November 25, 2015 Wednesday
News updates: westerlynews.ca
Serving Tofino and Ucluelet
$1.25 [including tax]
CUPE raises
INSIDE
THIS WEEK:
ANDREW BAILEY
Westerly news
the alberni clayoquot Regional district has reached a new three-year agreement with its employees. the agreement will see cuPE members receive annual wage increases of 1.75 per cent over the next three years and includes no changes to employee benefits. the acRd’s board ratified the agreement in a closed meeting on Oct. 28 and it was officially agreed to by the canadian union of Public Employees, local 118, on nov. 10. “the agreement presents a fair wage increase for our employees while respecting the need for prudent budgeting,” said acRd Board chair, Josie Osborne. “We are investing in the acRd’s greatest asset, its employees. On behalf of the Board, i offer my thanks to both our Management committee and the cuPE negotiating committee for their efforts.” cuPE local 118 President Stacy Watton touted this latest round of bargaining as “respectful and productive.” “We achieved a fair deal that includes improved recognition of and protection for casual and temporary Employees and we look forward to providing great services to the Regional district over the term of the agreement,” Watton said.
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andrew.bailey@westerlynews.ca
FATAL ACCIDENT: a man died in a Pac. Rim Hwy. crash on Monday. PAgE 2
OFF TO OTTAWA: tofino’s gord Johns is excited to join the fedCATHY PARSONS PHOTO eral government. Ucluelet Aquarium staffer Andrew McCurdy dove into the Coast’s cold November ocean to save a distressed seabird.
Hero saves drowning seabird ANDREW BAILEY
Westerly news
ucluelet local andrew Mccurdy dove into the ocean and swam roughly 200 metres to rescue a drowning seabird last week. Mccurdy is a marine biologist with the ucluelet aquarium and saw the bird acting strangely from the aquarium’s ocean-facing windows during a nov. 17 storm. He told the Westerly he
initially thought the bird might be bathing but he quickly realized it was in trouble. “He tried to take off a few times but just couldn’t quite raise his wings and i could tell they were totally saturated with water,” he said. “it was clear that he was trying to take off but couldn’t.” Mccurdy had never seen a fulmar before and didn’t recognize the animal.
“the first thing i did was try to figure out what kind of bird it was just to see if what it was doing was normal because, of course, i don’t want to try to rescue a bird that’s totally fine; that’s just going to freak them out,” he said. He identified the bird as a fulmar and called the north island Wildlife Recovery association in Errington for more information.
His call was answered by the association’s wildlife manager Julie Mackey who told him fulmars can over-exhaust themselves and drown. “after i learned that, i thought i better jump in and pull him out,” Mccurdy said. “i popped on my drysuit, swam out there and got him.” See BIRD RESCUED page 14
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LEST WE FORgET: in part 2 of his lest We Forget series Julius Smolders shares his mother’s route to canada.
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