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For the finest in CUSTOM UPHOLSTERING call Baier's. Makers of fine upholstered furniture. 231' Wvecroft Road. Unit 7 (between BronteA Thin! Line) 1 1 A Metrotand Publication Vol. 37 No. 50 DRY SHOE WHY PAY FULL PRICE FOR SHOES? O.E.W. at Winston Churchill Turnoff WEDNESDAY, APRIL 28,1999 60 Pages 75 Cents (plus GST) Photo by Riziero Vertolli BIRD'S EYE VIEW: Karen Burbridge and children Liam, 2 and Aidan-7months, look out their front door at a bird's nest in the wreath. The family reports that the bird seems totally content in its sheltered, albeit busy, setting. Photo by Peter J. Thompson TRENDY TEXTILES: Ana Bernardo, a third-year student in the textile studio of Sheridan College's School o f Crafts and Design, will be displaying and selling some of her textile art at this weekend's Open House. For more details on the annual Open House and other participating artisans see this month's 'Love of Arts & Entertainment' section, which begins on page D l. ' Trucking firm * fined $95,000 in fire death Workers not warned of dangerous cargo An Oakville trucking company has been fined $95,000 in conjunction with the death two years ago of one of its employees. Future Fastfreight Inc. was facing several Occupational Safety and Health charges in con­ nection with the death of John Koleros after the 44-year-old Toronto man was severely burned in the Sept. 2, 1997 truck fire. Judge William Sharpe handed down the sen­ tence after hearing how the company failed to pro­ vide information necessary to ensure the safety and health of its employees in the workplace under the Canada Labour Code. The company failed to post a materials data safety sheet to alert workers as to the contents of the truck, which turned out to be slabs of polyethylene foam that issued a flammable gas. According to the Crown, the company did not obtain a materials data safety sheet from its sup­ plier. The company was also charged with failing to post a copy of Part II of the Canada Labour Code and failure to establish a health and safety com­ mittee so that workers understood their rights and how they could participate in workplace safety. The incident occurred at 1 a.m. when Koleros and another Fastfreight employee went to an industrial complex on Beryl Road in Oakville. Their intention was to hook up a tractor trailer and drive it back to Barrie. The two were in the process of doing that when Koleros noticed thd trailer was not empty and went inside to determine the cargo. An explosion blew him out of the trailer which quickly became engulfed in flames. The Crown said an undetermined source ignit­ ed the gas. Fire, police and ambulance crews responded to the scene. Both injured men were rushed to Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital. Koleros was transferred to the bum unit of Hamilton General Hospital with second and third- degree bums to 80% of his body. He later died. The second man - Grant Sinclair, 64, of Colonial Avenue in Scarborough - suffered minor bums to his hands and face. Future Fastfreight is now fully compliant with all provisions as set out in the Code. * Board abandons school closure plans50 By Dennis Smith SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER The Halton District School Board has shelved its school closure plans -- at least for a few months. Last Wednesday the board put its school closure policy for elementary schools on hold until June, 2000. And it put its secondary school accommodation management committee on hiatus until next September. Oakville trustee Debbie Marklew urged shelv­ ing closure and accommodation reviews to stop "the pain and anguish" of communities affected. "My main concern is that according to the poli­ cy, staff would have to bring back a (closure) list of elementary schools by this June," she said. "We've just completed a look at this policy and I don't think it will turn out any differently." The board recently voted against a proposal to close three elementary schools -- Champlain and Fairfield in Burlington and Oakwood in Oakville. The board was considering closing schools at both elementary and secondary levels to obtain provincial funding for new schools. Marklew has argued since the board isn't will­ ing to close schools, further staff and trustee time shouldn't be wasted on formal accommodation reviews. Milton trustee Erica Andrew agreed. "It's just expensive and inefficient and a waste of time and money at this point." But Burlington trustee Michael Ellis said it would be useful to reviewing secondary school accommodation. "I think it's a completely different issue." Ellis has argued secondary schools are more flexible in their usage and students requiring bus­ ing are older than elementary pupils. Oakville trustee Lynn Roberts made a motion to put the board's secondary accommodation man­ agement committee on hold until September. She said the board needs to first examine the upcoming C. N. Watson consultants accommoda­ tion report, plus staff and strategic vision reports. "Until we have these things done, we haven't given the committee much direction," said Roberts. "We have serious issues to look at." Superintendent A1 Greyson said a preview of the consultant's planning report and projections has just arrived and is being examined by staff. But background information on that report won't be ready until June and the consultant's strategic capital planning report probably won't be available until September, he said. Greyson feels the wait will be worthwhile, how­ ever. "We can sit down with Watson and work with the information they've obtained from working with other boards." C a s h t o g o f o r g u n m a n Two employees were handcuffed and locked in a storeroom by a masked gunman during an early Sunday morning robbery at the Pizza Hut restaurant on Trafalgar Road. According to Halton Regional Police, the inci­ dent occurred around 12:20 a.m. when a man wearing a ski mask entered the Pizza Hut just south of Dundas Street. He produced a handgun and ordered the employees into a rear room. He handcuffed them and locked them inside. He then stole an undisclosed amount of cash and fled. The employees managed to free them­ selves after about 20 minutes and called police. No one was injured and no shots were fired. The suspect is described as six feet tall with a tanned complexion and no accent. He was wear­ ing a ski mask, gray hooded sweatshirt, black tear-away pants, black high top running shoes and white gloves. He was armed with a black pistol. Anyone with information is asked to call detectives at 825-4747 ext. 2215 or Crime Stoppers at 825-8477. . -------------------------------------------------------------- * Praxair dispute centres on driver, public safety By Howard Mozel OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF A company proposal to switch truck drivers from an hourly wage to a piecework pay scale has prompted a strike at Praxair. Fifty members of Local 593 o f the Communications Energy and Paperworkers union walked off the job last Wednesday to protest the proposal. The union contends the proposed switch is a serious health and safety issue and not just a matter of dollars and cents. After all, says unit chairman Rob McQueen, the last thing anyone should want are drivers on the road who are in a hurry to deliver hazardous materials just to make ends meet. "When you tie a driver's income to a gas pedal, you're courting disaster," said McQueen. (See 'Strike' page 4) INSIDE today's paper Editorials._____ Business........... ...-A6 „~A9 Homes & Gardens.... Focus...... Automotive.. Team Sports... ...JV10 ,.B1 ,.B8 C1 Art & Entertainm ent___ Classified............................ ..D1 ,.D5 Sports._____ Special Supplements: For Home Delivery: Celadon, The Brick, Eaton's, The Bay Partial delivery: Smr/ss Interiors, Doodle Doodle, Clargreen Gardens, Cim Guardian, Lansing Boi/dall, Cogeco, Hopedale Hall, Little Caesars, M e Hose, Holland fork Canadian Publications Mail Product Agreement #435-201 B lood d o n o r clinic to d a y April showers bring May flowers, but only blood donors can bring new life to those in need. A blood donors clinic is being held today at the Croation Parish Hall, 2110 Trafalgar Road North, from 12:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Healthy individuals age 17 to 70 with proper identification are invited to attend the clinic. 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