COVID – Ontario’s Plan

Premier Doug Ford has unveiled a three-stage plan to reopen the province’s economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.  The framework was announced yesterday but contains no specific timeline for lifting restrictions.  The three stages will see businesses and workplaces reopen at different times, though likely with distancing measures in place. Restrictions on public gatherings will also be eased, but Ford says large concerts and sporting events are still a long way off.

 

COVID – Virtual Commons

The House of Commons will be in session today with no actual members of Parliament in the chamber. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he’s hoping legislation aimed at helping students get through the COVID-19 crisis can be passed quickly during the session.

 

Scheer – Sloan

Conservative leader Andrew Scheer has finally condemned comments about Chief Public Health Officer made by Hastings, Lennox and Addington MP Derek Sloan.

Sloan has refused to apologize for his comments.  He called for Tam to be fired and questioned whether she works for Canada, or for China.  Sloan is one of four candidates running to replace Scheer as leader of the party.

Scheer originally refused to comment on Sloan’s statements – but yesterday he said no one should have their loyalty to their own country called into question because of the job they perform.  He refused to say if Sloan will face any consequences.

 

COVID – Kingston Numbers

The number of COVID-19 cases in Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington remained at 59 on Monday.  There has been one new case reported in the past seven days.

The KFL&A Public Health website shows 3,632 tests have been done at the assessment centres in Kingston and Napanee since testing started in mid-March.

Nobody from this region is in hospital and nobody from this region has died from the coronavirus according to the statistics collected by the public health agency.

 

Contraband – Joyceville

Staff at Joyceville Institution have seized multiple packages of contraband and unauthorized items inside the perimeter of the assessment unit.  The Correctional Service says the items came from a suspected drone drop and were found on April 23rd.

The items seized included 201 grams of marijuana and 199 grams of tobacco with an estimated value of $41,000 inside the institution.

No arrests have been made.

 

Fire – Arrest

A 32-year-old man from Harrowsmith is facing multiple charges after a fire in an apartment in Harrowsmith Saturday night.  Frontenac OPP say nobody was injured and the fire was extinguished by another person before emergency services arrived.  Police say the fire caused minor damage in a bedroom.

Mitchell Rattray has been charged with arson, mischief, mischief endangering life, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose and failing to comply with a probation order.

 

Gardens Open

Preparations are being made to open community gardens in Kingston after the province cleared the way for them to open last week.  Staff with the city are working with the Kingston Community Gardens Network, Loving Spoonful and KFL&A Public Health to coordinate guidelines and signage for the re-opening of the garden sites in Kingston, Safety guidelines will be put in place. Community garden members should contact their coordinator for information about their local garden.

 

COVID – Stronger Together

The star-studded “Stronger Together” event brought in more than six-million dollars for Food Banks Canada.  The non-profit organization says it expects donations to reach the 10-million-dollar mark by the end of this week. It was the biggest-ever multi-platform broadcast and the most-watched non-sports Canadian broadcast ever.

 

Police Association – Good Deeds

The Kingston Police Association and the Ontario Police Association are partnering on two initiatives to help in Kingston during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The two organizations represent police officers and will be holding a lunch for day shift staff at Providence Manor on Sydenham Street at 11 am on Friday.  They have also partnered with Lionhearts to sponsor the Friday night meal at 6pm in McBurney Park.

 

Sparky – Birthday Video

Kingston Fire and Rescue is offering to have its mascot record video birthday wishes to a friend of family member.  It’s called…Sparky Some Joy!

You can request a video birthday message from Sparky for a person celebrating between now and May 31st by sending an email message to:

FirePrevention@CityofKingston.ca.  Make sure to put…Birthday…in the subject line and provide the details in the body of the email.

Sparky Some Joy is only available for people who live in the city of Kingston.