INSIDE: 10-year U.S. prison sentence follows $7M cocaine bust Pg. 5 T U E S D A Y
May 17, 2011
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BUZZ KILL COLD WEATHER
Farmers sing the blues as bees and berries are stung by the Valley’s wet & chilly spring
ROCHELLE BAKER RBaker@abbotsfordtimes.com
weeks behind normal. “When it’s this cold, the bees won’t come out. If we get another week of rain, we’ll f the average Fraser Valley citizen is sick have serious pollination and disease probof this spring’s filthy, wet weather, it’s lems.” nothing compared to what the region’s Blueberries are the first big agricultural blueberry farmers and beekeepers are crop of the season, and a quality harvest feeling. is close to 100 per cent Berry growers in the dependent on pollinaregion, particularly in “When it’s this cold, the bees tion by bees. Abbotsford where the won’t come out. If we get Research suggests it bulk of production takes another week of rain, we’ll takes six to seven visits place, are facing a douper flower to produce an ble whammy, said farmer have serious pollination and optimum size berry, said Mike Makara, chair of the disease problems.” Makara. BC Blueberry Council. The wet weather also The long stretch of – Mike Makara threatens to rot the blosunseasonably cold, rainy soms, and makes sprayweather has set back the ing ineffective, putting blueberry harvest and made crop pollina- crops in danger of disease and blight. tion tricky as both blooms and bees are in “Things would improve with a prolonged short supply, said Makara. period of nice, sunny weather, but even “We are at a critical stage right now. It’s with that we won’t catch up completely,” blossom time but only 10 to 15 per cent of see COLD, page A15 the blooms are open, and we’re about three
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Boy survives four-storey fall Bounces off lumber: “I landed on my butt!”
ROCHELLE BAKER AND JEAN KONDA-WITTE editorial@abbotsfordtimes.com
police advisories following these types of incidents often include stern reminders inspired by tragic results. “But this time we have this miraculous and happy n eight-year-old Abbotsford boy who plummeted ending.” from a fourth floor apartment window is making a Officers got a 911 call about the boy’s fall at a complex “miraculous” recovery after being airlifted to hospital in the 33300 block of Bourquin Crescent East at 1:45 p.m. on Saturday. The boy and his two sisters, aged nine and Despite initial reports of broken bones First reported @ 11, were in the care of two tutors when he and internal injuries, the boy is suffering abbotsfordtimes.com took a break and went into the bedroom from bumps, bruises and minor damage to play. to his spleen, said Abbotsford police spokesman Const. At one point, the rambunctious youngster got on a Ian MacDonald ledge and leaned against a window that had been left “I got reports on Sunday that he was watching TV, eatsee FALL, page A7 ing and anxious to get home,” MacDonald said, adding
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– JEAN KONDA-WITTE/TIMES
An eight-year-old boy survived a fall out of a window at this apartment complex in the 33300 block of Bourquin Crescent East on Saturday.
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