Rough winter

Foik art

Say what?

Conservation officers report
moose are taking a beating on -
highways and railways/NEWS A3

‘Terrace artist Donna Orr has been
capturing pioneer days on
canvas/COMMUNITY B1.

| ‘Yes, ‘the warmest place around
here last week was the top of a
mountain/SPORTS C1.

WEDNESDAY .
JANUARY 11,1995

{BCAA),

THEY HOPE they never need to use their ice rescue skills,. .on the frozen lakes and rivers: of the area. . Above, “rescuer” -
but, just in case, Terrace Water Rescue team members’ ‘Tony Torigiia Slips into the water to help “victim" Riandy

make sure they keep them honed with practices each winter

Local team gets national nod

TERRACE’S Water Rescue
leam is about to step on to
the national stage.

As part of an overhaul of

’ public.. information
campaigns, the Canadian
Red Cross is planning to up-
date and improve its tips for
playing safe around ice.

There are only about a
dozen certified surface ice
rescue instructors in the
country and Terrace has
three of them -- Tony
Toriglia, Dave Jephson and
Randy Smith,

So the Red Cross is send-
ing a photographer early
next month up here to put
together a portfolio of shols
that will form the basis of
ihe = organization’s next
poster campaign.

Jephson said the team will
selup a varicty of scenarios
for the photographer wilh
the shoots taking place at
Lakelse Lake and the
Skeena River, likely at

a

Course

WATER RESCUE rescuc
personnel from across North
America will converge on
Terrace this summer,

The attraclion will be Dive
Rescue I and II courses
being held here Aug. 4-11.

Local team member Dave
Jephson said the courses
will be conducted by Dive
Rescue International with
instructors coming in from
Calgary and Fort Collins,
Colorado,

The participants —— a max-
invum of 30 will be accepted
— will come from even fur-
ther afield,

Jephson said confirmation
has alrcAdy been received
from an Ontario individual

f as!

Tony Toriglia

Ferry Island.

Safe behaviour will be the
emphasis but self-rescue in
the event of falling through
the ice will also be covered.
The results of the one-day
photography session will be
unveiled in January 1996,
the launch date for the Red
Cross campaign.

an international

and interest has been ex-
pressed by others from
Alaska, Washington and
Montana as well as B.C,
and Alberta.

The course will be ane of
only two conducted in
North America this year, the
other taking place in Vir-
ginia,

Noting there were only 17
Dive Rescue I certified indi-
viduals in B.C., he said 12
of those were members of
Terrace Water Rescue,

Those 12 will be taking
the Dive Rescue IE course,

at the moment a qualifica- .

tion held by no-one in the
province. Onc other team
member will be taking Dive

Smith escape the frigid waters,

And when that iaunch takes
place, there will be another
Terrace connection, this
time in the area of water
safety,

Toriglia has been asked to
sit ona task force which is
revising the organization’s
Learn to Swim program.

A Red Cross instructor
trainer, he has been in-
volved in the program for
20 years,

“T's a real honour,’’
Toriglia said of the invita-
tion. ‘It’s a great organiza-
tion.” _

Whalever assistance he can
give to the overhaul of

the swim program, Toriglia
pointed out that ihe experi-
ence will be a two way
street,

That’s because he will get a
chance to talk with others
involved in running aquatic
centres across Canada,

“Tt will be a chance to ex-
change ideas,** ho ex-

Rescue I,

Jephson said it will cost.
up to $6,000 for the local
team to take the course. al-
though there will be a dis-
count if they can fill all 30
spots. He also hoped to get
contributions from the city

and the Provincial Emer-

gency Program.

However, the major part
of the expense will have to
be covered by Terrace
Search and Rescue (SAR)
using the proceeds of their
bingo.

SAR will also have the
task of arranging accom-
modation, — transportation
and meals for the instructors

and participants as well as —

plained, ‘‘and hopefully
Terrace will benefit from
that.’”

In addition to his task force
meet, Toriglia has another
engagement back east — he
and Jephson will be con-
ducting a four-day surface

~ ice rescue training session.

Taking part will be 50-60
firemen from Maidstone
County, former Terrace fire
chief Bob Beckett's new
stamping ground,

And when the pair return
from Ontario, there’s a pos-
sibility a group will be com-
ing up here from vancouver
for a joint training session
on both surface and sub-ice
rescue techniques,

For words of wisdom on
ice safety and a brief
look at Terrace Search
and Rescue in 1994, turn
to page AS.

setting up all the necessary
props for the course.

For example, the course
Will include simulated res-
cues from a submerged
vehicle. ;

That meant finding the
vehicles, transporters to. get
them to the scene and a
crane to lower them into the
water.

Jephson said SAR would
be . approaching — local
businesses and community
groups for their support. -

“It’s a big task to take -

on,”* he admitted,
‘However, if past support
from the community was
repeated, he was confident
of SUCCESS. _

Tax lir

NO NET TAX increase for city
homeowners. |

That’s the commitment city
council has made in releasing the
provisional budget for 1995,
- But that doesn't mean all

- tesidential property owners will

escape’ unscathed, finance com-
mittee: chairman David Hull cau-

tioned:

_It will all came down to how

: much the assessed value of a

home increased over the previous
year, he explained.

If it hits the average, your city
tax bill should stay the same.

Based on figures provided by
the B.C, Assessment Authority
- city teasurer Keith
Norman says the average increase

| this year is about 11 per cent.

Therefore, anyone with an as-
sessment increase of. less than

‘that should actually see their city
taxes go down this year. .

And if the value of your home:
has jumped more than the aver-

age, your overall tax bill will in-
. crease as Well. :

It was too ‘early to calculate
how many properties would fall
into cach group.

However, BCAA area assessor
Tom. Protheroe, forecast
homeowners won't sec a sig-
nificant change in their taxes un-
less assessments have gonc. up.
less than five. per cent or more
than 20.

If the value of your

_home has jumped more |

than the average, your
overall tax bill will in-
crease as well.

As for commercial, industrial
and other tax rates, Hull said they
had not been set yet but council
had the same objective of no net
increase there as well.

The budget botiom line is the
city plans to pull in $12.4 million
this year. That’s up $400,000
from 1994.

Hull said much of the extra
revenue to cover thal will come
from taxes collected on new con-

struction — properties developed_

or improved upon since the last
assessment was done, .
The provisional budget . also
anticipates some extra moncy
coming in from recreational pro-
grams, ice rentals and

neld agai ai n

750 FLUS 5¢ ast
VoL. t No. 39°

David Hull .
licences/permils issued by the
city,

.On the expenditure side, coun-
cil has pencilled in more than $1
million on public works . -capilal
projects. But it could yet take an
eraser ta..a number...of those
projects, Hull pointed out. 3+

For’ example, : the provisional
budget sets aside. $150,000. Jor
pavement capping, :

However, he admitted, council-.
lors are now questioning whether
it makes sense lo cap roads which
do not have: a properly. con-.
structed base or are narrower than
the 66ft. width the city wants to
see become the standard, *

Half the capital project: budget
takes in complete rebuilds “of
cight sections of various streets.

But in a number of cases the —
budgeted amount only. covers the
cily’ S partion of the cost assum-
ing (he owners of properly front-
ing on to the street agree to a Lo-
cal Improvement Project (LIP). °

Under an LIP, a majority of tax-
payers on the street have to agree ;
to the project and then all pay a
portion of the cost based on. their
frontage, ,

If the property owners ‘tum
down the LIP, the project will
probably be dropped and the city
will move on to the next strect
down the list and give those
people a chance.to get their strect

_ paved/upgraded, Hull said. *

“It will make our money go a
lot further,” he explained, adding
the $572,600 set aside ° for
rebuilds is ihe only” money cour
cil can find’ in this year’s budget
given it’s holding ‘the line, on
laxcs,

Mystery lights

over Dease Lake |

WHEN FOUR _ upstanding
cilizens spat something pulsating
in the northern winter sky, you’ve
got to take it seriously.

That was the case last Wednes-
day night when two Dease Lake
RCMP officers, a parks branch.
employce and a social worker
saw flashing ‘lights to the north,
over the lake itself. - an

“Tt wasn’t moving, It was flash-

ing red and. grecn and - then
white,"' said Constable Kent
Langicy. :

Fellow officer Cst, Dean Chitds
sald he had been alerted to’ the

strange lights by ‘at: il: 300 Pm. :
- phone call.
When he went outside to inves.
’ tipate, he saw what looked like a

tow star. Except, that.i ‘is, for the,
red and blue lights.» 9°.
*3t'was almost like a.plane fly:

_ ing with landing lights,’’ Childs.
said, but this object’ was + station: Lake.

ary and ‘‘secmed: to be ¢vibrting
ihere.’”
He said the lights \ were: ‘steady

Tather than flashing ‘and: cldarly

defined, not fuzzy. ‘They were
as bright as thé North :Star,--or
Venus,” Childs added, 20°".

“F don't know: what to: inake of
it,” he admitted,’ I saw some:-
thing I’ve never seen before.’”. »

However, when he checked the
skies. again: between 11:30 p.m.
Thursday night and 3:30 a.m. Fri-
day morning, . the lights. ‘were
nowhere to be seen. < ©:

- Latigley/ theorizes | the’ Alghts
may have been a variation of the

_ northern lights...

He said the object didn’t t move

although others ‘Teported: that i

did. : BE
“There. ‘are. “alto. incon firmed

“reports. that: ‘something. similar
“was: ‘spotted: recent it