One tree still stands in the way of industrial park road extension

Ontario Power Generation advises hunters, anglers and recreational boaters on the St. Lawrence River that ice booms will be installed in narrow stretches of the river starting Monday, November 14, 2011. 

These booms, which will be placed in the river off Galop Island, in the North Channel, near Johnstown and at Prescott, are chain-and-wood devices used to assist the build-up of ice during the winter. 

They ensure an even ice formation on the river, helping to improve power generation during the winter months.

All users of the river should take extra care in the narrow reaches where the work is being undertaken to install the booms.

Ice booms are placed in the same narrow reaches of the St. Lawrence River each November before the river freezes over and removed in the Spring when the ice has melted, before the St. Lawrence Seaway shipping season commences.

Ontario Power Generation would like to remind boaters to take every precaution around its dams and generating stations, and to practice safety on Ontario’s waterways.

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A dog attack Tuesday, August 28, around 11 a.m. in the Morrisburg waterfront park left a four-year-old Yorkshire Terrier dead, and his owner injured.

Shirley Gillmor, of Morrisburg, was walking her nine pound dog Bruiser along the walking path just past the Docksyde restaurant, when the attack occurred.

Her dog was leashed, the German Shepherd that attacked them was not.

Gillmor. whose hand was bitten during the attack, says, “The marks this has left on the inside, are much worse than the marks on my hands.”

Though grieving the loss of her canine companion, she was compelled to share her story with The Leader and the community to make people aware of what happened, in hopes that such a tragedy will never happen again. 

She is especially worried because this attack happened in such a busy place, where people often walk their dogs and where families regularly spend time with their children.

Last Tuesday morning, at about 11 a.m., Gillmor took Bruiser for a walk, as usual. As they walked past the Docksyde, Gillmor notice a dark blue van parked. An unleashed dog was outside the van. She describes that dog as a 20-30 pound poodle type dog, that did not appear to be any threat to her or her dog, although it was unleashed.

She was correct in her assumption, that dog posed no threat. But, what she couldn’t see was a large German Shepherd inside the van, parked with its sliding door wide open. The dog owner was sitting in the van.

When Gillmor and Bruiser got within about 20 feet of the van the Shepherd leapt out of the van growling. 

“He headed directly for my dog,” said Gillmor. “It all happened so fast, I had no time to pick my dog up.”

“My dog is leashed all the time. I was trying to hold my dog in my right hand while I put my left hand out to try and stop the dog, but in one or two seconds the Shepherd was there.”

“I was screaming at the (dog’s) owner to get his dog,” said Gillmor. “He yelled, but he didn’t make any move as I was struggling.”

In all the commotion Gillmor’s dog slipped out of his collar. That’s when the attacking Shepherd sank his teeth into the small dog and shook him. “My dog is screeching in pain and I get bit, that’s when the owner finally gets his dog,” she recounts.

“My dog is screaming in pain, my hands are dripping with blood and the dog owner gets his two dogs back in the van and starts driving away,” says Gillmor. “I yelled at him to help me and he cursed at me.”

Luckily, a quick-thinking eye-witness got the van’s plate number and another helped Gillmor by taking her and her badly injured dog to the Morrisburg Animal Hospital.

“They were wonderful at the vet’s,” said Gillmor. “They dropped everything to work on my Yorkie.”

However, though the dog was still alive, the dog’s internal injuries were so severe that Gillmor says, “I had to make the terrible decision to have him put down.”

Gillmor reported the attack to police, and following their investigation, the owner of the Shepherd, 57-year-old George Parent of Ottawa has been charged with dog owner failing to prevent it from biting or attacking a person or domestic animal. OPP media relations officer Pete Robertson reported Tuesday that the charge has been laid and that a court date has been set.

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The Heel ’n Wheel for Local Cancer Care has taken off with a running start.  Six registered teams have already contributed to raising $27,980 for the inaugural walking and biking fundraising event, benefitting the WDMH Foundation. 

The event will be held on September 8th with seven starting locations that teams can choose to start their journey from: Morrisburg, South Mountain, Osgoode, Greely, Russell, Crysler, and Finch.  

On the day of the event, teams will walk or bike from these locations of varying distances, to the Winchester District Memorial Hospital.  

The starting location with the shortest distance is South Mountain, which is 18.6 kilometers from WDMH. The location with the longest distance is Greely, which is 33 kilometers from WDMH.  

Both of these starting locations offer family-friendly routes, because they divert walkers and cyclists along back roads, featuring lots of safety and caution signs along the way.  

The other routes that feature back roads are Russell at 23.8 kilometers, Crysler at 24.6 kilometers and Osgoode at 29 kilometers.

“We’re hoping that the five family-friendly routes will reassure parents’ apprehensions about bringing their children with them on such a long walk or bike ride,” said Arnold Scheerder, the new WDMH Foundation Board Chair.

“Our event organizers have also arranged to have pit stops so that participants have a chance to stop for a rest, a drink, some more sunscreen or a bathroom break,” he added. 

The Heel ’n Wheel will wrap up with a celebration BBQ in front of WDMH, complete with musical entertainment, children’s activities, and a presentation of awards. To find out more, visit heelnwheel.ca.

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