In The News for today: Floods, fires and food Insecurities concerning Canadians

A series of punishing thunderstorms dumped up to 250 millimetres of rain on Nova Scotia this weekend, killing at least two people and damaging infrastructure across the province.

About two months ago, nearly 250 square kilometres of land was scorched by record wildfires. The province is also experiencing summer temperatures that are warmer than usual.

There is a correlation between rising temperatures, wildfires and heavier rainfall, said Kent Moore, an atmospheric physics professor at the University of Toronto.

Nova Scotia is about two degrees warmer than usual for this time of the year, Moore said.

And as Nova Scotia and the rest of the planet heat up, the atmosphere’s ability to hold water vapour increases, he added.

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Fire crews hopeful for helping rain

Crews fighting British Columbia’s largest-ever wildfire are hoping a “heavy, prolonged rain” in the forecast can help them turn the corner on the massive blaze.

Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement for the northeastern corner of the province where the Donnie Creek fire has burned close to 6,000 square kilometres of forest land.

The weather statement says a low-pressure system over Alberta will interact with the east Rockies, leading to heavy rain in northeastern B.C., creating an accumulation of up to 70 millimetres until Thursday morning.

Prince George Fire Centre Information Officer Julia Caranci says the rain in the forecast is “very good news,” but they remain cautious because it may not fall evenly across the large area of the fire.

There are about 480 active fires across British Columbia and almost 15,000 square kilometres of land has burned, surpassing a record set at the end of the 2018 wildfire season.

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B.C. port workers look at job offer today

Thousands of workers at British Columbia’s ports will take off the day shift today to learn the details of an agreement struck between their union and employers.

The BC Maritime Employers Association says the offer being presented is the same one leaders of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union had previously rejected, which briefly sent workers back to the picket line last week.

A 13-day strike that started on Canada Day stopped billions of dollars’ worth of goods from moving in and out of some of the country’s busiest ports.

Strike action was suspended when the contract was reached with the help of a mediator, but was then reinstated when the union leadership turned down the plan.

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Food-insecure kids visit doctors more

The mere thought of grocery shopping causes so much anxiety for Jaimee Aragones that she avoids entering stores knowing she would return home without some food she can no longer afford for her kids.

Despite the couple’s efforts to stick with a budget, Aragones said constant money struggles about basic needs, including rent, make her feel “defeated.”

She is also worried about how that stress could affect her kids, especially her older son who is told they’ll have to “save that for later” when his favourite treats don’t show up in the fridge.

On Monday, the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) published a study saying that because of financial problems, children and adolescents under 18 in food-insecure Ontario homes made 55 per cent more visits to doctors for mental health reasons compared to those who had enough to eat.

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Conservatives notch Calgary byelection win

The federal Conservatives coasted to victory Monday to fill a seat left vacant after MP Bob Benzen called it quits last year.

Benzen, who was elected to represent the area in 2017, announced he would resign his seat in Calgary Heritage and return to private life at the end of last year.

Most of Calgary Heritage used to be part of the riding of Calgary Southwest, a seat held by former prime minister Stephen Harper until his retirement.

Voting stayed true to form with Shuvaloy Majumdar, a former policy adviser to Stephen Harper and former Conservative foreign minister John Baird, winning 65 percent of the vote.

Liberal candidate Elliot Weinstein and Gurmit Bhachu of the NDP candidate were in a virtual tie for second and third with just a few polls remaining.

Voter turnout was low with just over 28 percent of eligible voters casting ballots.

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Two Ontario ridings head to the polls, again

Summer is the time for barbecues, bare feet and beaches – and for residents of two Ontario ridings, byelections.

It’s not traditionally thought of as the best season for politicking, when people are out enjoying the weather or away on vacation, but candidates in Thursday’s byelections in Toronto’s Scarborough-Guildwood and the Ottawa area’s Kanata-Carleton swear that voters are engaged — though it was a bit of a slow start.

Residents of the Scarborough riding in particular could be forgiven for being election-ed out.

They, along with the rest of Toronto, just voted last month in a mayoral byelection, which came just eight months after the general municipal elections, and it has been only 13 months since the last provincial general election.

University of Ottawa political science professor Genevieve Tellier said running two byelections at once will be a particular challenge for the Liberals, with no leader and depleted resources after third-place showings in two successive elections.

However, it will be a slog for all parties to get their voters out to the polls, she said.

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Canadian airline delays soar above U.S.

Figures from an aviation data firm show Canada’s two biggest airlines see a far higher proportion of their flights delayed compared with many of their peers abroad.

Statistics from Cirium reveal that about 50 per cent of Air Canada’s flights were on time in the final two weeks of June and the first two weeks of July overall.

Meanwhile, about 36 per cent of WestJet’s flights touched down within the 15-minute window of their scheduled arrival which is considered on time.

The numbers compare with on-time percentages ranging between the high 60s and low 80s for the five biggest airlines in the United States.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 25, 2023

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

In The News for today: Floods, fires and food Insecurities concerning Canadians

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