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Friday, May18, 1, 2015 Friday, March 2016
Lead testing Earthquake rattles beds but fails underway forto startle nerves HG schools By Stacey Marple By Andrew Hudson Haida Haida Gwaii Gwaii Observer Observer
The early morning Friday April 24, Drinking water at of four Haida Gwaii Haida Gwaii was hit by an Earthquake schools is being tested after high leadof 6.1 magnitude. tsunami warnings were issued levels wereNo found at older schools in Prince after the earthquake. The epicentre of the Rupert. quake wasWilson, approximately 167 km south Angus superintendent for theof the Village of Queen Charlotte. Haida Gwaii school district, said last Friday Some residents that results will of Haida Gwaii reported objects shaking be posted once and windows rattling, but no serious damage they come backor injuries were reported. As the islands from the lab. of Haida Gwaii all have unique qualities, the effects of an As a geological preearthquake can vary from island to island. caution, staff Every community reported feeling the quake in at Tahayghen, different ways. Queen Charlotte Village which George M. has a rock Port base didn’t feel the quake as much Dawson, as the residents of the northern parts of Graham Clements island. Tlell L. and north is mostly a sand based and Agnes area and feels Mathers are almost every quake that happens. Shirley Wilson regularly flush- of Skidegate reported feeling the earthquake. “I was sitting in my ing the pipes, bed when I heard and everyone at the house creak.” After the initial creak the schools has she felt her bed start rocking and beennoticed asked her to ornaments rocking. “The ornaments rocked the quake -Jennifer Rice run any drink- for a while after stopped,” Ms. Wilson told the Observer. “My ing water until son and brother who were also in the house it’s cold. didn’t feel Three ofthe theearthquake at all.” Barry Pages four schools of Masset, director of the Skeena-Queen Charlotte District were built before 1989, Regional the year B.C. said he felt the quake but because it was fairly banned lead pipes, fixtures, and solder from short he wasn’tused too concerned. However, any plumbing for drinking water. he added, is a reminder to every one to be Port “This Clements Elementary is a newer prepared.” school, built in 2008, but its gym predates Earthquakes the change. are nothing new to Haida Gwaii. quake comes just weeks after she a NorthThe Coast MLA Jennifer Rice says study identi ed Haida Gwaii as ground zero is glad to hear the Haida Gwaii school disfor major seismic event on the west trictthe is next acting quickly. coast. “Even a little bit of lead is not good for This recent doesn’t qualify as anybody, andearthquake it’s particularly bad for young the big one said scientists as critic it wasfor smaller children,” Rice,predict, the NDP than evenand some of the aftershocks after the 7.7 northern rural health. magnitude earthquake in 2012. As Dr. Perry Kendall, B.C.’s public health The same weekend that HaidaisGwaii got officer, has said, the problem not acute hit by this 6.1 tremor, Nepal was devastated — no one at the Prince Rupert schools has by a 7.8any magnitude shown signs ofevent. lead poisoning. Earthquakes between a 6.0 and a 6.9 are considered a strong on the Richter See LEADscale. on Page 2
“Even a little bit of lead is not good for anybody and it’s particularly bad for young children”
Quinn Bender photo
Submitted photo Carl Coffey, right, and Bruce Ives with Operation Refugee Haida Gwaii celebrate with Parks Canada’s Ernie Gladstone, Committee members of the Pulling Together Haida Gwaii Event demonstrate their teamwork at the carving shed in the after touring a vacant four-bedroom house in Queen Charlotte, which Parks Canada abilities owns and has agreed to lease Kay Centre. will be holding refugees. a fund raiser May 2. See full story on Page 3 for one yearThe forgroup a family of Syrian
Search and rescue suspended after Day 3
Island smart metres not so smart
By Quinn Bender Haida Gwaii Observer By Stacey Marple Haida Gwaii The search forObserver Kumdis Ilsand resident, Brent Hendren, was suspended How smartfollowing are Haida Gwaii’s last weekend one of Haida Smart meters? That’s what Port Gwaii’s largest search and rescue Clements Council is trying to figure operations in more than 25 years. out. “I know for a fact that if he was After residents alive outseveral there we would approached have found village staff about irregular spikes him. There’s no chance we would in their monthly hydro bills, council have missed him. The community is seeking from BC should knowclarification we did everything we Hydro on how the bills are possibly could to find him,”being said calculated. Chris Ashurst, SAR manager with In a written reply Search BC Hydro Archipelago Ground and explained that residential Rescue and deputy unit leadermeter with
Prince Rupert’s
“I know for a fact that if he was alive “We couldwe complain out there would but it doesn’t mean have found him.” they will change.” - Chris Ashurst -Doug Daugert
Massett Marine Rescue. Mr. Hendren, 27, was last seen readings bi-monthly, rowing outare to taken his Kumdis Island which is the normal procedure cabin rental with supplies Sunday
morning, April 18. He missed dinner plans with friends later that night. province wide. This was explained The following Tuesday Masset to mean that half of Haida RCMP received a missing Gwaii’s persons metres which are readledeach month, while report, to the discovery the following month the other Mr. Hendren’s boat abandoned and half of the south islandsofare read.River “For overturned Watun meter reading on Haida Gwaii near Pure Lake Provincial Park. we travel the communities “It is to strongly believed that every Brent month on a Thursday overnight drowned when his rowboat capsized ferry,of returning on the west Kumdis Island,” Mr.followAshurst ing Thursday,” Dave Mosure, said. “This is based on information Community Relations Coordinator from witnesses, the location of the capfor BC Hydro’s Northern region, sized vessel, and the distribution of his wrote in the letter. personal effects along the shoreline. See METERS on Page 3 See SEARCH on Page 2
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