The Prince George Citizen - Monday, July 22,1996 - 3 Second front Police probe cause of Quesnel crash Quesnel RCMP continue to investigate the cause of a noontime Saturday accident on Highway 97 that critically injured two Albertans. A camperized van from Alberta was making a left turn onto Windt Road around 12:02 p.m. when it was struck in the rear by a transport tractor-trailer, police said. The impact resulted in the van catapulting off Highway 97 and into the ditch, where it rolled several times. After admission to Quesnel’s G.R. Baker Memorial Hospital, the two occupants of the van were listed in critical condition. The lone occupant of the transport truck was uninjured. A quiet Sunday Prince George RCMP said they had a quiet Sunday. Saturday night was busy, but complaints investigated were nothing out of the ordinary, a constable said. Business entered Police ask the public’s help in finding the culprits who broke into a catering business in Quesnel during the weekend. Someone broke into Jean’s Catering, 383 N. Fraser Dr., between 11 p.m. Saturday and 10:35 a.m. Sunday. Evidence indicated they broke in through the side window. A small amount of silver and food was taken, Quesnel RCMP said. Anyone with information is asked to call Quesnel RCMP at 1-604 992-9211. B.C Local residents named to REIBC Citizen staff Two Prince George residents have been appointed directors of the Cariboo Chapter of Real Estate Institute of B.C. (REIBC). They are Val Drebet and Gerhard Brosch of the local office of B.C. Assessment. Drebet was elected chair of the organization. Brian Hawkins of Dawson Creek, also an employee of B.C. Assessment, was named a director as well REIBC is an organization of diversified professionals advocating higher standards of education, knowledge, professional development and business practice in all sectors of the real estate industry, Ruth Raymond, the organization’s media relations officer, said in a release. Clues about cyclist’s murder sketchy Southam Newspapers WILLIAMS LAKE — A battered bicycle, some crime-scene string and a square of flattened grass bear mute witness to the last moments of Jo Ann Feddema. The body of the 39-year-old mother of two was found Thursday evening in dense brush about a kilometre from her wrecked yellow mountain bike. She’d been sexually assaulted and murdered, probably by a blow to the head. In Williams Lake, Const. John Pilszek said Feddema set out Tuesday morning to cycle the trails not far from her home in the outlying community of Wildwood. Her family grew anxious when the teacher’s aide failed to return, and a search began that evening. “She had a route that she followed usually, said Pilszek. “The search concentrated on that route. “Eventually when the body was located, it was found off a small road, roughly 10 metres (33 feet) off the road. The preliminary indication is that she was murdered and sexually assaulted at the scene.” Bone fragments were found nearby. No weapon was found. The discovery of her nude body, her T-shirt pulled up over her head, was bitter news for the hundreds of locals who had slogged their way, shoulder to shoulder, through pouring rain and dense bush to find her. Earlier that morning, searchers had found her bike, its rear wheel badly bent, hidden in trees. Const. Pat McTiernan, an RCMP traffic analyst, says tests show her bike was moving when it was hit by a vehicle. He hopes further tests will point to the height of the vehicle’s bumper, and enable police to provide a profile. “We’re thinking pickup truck but we’re not sure,” said McTiernan. “We have no suspect vehicle or vehicle profile at this time.” The police aren’t sure where her bike was hit and whether she was a random victim or if she’d been stalked. They’re also taking a second look at the September 1993 case of Kamloops resident Sherri McLaughlin, 20, who disappeared, leaving only her battered bicycle by the side of a road. “We can’t say at this point whether or not there is any connection,” said Pilszek. “However, yes, there are similarities because of the bike being involved.” Said Staff Sgt. Larry Wendel, head of the Williams Lake detachment: “We’re appealing for the people involved to come forward and allow us to apply some closure to this, for the family, and for the community.” Anyone with information should call Williams Lake police at 392-6211. Salmon deal has B.C. fishermen fuming Southam Newspapers VANCOUVER — An agreement has been reached between Canada and the U.S. that allows American native Indians to fish a portion of the weak Fraser River sockeye run and sees the coho catch reduced on both sides of the border. The deal, which has both native and non-native fishermen in B.C. fuming, was struck by the Pacific Salmon Commission late Friday. It was revealed by fisheries officials in Washington state, but Canadian officials were not prepared to announce it until today. A copy of the agreement was sent to Federal Fisheries Minister Fred Mifflin’s office. Reached at his Ottawa home Sunday, Mifflin said he wasn’t yet aware of the deal. “As far as I’m concerned we’re still negotiating,” said Mifflin. “They (the U.S.) may have agreed on what they want to do but I think we’ll have to hear what the Pacific Salmon Commission says.” But commission chair Robert Turner faxed a letter to Mifflin’s office Friday night explaining the deal. “I have the honor to report to you understandings reached by the representatives of governments of Canada and the United States,” states the letter dated July 19. The commission represents fishermen along the West Coast in both Canada and the U.S. It makes recommendations that must be approved by both federal governments before they become final. Recommendations made by the joint commission are usually passed by federal authorities. Bruce Crawford, deputy director of the Washington state fish and wildlife department, said they consider the deal complete. In fact, the state is so confident a compromise has been reached it announced Friday night its coastal coho fishery will open this morning. The season will last until Sept. 26, or until the quota of 75,000 coho is reached. Canada has also agreed to reduce its coho catch off the west coast of Vancouver Island to one million, down from 1.4 million. In return for the reduction, Crawford said the U.S. agreed to put a “minimal effort on catching sockeye salmon,” allowing it only to be available for native fishers. That means native fishermen will be allowed to catch between 30,000 and 50,000 B.C.-bound sockeye. ICBC policy slammed Southam Newspapers VICTORIA— A woman is taking ICBC to the B.C. human rights council for allegedly discriminating against her on grounds of her marital status. Karen Kilshaw, who was injured five years ago, says ICBC’s policy of the day was unfair because it gave her and husband Murray access to only one underinsured-motorist protection policy when they were both hurt on his motorbike. Karen had her own underinsured-motorist protection policy but ICBC wouldn’t let her use it to increa:e the total available to her and Murray. “If I’d been riding with a stranger, I’d have been allowed to use my own policy,” she said. “But since I was riding with my husband, I’m not. That doesn’t make any sense.” Sawmill catches fire SURREY, B.C. (CP) — Officials estimate a fire overnight Saturday caused between $5 million and $6 million in damage at a suburban Vancouver sawmill. A two-storey office building and dry kiln went up in flames at about 3:30 a.m. Saturday. The fire was fuelled by propane tanks and a large amount of kiln-dried wood. The cause is under investigation, although the same mill was the site of a suspicious fire a few weeks ago. Body set on fire Southam Newspapers VANCOUVER — A young couple walking along the Fraser River early Sunday morning discovered the smoldering body of a young woman in a park at the foot of Angus Drive. Vancouver city police say the woman’s throat had been slashed and her nude body wrapped in a tarp and set ablaze with the help of an accelerant. “Given the amount of accelerant used, and the tarp, there’s no question this was an attempt to destroy the evidence — to destroy the body completely,” Constable Anne Drennan said in an interview Sunday. Firefighters to strike VICTORIA (CP) — City firefighters have voted to strike, arguing they are paid less other B.C. firefighters. But it’s unlikely the 105 workers will walk out despite an 87 per cent strike vote Friday. Legislation enacted in 1995 bars a strike. The province has appointed a mediator to help both sides reach a new collective agreement. The last deal expired in 1995. Union spokesman Ed Pakos noted his members do the same jobs as other firefighters — including those in Vancouver. “Fires aren’t any hotter in Vancouver than they are here,” said Pakos. Tourist alert VANCOUVER (CP) — Tourist Alert issued by the RCMP. The following people, believed travelling in British Columbia, are asked to contact the persons listed. Denise Hart of Cold Lake, Alta., call Elly Parker. Darcy Fontaine of Fraser Lake, B.C., call Cecilia Gillett. Coast guard braces for B.C. cuts VICTORIA (CP) — The coast guard will announce this week a major cut of its Victoria-based staff, followed by a reduction in its fleet. Meanwhile, a confidential report says the Institute of Ocean Sciences complex in suburban North Saanich should be sold and operations merged with the downtown coast guard station. The Public Service Alliance of Canada is bracing for 15 per cent of coast guard workers in the Pacific region to be laid off — as many as 40 jobs in Victoria. Coast guard spokeswoman Michelline Brodeur wouldn’t confirm the union’s figures, but did say the 1996-97 budget Bog will survive—biologist DELTA, B.C. (CP) — A biologist who has spent much of his life tramping Burns Bog said the damage wrought by this week’s fire will have no long-term effects. “It’s not like having a thousand-year-old forest destroyed,” Don DeMille said after visiting the 170-hectare area levelled by a fii e Tuesday. “You wouldn’t expect that to come back after even hundreds of years, but this will be all back within 40 years. “It’s my feeling that Burns Bog has always burned and that fire has been a profound shaper of the bog.” The fire likely injured animals and destroyed birds’ nests filled with eggs, but the area will spring back quickly, he said. Even while DeMille was out Thursday with firefighters working to stamp out the last vestiges of fire in the 4,000-hectare bog, he said he noticed some signs of returning life. “There were ants, and some spiders had already put up webs. It won’t take a year before it starts to become green again.” The fire, believed caused by human carelessness, spread quickly from a few square metres to 170 hectares. It covered much of nearby Vancouver in a veil of smoke but no buildings in nearby industrial areas were damaged. DeMille said it is not fire but development that threatens the bog’s future. calls for a cut in Pacific region staff to the equivalent of 799 full-time employees. This is offset by the transfer of 39 Fisheries and Oceans employees to the department, but the numbers are a far cry from staffing of about 1,200 a few years ago. “There will be cutbacks but we haven’t announced them to our staff yet so we don’t want to announce it in the media,” Brodeur said. The layoffs stem from the coast guard’s recent amalgamation with Fisheries, intended to lop $33 million from their national budgets over the next three years. Workers were told some time ago of the pending staff cuts but sorting out the amalgamation of departments appears to have delayed action. “Right now it’s a chaotic mess,” said a longtime coast guard employee who didn’t want to be named for fear of jeopardizing his early-retirement package. Removal of staff from light stations is one of the contributing factors. Having more automated equipment reduces the need for maintenance and servicing by coast guard vessels. A department insider predicted the coast guard’s fleet of five major vessels will be cut to four. Citizen photo by Brent Braaten HISTORIC HOMESTEAD HIGHLIGHTED — Huble Homestead Day brought hundreds of people to the site Sunday. One of the attractions was Garth Lasko, the blacksmith in action. Here he is using a forge. The annual event is sponsored by the Giscome Portage Historical Society which, in conjunction with Fraser-Fort George Regional District, has restored the homestead over the past 12 years. Citizen photo by Brent Braaten DEER BOUNDS BACK — Spooked by a passing car on Highway 97 North, a young buck, antlers in velvet, charges back into the forest about 15 kilometres north of Prince George. The ungulates can be strikingly beautiful animals. But at dusk they can pose hazards along highway rights of way when they sometimes spring in front of a motorist unexpectedly. 492 Victoria Street 563-0417 BCAA Insurance 2? Agency (Qg) | Set a date. and plan your Autoplan with BCAA!