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| Vol. 132 Number 10 PORT PERRY, ONTARIO - TUESDAY, JANUARY 27, 1998 COPY 65¢ (61¢+ ae GsT) 28 Pages Coroner considers holding an inquest Into four drownings By Rik Davie Port Perry Star Coroner Robert Allin says he has not ruled out ordering an inquest into the deaths of four men in less than a week in accid- ents on Lake Scugog. "I have discussed an inquest with the regional coroner, and I will discuss it again," said Dr." Allin late last week. "We have to wait until all the facts are in to make a determination that will be in the public's best interest." Inquests are hearings at which the circumstances of deaths are examined through testimony of witnesses; a jury lis- tens to the testimony and makes recommendations on how to avoid similar fatalities in the future. All the accidents on Scugog were the result of snowmobiles hitting stretches of open water or thin ice on the lake in darkness. On Thursday, Jan. 15, 20- year-old Christopher Raines and his companion Mark Ward, 20, hit open water on their snowmo- 5 biles. Mr. Ward managed to get back on the ice and called' for help, but Mr. Raines fell victim to the cold water. While fire rescue crews searched for Mr. Raines, 31-year- old Shane Cobb and another man, James Riley, 35, ran into the same patch of open water as horrified firefighters frantically waved them off. Rescuers were able to reach Mr. Riley and pluck him from the water, but could not locate Mr. Cobb. One day after a massive effort by Metro Toronto and Durham Regional police divers to recover the bodies of the missing men ended, two more men perished 4 km away on the same stretch of open water. Warren Meyers, 24, and William Francis, 24, both of Oshawa, died when they hit thin ice. while riding at night in the bay between Caesarea and ° Scugog Island. Scott Russell, 27 ~ Please turn to Page 12 Publicity has caused negative impact on ice fishing business By Chris Hall Port Perry Star What should have been a strong season for local bait shops has slowed significantly after four deaths on Lake Scugog this winter. All the publicity surrounding the deaths of snowmobilers in open water is convincing out-of- towners to avoid Scugog, shop operators were saying last week. Chuck Preston, owner of JD's Fishing and Archery Supplies, noted that the number of custom- ers coming through his door on Water St. is down noticeably. That's despite the fact the season started off on a high note. "When the season began we were ahead of last year in sales, but now with the bad publicity we got... it's another distortion of the truth and there are a lot of people scared out there," he said Friday. The major blow to his busi- ness, he says, was a banner hea- dline in last week's Toronto Sun that declared Scugog a "Killer Lake". "Things were going good until the Sun broke; after that people got scared away. No fishermen drowned -- they're the careful ones -- it was just snowmobilers," Please turn to Page 12 OFF THEY 60: Close to 5,000 snectators Hooked! to Trillium n Trails in Raglan last days before the race made for perfect race condit . gets set for the three-dog race as his dogs leap from the start line. x a 7 £54 "RIK DAVIE / ar] weekend as the Durham Kinsmen held their sixth annual Canadian National Sled Dog Derby. The event, which raises money for Cystic Fibrosis, saw almost 60 mushers compete in the weekend competition, compared to only 45 the previous year. Organizers report that while the trails were a concern up to a few days before the Wo day 0 vent, beautiful weather and a snowfall ns. Here, one of the many participants Scugog's homeless kids afternoon. The situation has reached the point where "we could find somebody frozen to death", said Cheryl Hill. She manages a Water St. building where tenants are afraid to use the stairs or go to the lobby late at night because teenagers are sleeping there. Ms Hill told council she is aware of 10 tee- Please turn to Page 8 By John B. McClelland Scugog Township councillors were shocked and surprised to learn that home- less teenagers are becoming a problem in downtown Port Perry. They are stealing food from grocery stores, sleeping in doorways and stairwells, and in some cases spending winter night outside, councillors were told Monday