CITY DESK: John Harding 562-2441, Local 382 FAX: 562-7453 E-MAIL: pgcnews@prg.southam.ca The Prince George Citizen - Saturday, July 4,1998 - 3 Second Front Youngsters safe Two youngsters missing for nearly a half-hour Thursday returned home safely after parents called Prince George RCMP. A five-year-old and a four-year-old disappeared about 4 p.m. Thursday afternoon from their home on the 2100 block Quince Street. Police were called in and a search was mounted, but the two returned without further incident. Break-in foiled Two men broke into the P.G. Frameries on George Street early Friday morning but were scared off by an employee who was already on the premises. The men broke a window and opened the front door. They then opened the cash register and took an undetermined amount of cash. One was described as a native male, five feet 10 inches tall with medium length black hair, while the second was described as a native male, about the same height but of slimmer build. Anyone with information is asked to call 561-3300 or CrimeStoppers at 564-TIPS (564-8477). Man found bleeding Police continue to investigate an incident involving a man found bleeding in the alley behind the St. Vincent de Paul building on Third Avenue Thursday afternoon. Police said the man had been involved in a fight but couldn’t provide many details. He was found at 6:40 p.m. Thursday. Truck vandalized A truck owner on Northwood Pulpmill Road had his vehicle vandalized for the second time in the past two weeks Thursday. The truck, a black 1990 GMC pickup, had its tailgate stolen two weeks ago from the 2000 block Northwood Pulpmill Road. Friday morning, the owner found that the stereo and rearview mirror had been taken from the vehicle. The driver’s side front window was smashed. Boat motor stolen Police are looking for a blue Evinrude four-stroke outboard motor after it was stolen Thursday from a residence on the 3000 block of Ospika Boulevard. The motor was cut off the back of a boat and taken. It is valued at about $3,500. Two women injured Two Vanderhoof women were taken to Nechako Valley Hospital for treatment of neck injuries after a two-vehicle accident on Highway 16 Friday morning. A vehicle was stopped in the eastbound lane of Highway 16 waiting to make a left turn into the Co-op card lock station when another eastbound vehicle ran into the rear of the first car. The driver of the second vehicle was issued a traffic ticket for following too closely. Total damage to the vehicles was estimated at $4,000. Audio gear stolen Quesnel RCMP are investigating the theft of a CD player and other audio equipment from a vehicle parked on the 700 block of Harcourt Avenue Wednesday night. The vehicle was parked in a carport at a residence on Harcourt. The thief or thieves stole a GR4 JPX CD player, a plugin and a CD. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to all Quesnel RCMP at 992-9211 or CrimeStop pers at 992-TIPS (992-8477). Injured on bridge One woman was injured in a three-vehicle accident Thursday afternoon on the Quesnel River Bridge in Quesnel. The woman was taken to hospital with undetermined injuries after the accident, which occurred at about 5 p.m. Police continue to investigate and expect to lay charges under the motor vehicle act. Chainsaw appears Missing a chainsaw? Quesnel RCMP have one to spare. The Quesnel detachment received a chainsaw located in the dri veway of a home in West Quesnel. The owner of the chainsaw can claim it at the detachment office if able to identify it. Forest Ministry cuts will affect area Impact isn’t known, but there ’II be spillover in regions, Victoria says by GORDON HOEKSTRA Citizen staff It’s unclear how $ 16-million in budget cuts to the Forest Ministry will unfold in the Prince George area, ministry spokesperson Andrew Little said Friday. He acknowledged it will have an impact. “There will be a (spillout effect On the regions), but the objective is to try and make things happen (in Victoria) and try to preserve the service levels provided by districts,” said Little from Victoria. The impacts will be come clearer in the next two weeks, he said. The plan is not to lay off employees, but to place people in vacant positions, said Little. The ministry’s department that researches disease and controls insect infestations is facing a budget cut of 60% this year — down from $11 million to $4 million. While budgets are being reduced, there’s still money to control forest pests and diseases, said Prince George region forest ministry spokesperson Jeff Elder. The forest ministry employs close to 600 people in the northeast corner of the province. There is a forest health officer in most of the eight districts, said Elder. The harvesting of beetle-infested timber as a control measure will also continue under the small business licence program, he said. UNBC forestry professor Staffan Lindgren — a forest insect expert — is concerned about the cuts to research. With the move to more intensively managed forests, there are pest and disease control questions that need to U-il \^dk. Citizen photo by Brent Braaten SOCCER SIGN OF THE TIMES — Prince George Youth Soccer had a sign made in front of fields at 15th and Ospika to thank the Rotary clubs of the city for their support of youth soccer. The sign was made by Brian Styles using local cedar and granite. In the photo above are, from left to right, Carl Wikjord, president of Nechako Rotary Club, Bob Leverman, president of Yellowhead Rotary Club, Rob Cormack, president of Prince George Rotary Club, Donalda Fortier, president New Caledonia Rotary Club and Gale Russell of Prince George Youth Soccer. More roads being improved Another 17 in region to he upgraded by mid August The Ministry of Transportation and Highways announced Thursday an additional 17 area roads in our region will be improved by mid August. The projects include: ■ 6.9 kilometres of Chief Lake Road from Mossvale Road to Shell Lake Road will get a new hard surface, called seal coating. Unlike asphalt, which has oil and gravel mixed at a plant, poured, then compressed, seal coating has a layer of asphalt poured on a road, gravel spread on top then pressed into it, said Highways project manager Bill Rose. ■ 3.6 kilometres of roads in the Lakeside Drive subdivision will get a hard surface (seal coating) for the first time. ■ A 1.5 kilometre section of Ness Lake Road north to Eskers Park will be resealed. ■ 3.7 kilometres of road in the Pilot Mountain subdivision will be improved, including a reseal of Pilot Mountain road and first time hard-surfacing of two other roads. ■ 8.3 kilometres of road in the Mi-worth subdivision will be treated including two roads getting a hard surface (seal coating) for the first time. ■ The Upper Fraser Road will have 16 kilometres sealed to preserve the existing pavement. This is expected to delay traffic once work begins. In addition to seal coating, several area roads will have the road base, under the pavement or gravel improved. These include Chief Lake Road, Pilot Mountain Road, Pambena Road and Airpark Road. And sue roads will receive a new layer of gravel. They are Banks West Road, Chief Lake Road, Huckleberry Road, Nechako Crescent, Pambena Road and Sicamore Road. Auxiliary officers’ absence being felt by RCMP at events by COREY KEEGAN Special to The Citizen The RCMP auxiliary officers would have been helpful during Canada Day celebrations in Fort George Park on Wednesday, said RCMP Const. Gordon Molendyk. He said the auxiliary’s service would also be very useful at the upcoming air show and Prince George Exhibition. The 31-member volunteer auxiliary remain “off duty”. They withdrew their services in April after B.C.’s Attorney General Ujjal Dosanjh ordered the auxiliary could no longer carry firearms, pending a review of the role auxiliary officers play throughout the province. “We’re basically sitting back and waiting,” said Prince George RCMP Auxiliary President Terry Deacon. “This is not a protest, it’s a safety concern. It’s not safe to be out there, in uniform, without (firearms).” Deacon said the auxiliary has been in contact with local MLAs, and Prince George Mayor Colin Kinsley, asking for their political support. B.C. was the only province in Canada to allow auxiliary police to carry guns. The review ordered by the Attorney General is on-going. No results are expected until September. The review is being conducted by D.W.K. Associates, a private consulting firm in Vancouver, said Kate Thompson, spokesperson for the Attorney General. Prior to withdrawal, the auxiliary as- be answered, he said. The chief forester’s $30-million budget is also being cut by $5-$ 10 million. The chief forester’s program includes forestry inventory, research and the timber supply branch, which helps determine how many trees forest companies can cut. The timber supply review — a statutory requirement — will continue, said Little. Other priority areas include fire protection, Forest Practices Code compliance enforcement and re-forestation, he said. Commercial vehicle checks make roads safer - police by KEN BERNSOHN Citizen staff RCMP officers from Vanderhoof, Mackenzie and Quesnel joined Prince George police in a two-day check of hundreds of commercial vehicles June 19-20, says Sgt. Jim Garraway. “In the past couple years we had the benefit of a partnership with ICBC for enhanced checks,” said Garraway, the head of the Prince George RCMP traffic section. “They supplied personnel from what used to be the motor vehicle branch until they merged last year. We had 15 people out throughout the day each day on Highway 97 just south of the Old Cariboo Highway.” “This must be the fourth or fifth check of commercial vehicles this year,” he said. Garraway said the checks help make people aware that bad vehicles can be a cause of problems. “People are aware we’re checking and we’re getting a good degree of cooperation,” he said. He said he feels enforcement efforts cut down on the number of defective vehicles on the road. “We gave out lots of infraction tickets and had discussions with lots of people but most people see the checks as a safety feature, improving safety on the road,” he added. Exercise helps to relieve back pains. ^ nee George Dislncl ol Physiotherapy Assoc ol B C Supponed by The Prince George Citizen sisted general duty officers with team policing, traffic and crowd control. The original decision to review the role of the auxiliary were based on concerns for public safety, training, liability, and accountability, said Sgt. Russ Grabb in April. We are ' Moving! So that I can be associated with the* same securities dealer, Moneywatch-Consultants Ltd., I am pleased to announce my relocation to the Fournier, Clarke Financial Centre 790 Central St. E. Prince George, B.C. V2M 3B7 As always, I value our long term relationship, and look forward to many years of continued service at my new location! Please note mv new phone and fax numbers: Phone: (250) 564-3600 Fax: (250) 563-8610 Bruce D. Gilchirst k Gilchrist Financial Ltd. £ HEU workers ratify contract The more than 700 members of the Hospital Employees Union who work at Prince George Regional Hospital have a new three-year contract, their union announced Thursday. The contract also applies to aids, Licensed Practical Nurses and some other workers at Simon Fraser Lodge and the Rainbow Intermediate Care Home. The new contract, approved by more than 75% of 42,000 union health chre workers across the province, provides pay equity adjustments, improved benefits, and about $57 a month pay increase in the third year, said union spokesman Chris Alnutt. The contract also affects some members of the B.C. Government and Services Employees Union and the International Union of Operating Engineers, said BCGEU spokesman Wiho Papenbrock. Island streams recovering VICTORIA (CP) — Cleaning up B.C. streams for salmon habitat “is going to happen, we’re already there,” says Bill Hardy, a Forests Ministry engineer honored for conservation work on northern Vancouver Island. Hardy said several streams he has worked on in the Campbell River area have recovered as viable salmon habitat. Hardy received a 1998 B.C. Forest Excellence Award for his work restoring the Menzies Creek watershed and Little Lake. IS BIGGER BETTER? The British Columbia Task Force on Bank Mergers wants to hear from you. www.bankmergersbc.gov.bc.ca 1-800-988-8299 IAN WADDELL, MINISTER On June 17,1998, Small Business Minister lan Waddell appointed a three-person task force to look into the ^British Columbia Ministry of Small Business, Tourism and Culture impacts of proposed bank mergers on British Columbians, their small businesses and their communities. THE TASK FORCE WILL BE IN PRINCE GEORGE ON JULY 7™ ATTHE COAST INN OF THE NORTH, 4-7PM. Please attend! Your opinions are important. Appointments will be given priority'—call 1-800-988-8299 for more infonnation. Task force submissions are also welcome at the following locations: BRITISH COLUMBIA TASK FORCE ON BANK MERGERS Box 9804, Stn. Prov. Gov. www.bankmergersbc.gov.bc.ca Victoria, BC, V8W 9W1 Fax: 1-250-387-6055 SMB26059