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vX TheO akvmeB FA CIO K Y SHOE WHY PAY FULL PRICE FOR SHOES? O.E.W. at Wiittfon Churchill Turnoff 37iiS grtf T IS T H E S E ^ N WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24.1999 AMetroland Publication Vel.37No. 140 52 Page* (pkdsG ST) Truck driver dies in QEW accident C aroccupants lucky to be alive, traffic chaotic throughout day By Howard Mozel OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Witnesses are still being sought in connection with Monday's tragic and bizarre accident on the QEW which claimed the life of a 58-year old Hamilton man and injured two other motorists. The force of the 5:30 a.m. collision sent a tractor trailer careening off the bridge at Kerr Street and down the embankment while the car came to rest on the roadway below the bridge. "I've never seen anything like this before," said Const. Donna Wilson of the OPP's Burlington Detachment. "We've never had the highway closed for that length of time." The eastbound lanes of the QEW were closed at Dorval Drive all day and were not re-opened until the early morning hours on Tuesday. As a result, traffic was snarled through Oakville all day and triggered a handful of minor collisions on local roads. "It was a bad day to be a com muter," said Wilson. (See `Accidenf page A2) The driver of this truck was killed and the driver and passenger of a car (right) were lucky to escape alive following a spectacular early morning crash Monday on the eastbound QEW at the Kerr Street overpass. The accident resulted in traffic chaos for most of the day. Photos by Peter C. McCusker $ Fire inquest recommends more education, need for fire detectors* By Kim Amott SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER Coroner's jury critical of toxicity in furniture materials dents were sleeping. While the home was equipped with three smoke detectors, the two on the ground floor, which were closest to the fire, were not working because of dead or missing batteries. The coroner's jury also looked at the response of the Oakville fire depart ment to the emergency and made a number of recommendations regarding emergency communications and equipment. Among the suggestions: that fire, police and ambulance study the possi bility of developing a joint 911 call cen tre; that all fire personnel be equipped with personal portable radios; and that fire departments consider creating an emergency dispatch code to identify calls where it is known people are or were in a burning structure. The jury has also recommended that the Town of Oakville and the Oakville Fire Department study the installation of a traffic pre-emption system for strategically important intersections. A pre-emption system would allow control over traffic lights, in an attempt to reduce the need for fire vehicles to stop for non-emergency traffic. (See `Jury' page A5) During six days of testimony A coroner's inquest into Oakville's regarding the Fedoruk house fire, the worst-ever fire tragedy has resulted in jury heard that the blaze began in a sofa nearly a dozen recommendations in a ground-floor family room. The fire was started by either a aimed at educating people about the dangers of house fires and the impor portable halogen lamp which fell onto tance of early detection devices like the sofa, or by careless smoking. Toxic smoke alarms and carbon monoxide carbon monoxide and hydrogen cyanide gases were released and trav detectors. After about 13 hours of deliberation elled throughout the house to the sec that concluded late Monday afternoon, ond-floor bedrooms where the resi the five-member coroner's jury deter mined that four victims of an August 1998 blaze died accidently of smoke inhalation with carbon monoxide toxic ity. Lynn Fedoruk, 44, her children Adam, 15, and Amanda, 12, along with visiting relative Bonnie Letchuk, 45, were pulled unconscious from their Salvator Boulevard home in the early morning hours of August 16, 1998. All four died shortly afterwards in area hospitals. Among the jury's 27 recommenda tions, which will be distributed across the province, are 11 which focus on the need for public education around the issue of fire safety. The jury has recommended fire departments work to make people aware of the need for working smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors. As well, it recommended the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) consider requiring the use of more fire retardant and non-toxic materials to be used in the manufacture of furniture. today's paper Editorials..... Shop Early.. ,.A6 ,.B1 Focus.---------....._____ ____ _-- C1 Update-- ...........__ .................-- .C4 Entertainment__________ ___ __C5 Automotive..C8 Sports.... For Home Delivery: Th eBay, Ennisclare Interiors, Peoples, Sears, Sheridan Nurseries Partial delivery: Locations, Canoe Direct, Appleby Hall, The Brick, Michaels, CIUS Guardian, Hopedale Hall, White Rose, M&M Meats Canadian Publications Mail Product Agreem ent #435-201 4> A r e a r e s id e n t s s u p p o r tiv e o f h o m e l e s s h o u s i n g p la n By Howard Mozel OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF After gearing up to confront stiff opposition against a temporary, short term emergency homeless shelter on Old Mill Road, Town Council was pleasantly surprised Monday night by the community's response to the initia tive. A previous public meeting had gen erated opposition from area residents who are concerned about everything from drugs and noise to the control and supervision of the transient population. Others worried about the wisdom of mixing disparate types of tenants together under one roof. On Monday, though, a far more charitable air pervaded the council chamber as residents and faith groups pledged their assistance. One Trafalgar Road resident, for example, said he will Give blood today A blood donor clinic will be held Wed. Nov. 24th at the Croatian Parish Hall, 2110 Trafalgar Road North. The clinic will run from 12:30 to 7 :30 p.m. Healthy individuals between the ages of 17 and 71 (first time donors must be 60 or under) can donate. Photo by Peter C. McCusker IT 'S T H A T T IM E : Thousands of people lined the streets of down town Oakville and Kerr Street on Saturday to catch the Oakville Santa Claus Parade. The weather was a little damp but it was one of the warmest parade days on record. For more, see Focus, page B1 and also C l. welcome the needy, especially if the principals involved manage it properly. (The house will be administered by Halton Region with the Salvation Army tending to day-to-day operations.) Ward 1 councillor Kevin Flynn said he was pleased with the sentiments expressed but cautioned that those involved must remain vigilant to ensure the site's viability. "We have to live up to that chal lenge," he said. The subject property is Grace House, an old dwelling currently used as a group home for those with mental health issues. (Grace House will be moving in December to a site on Cornwall Road.) A recent Halton Region study iden tified the urgent need for short-term emergency housing in Oakville. In response, the Town is proposing to use . (See 'Maximum' page A4) FU RS S H E E P S K IN · I P e t e r W a tso n II 1 N V E S T M E N T 8 RETIREMENT PLANNING SPECIALISTS CLOTH COATS 209 Lakcshort R d . K. O akville <1st lig h t* west n f T r a fa ls y n 8 4 5 -2 0 3 i LEATHERS Free C o n s u l t a t io n 842-2100 % IV tc rC Watson K U LC JE R , K EF. t