision makers. Last week, representatives “There is a lot of equipment here, throughout the region gathered in but we plan for the worst case scenGrand Forks for a tabletop exercise ario,” said Kootenay Boundary Fire dealing with a wildfire situation, said Rescue regional chief Terry Martin Larry Abenante, Trail’s city works in an earlier interview with the Trail manager. Times. “There was probably about 30 Although Abenante said there people there from all over,” said haven’t been any earthquake exerAbenante. “It worked awesome.” cises locally, the weekend’s events He explained the regions have will definitely trigger one. See REGION, Page 3 joined forces to simplify plans with
BY GUY BERTRAND Times Staff
GUY BERTRAND PHOTO
With winter still a month and a half away, Rossland residents were showing off their love of winter sports in a bid to garner votes in the Ski Town Throw Down. Above, Owen Bartsch takes flight on his constructed jump Saturday near Rossland Secondary School while his buddies await their turn.
Ski towns unite for bragging rights TRAIL TIMES AND NELSON STAR Rossland and Nelson have joined forces in a competition to see which town is king of the hill in North America. A new competition in “Powder” magazine, dubbed the Ski Town Throw Down, will soon reveal the answer to that question, as readers are given a chance to vote for their favourite ski destination. In several rounds of competition, two ski towns will go head-
to-head in an effort to collect the most votes and advance to the next round. The first round of voting for Rossland/Nelson will open Wednesday. To vote, go to facebook.com/ powdermagazine. With the Red Mountain expansion underway, the extra terrain will hopefully bear some consideration as voters take to the polls. “I think quintessentially Rossland is one of the best ski
towns in Canada if not North America,” said Rossland Chamber of Commerce’s Renee Clark. “The whole expansion thing is creating a bit of a buzz. I’m getting more and more phone calls on my end about people wanting to move here, people wanting to open business in our area, so anything that happens up at Red is a great thing for our community and area.”
See RESORTS, Page 3
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