Helicopter Crash – Kingston

There is a Kingston connection to the crash of a Canadian Armed Forces helicopter off the coast of Greece.

The military is sending a flight investigation team to determine the cause of the crash that killed Sub-Lieutenant Abbigail Cowbrough of Nova Scotia.  Cowbrough and three of the five missing crew members attended the Royal Military College in Kingston.  She was a piper and played with the Princess of Wales Own Regiment.  Cowbrough graduated from RMC in 2018.

The Canadian Forces has posted a video of her piping…saying…An engineer. A piper. She piped her love and support for Nova Scotia just last week. Beloved daughter. Cherished sister. Our shipmate. Forever. Sub-Lieutenant Abbigail Cowbrough. We’ll never forget you, Abbigail.

Military officials say the helicopter crashed in water that is 3,000 metres deep and the size of the debris field is also complicating the effort to find the five missing crew members.

 

KSS – Not Opening

Kingston’s new high school will not be ready for opening in September.

The Limestone District School Board has sent a letter to parents and guardians saying it was hoping the final construction work on Kingston Secondary School would be deemed an essential service – but have received word it is not considered to be essential and construction has stopped.

The building is 93 percent complete – but the school board says it will not be ready for the new school year.

That means students will continue to attend KCVI if they do return to classrooms in September.

 

French Teachers Ratify

Ontario’s French-language teachers have ratified their new contract with the provincial government.  The union represents 12-thousand French language teachers and says members approved the agreement in an online vote.  It hasn’t provided any details.  Their contract will expire at the end of August 2022.

 

COVID – Kingston Numbers

Two new cases of COVID-19 have been diagnosed in Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington.

The KFL&A Public Health website now shows a total of 61 cases in the region.  56 people have recovered from the virus.  A total of 4,203 tests for COVID-19 have been completed at the assessment centres in Kingston and Napanee.

There is no information available from the health unit on how the two new cases of the virus were transmitted.  It doesn’t post those details.

 

Victory Day – Canada Day and other Cancellations

The list of events that have been cancelled in Kingston due to COVID-19 is growing.

The city of Kingston has cancelled public Victoria Day celebrations and fireworks scheduled for May 18th.

The city also says it is considering holding a virtual celebration for Canada Day on July 1st.

South Frontenac Township has announced it has cancelled its public Canada Day celebrations due to COVID-19.

The Lviv, Ukraine Folklore Festival scheduled for June 12th to 14th has also been cancelled.

 

COVID – Ontario Guidelines

Ontario Premier Doug Ford is telling businesses to get ready.

Ford has announced dozens of guidelines businesses will need to follow when the province starts to ease COVID-19 restrictions.  While he didn’t set any dates yesterday…he says the guidelines will help businesses be ready when they get the green light.  The guidelines include markings for physical distancing, installing plexiglass barriers, staggering shift times and increasing the air flow in buildings.

 

COVID – Queen Song

The remaining members of Queen and singer Adam Lambert have a message for front-line workers in the COVID-19 fight: ”You Are the Champions.”  Brian May, Roger Taylor and Lambert recently gathered virtually to record a new version of the Queen classic.  This one is directed at caregivers and others. It is been released on all streaming and download services, with proceeds going to the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund

 

Queen’s Grad – Grocery Hero

Two Queen’s University grads are Canada’s Grocery Hero.

Matthew Lombardi and John Gravel have developed a website to match volunteers with health care workers who need groceries.

The volunteers do the shopping and deliver the groceries.

Close to 4,000 people have volunteered across Canada since the Grocery Hero program was launched at the end of March.