A note on a dropped piano and a curtain call; In The News for Feb. 12

More than 150 freight trains have been idled since the blockades were set up last Thursday in British Columbia and Ontario.

Passenger rail services have also been affected in Ontario, Quebec and B.C., with Via Rail cancelling service on its Montreal-Toronto and Ottawa-Toronto routes until the end of the day on Thursday because of a blockade near Belleville, Ont.

Chief executive JJ Ruest said the CN network gives the company limited parking space for its trains, which means traffic is backed up from Halifax to Windsor, Ont., and in parts of B.C. approaching Prince Rupert.

In Victoria on Tuesday, demonstrators also disrupted the business of the B.C. legislature as Lt.-Gov. Janet Austin delivered the NDP government’s throne speech.

Protesters, who have been camping outside the building since Friday, chanted “Shame” as politicians tried to enter the building with help from security.

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Also this …

An Edmonton man found guilty of murdering his pregnant wife and dumping her body in a ditch nearly 15 years ago is set to appear before the Parole Board of Canada today.

Michael White is scheduled to attend a hearing at the Beaver Creek Institution, the central Ontario federal prison where he is currently being held.

White was convicted in 2006 of second-degree murder and offering an indignity to a dead body in the killing of his wife, Liana White.

He was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 17 years.

Liana White was four months pregnant with the couple’s second child when she was stabbed to death in July 2005.

She was reported missing after her SUV was discovered in a park near the White home. Days later, a search party that included her mother and husband found her badly decomposed body in a ditch.

Court documents say security footage from a local pub showed the SUV heading towards the park around 5 a.m. the day of Liana White’s disappearance and, about 11 minutes later, a man closely matching her husband’s description jogging from the park towards the couple’s home.

A forensics expert testified that a product used to detect the presence of blood showed a trail from the couple’s bedroom to the hallway, down the stairs and into the garage, according to the documents. The expert said there was also evidence consistent with blood having been cleaned up in several areas of the house.

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

Bernie Sanders won New Hampshire’s presidential primary election, narrowly edging moderate rival Pete Buttigieg and scoring the first clear victory in the Democratic Party’s chaotic 2020 nomination fight.

In his win, the 78-year-old Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, beat back a strong challenger from the 38-year-old former Midwestern mayor — two men representing different generations and wings of their party.

“This victory here is the beginning of the end for Donald Trump,” Sanders declared.

As Sanders and Buttigieg celebrated, an unexpectedly strong performance from Amy Klobuchar gave her a path out of New Hampshire as the contest moves on to the string of state-by-state primary contests that lie ahead. Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren posted disappointing results and were on track to finish with zero delegates from the state.

The New Hampshire vote made clear that the early days of the Democratic contest will be a battle largely between two men four decades apart in age and ideological opposites. Sanders is a leading progressive voice, calling for substantial government intervention in health care and other sectors of the economy. Buttigieg has pressed for more incremental changes, giving Americans the option of retaining their private health insurance and making a point of appealing to Republicans and independents who may be dissatisfied with Trump.

“Thanks to you, a campaign that some said shouldn’t be here at all has shown that we are here to stay,” Buttigieg told cheering supporters.

Yet Sanders and Buttigieg enter the next phase of the campaign in different political positions.

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What we are watching in the rest of the world …

Japan’s health ministry said Wednesday that 39 new cases of a virus have been confirmed on a cruise ship quarantined at a Japanese port.

The update brings the total found on the Diamond Princess to 174 cases.

The ministry also said the virus was confirmed in a official who participated in the initial quarantine checks the night the ship returned to Yokohama Port near Tokyo on Feb. 3. The quarantine official is being treated in the hospital.

The new cases bring Japan’s total to 203 people infected by the new virus, COVID-19.

The night of the ship’s arrival, Japanese health officials began medical checks on all of the ship’s 3,700 passengers and crew after one previous passenger tested positive for the virus.

The U.S.-operated Diamond Princess had completed a 14-day tour during which it stopped at Hong Kong and several other Asian ports before returning to Japan. An 80-year-old man who disembarked in Hong Kong tested positive for the virus, prompting Hong Kong to notify the ship and Japanese authorities, who then ordered the quarantine and testing.

Concerns over the virus have rerouted and cancelled other cruises. The Westerdam cruise ship carrying 2,257 passengers and crew is now in the Gulf of Thailand with nowhere to dock after being refused entry in Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines and Thailand. There are no confirmed cases of the virus on board, but it stopped in Hong Kong less than two weeks ago, which is within the incubation period of the virus.

COVID-19 is a coronavirus that emerged in China in December.

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ICYMI (In case you missed it) …

EDMONTON — The Edmonton Oilers say star centre Connor McDavid will be out for the next two to three weeks with a quad injury.

Oilers general manager Ken Holland said McDavid’s left leg remained stiff and swollen in the days after he injured it Saturday in a National Hockey League game against Nashville, and an MRI on Monday revealed the quad injury.

That’s the same leg with the knee that McDavid badly injured late season slamming into a goalpost at high speed versus Calgary, but Holland says the quad injury is completely separate.

Asked if any kind of surgery would be needed, Holland replied: “No, no, no, no, no, no.”

“He’s two to three weeks. That’s the normal timeline for this kind of injury. We’re hoping it can be a little less.”

The 23-year-old McDavid was second in the NHL in points with 81 going into Tuesday’s play. He had 30 goals and 51 assists.

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Weird and wild …

SASKATOON — Police say a man left out in the cold with nothing on but his underwear broke into a Saskatoon home and grabbed some drapes to cover up.

They say the man was taken home from a bar overnight by people he had just met, but things took a bad turn and they asked him to leave.

The residents called police and told officers the man had not wanted to go, became belligerent and was eventually forced out wearing only his underwear.

With the door locked behind him, the near-naked man broke into a neighbour’s basement through a window.

A woman who had been sleeping there called police and told them the man had taken some drapes and wrapped himself up, robe-style, before leaving.

Police say a 22-year-old man was found nearby, arrested and taken to hospital for minor injuries from breaking through a window.

He faces charges of break and enter, as well as mischief

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Know your news …

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will head to the Caribbean next week to make his pitch to a new audience for why Canada should be given a seat on the UN Security Council. He’s meeting with leaders in Africa and Europe this week. When was the last time Canada sat on the Security Council?

(Keep scrolling for the answer)

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On this day in 1990 …

Quebec elected its first New Democrat MP when consumer advocate Phil Edmonston won a byelection in the riding of Chambly.

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Your health …

Companies wary of what an infectious outbreak could do to their workforce and bottom line are revisiting contingency plans as the new coronavirus continues to spread.

Marie-Helene Primeau of the Montreal-based risk management company Premier Continuum says she’s spent recent days fielding questions from several firms seeking guidance on what to do if the rapidly spreading illness that originated in China threatens the health of employees and customers.

“Everyone’s looking at their state of readiness,” says Primeau, whose company provides training and advice to a range of firms including banks, insurance companies, government agencies and those in manufacturing.

“They’re actively revisiting the plans, but they’re not necessarily stockpiling masks.”

Health officials in Canada have repeatedly stressed that the risk to public health remains low. Seven cases have been identified in Canada, while worldwide, the illness known as 2019-nCoV has sickened more than 37,000 people and killed more than 800, nearly all in China.

Nevertheless, Canadians are being urged to remain vigilant against infection, with medical experts reminding the public we’re still in the throes of flu season and that good hygiene is advised — wash hands frequently, cough and sneeze into tissue or your upper sleeve, and don’t touch your face.

Disaster management expert Amin Mawani says workers and managers alike should take this time to combat misinformation, repeat hygiene tips, be clear on sick leave policies and prepare for the possibility of mass absenteeism.

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Entertainment news …

Canadian classical musician Angela Hewitt says she’s devastated after her prized Fazioli piano was destroyed during a move.

Hewitt shared the news in a Facebook post on Sunday.

The Ottawa-born virtuoso says she had just wrapped up a recording session in Berlin when the movers told her they had dropped the piano.

Hewitt says Italian engineer Paolo Fazioli inspected the hand-made, four-pedal piano and deemed it “not salvageable.”

Manuel Bernaschek, president of Showcase Pianos, says Fazioli is the preferred brand of some of the world’s top musicians.

He says prices at the B.C. dealer start at $140,000 and can increase dramatically with customizations.

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Know your news answer …

Canada last sat on the Security Council in 2000. Stephen Harper’s Conservative government lost its bid for a seat in 2010.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 12, 2020.

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

A note on a dropped piano and a curtain call; In The News for Feb. 12

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