BOY UNSTABLE VANCOUVER (CP) — A two-year-old Dawson Creek boy was in critical and ‘unstable condition Saturday in Vancouver Children's Hospital after spending 45 minutes submerged under icy waters in Dawson Creek. Patrick Green, who was flown to Vancouver late Friday, is believed to have slipped off a creek bank and been trapped in the remnants of a beaver dam. MAN CHARGED PRINCE GEORGE (CP) — A 72-year-old Fort St. James man has been charged in connection with a bombing earlier this week at a downtown medical contre. Cecil L. Fobert was charged with intent to cause ‘an explosion likely to cause serious bodily harm or death, and with intent to destroy or damage property. an An explosive device was attached to a natural gas regulator on the side of the four-storey building. The blast at about 7 a.m. Monday rattled windows within four blocks and sent debris over a large area. ‘There were no injuries, although some medical staff arrived for work a few minutes before the blast. LOCAL VOTES NANAIMO (CP) — The large Harmac local of the Pulp, Paper and Woodworkers of Canada has voted 66 per cent to reject a two-year tentative pulp contract, a President White of Local 8 of the 5,500-member predicted the 7,000-member Canadian Paperworkers Union will narrowly accept the deal, but said his union's vote is too close to call. “The overall PPWC vote is fairly close: it’s going to be very, very tight,” said White. “The CPU looks like they're going to accept, but by a slim margin.” ‘The deal contains a pay freeze in the first year and a 40-cents-an-hour increase in the second. White said job security — not money — sparked the rejection vote by his local. CPU vice-president Art Gruntman predicted both unions will accept the package. Results won't be released unti] Monday. WRITE-OFF SURREY (CP) — Surrey Credit Union has written off its entire $7.5 million debenture in the failed Northland Bank and has taken steps to ensure a se. The writedown, ‘announced in the ¢redit union's 1985 financial results, forced Surrey Credit Union to absorb a $4.7-million loss last year, compared with a $1.2 million loss in 1964. ‘The credit union's retained earnings fell to $1.4 million at the end of the year compared with $6.1 million in 1984. “We haven't given up on recovering the debenture but we felt it would be prudent to write it down now,” said credit union president Wayne Carpenter. NEW BILL BURNABY (CP) — The provincial government will introduce new legislation governing financial institutions by this fall or the spring of 1987, says Elwood Veitch, minister of consumer and corporate affairs. Veitch said his ministry will release a discussion paper on proposed changes next month and consult with the financial community in May and June. The legislation will affect credit unions, trust companies, insurance companies, real estate compan ies and mortgage brokers. “In some cases we may need to ease regulation, move to self-regulation or consider strengthened regulation,” Veitch told a meeting in this Vancouver suburb. HOMICIDES UP OTTAWA (CP) — Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia accounted for 75 per cent of the homicide offences reported across the country in 1985, Statistics Canada reported Friday. A total of 689 Canadians were victims of murder and other offences, up 3.3 per cent from the 667 recorded in 1984, the federal agency said. Alberta had the highest year-over-year increase from 1984:— 16.7 per cent — while Manitoba had the lowest with a 51.2-per-cent decline Inquest told fire caused crash REVELSTOKE (CP) — The federal Transport Ministry the dise pierced the cargo section of the helicopter and should follow Canadian Aviation Safety Board recommend- ations on installation of container rings on a turbine wheel in ignited gasoline stored there. The jury ruled that engine failure started an in-flight a particular helicopter engine, says coroner's jury. fire so Thorpe became incapacitated or disoriented, causing ‘The three men and two women were told earlier that. the crash. the nistry’s airworthiness brach refused to issue such a The inquest had been told the engine manufacturer, directive following the board's investigation of a helicopter Allison Gas Turbine, a division of General Motors, «rach which killed five British Columbia men last June 29. distributed service bulletin alerting engineers of Pilot Doug Thorpe, 32, of Vernon, and firefighters Reino helicopters with 250-C26B engines to check for smoke from Keski-Salmi, 28, of Salmon Arm, Ray Friesen, 27, of the engine and heavy oil consumption. Abbotsford, Russell Gilchrist, 25, of Christina Lake, and Michael Sherrod, 22, of New Denver were en route to a forest fire when the crash occurred. The inquest had been told the safety board investiga- tion into the crash found the helicopter's engine caught fire In November 1986 the safety board asked the Transport ordering when leaking oil from a bearing sealcame in contact with a Friday that engine repair kits will be available by June 1986, turbine wheel. and these kits will correct the problem. Investigator Tom Storey said he suspects shrapnel from He said the kits will eliminate the need for containment 1986 DIRECTORS . . . New directors for the Kootenay _left) are: Jack Polonicolf, Mike O'Connor, Colin Pryce, Doukhobor Historical Society were elected at the Alex Lutz, Mark Mealing and Christine Faminoft. organization's annval meeting this week. Shown (from WITH LIFE MEMBERSHIPS rings which the company earlier sgid should be installed by January 1987. Wertz said there are 56 helicopters in Canada with the 250-C28B engine, but to his knowledge, only 11 have had containment rings installed on them. ‘The three-man, two women jury, which deliberated about two hours, also recommended that the Transport Ministry: implement a program to have air-oil separator kit installed on all Allison 150-C28B engines in a reasonable but expedient length of time; ‘e Monitor engine failure reports of all turbine engines in hopes of establishirig certain trends which may lead to a tastrophic failure and take action to avoid these accidents. e Expedite safety board recommendation reports following the board's investigation of an accident. SIMULATED DAM-BREAK ACTED OUT : By CasNews Staff An emergency exercise stretching from Mica dam to Portland, Ore. was conducted last Sunday and Monday to .C. Hydro's emergency plan for Mica dam. A simulated dam break was conducted by the Provincial Emergency Program. A potential dam break was issued Sunday, according to local PEP coordinator Frank Steven. As soon as the call came in, an emergency operations centre was set up at city hall. e session at city hall was attended by Castlegar Mayor Audrey Moore, aldermen Len Embree and Carl Henne, fire chief Bob Mann and Castlegar RCMP Staff evening, preparing for an actual dam break. The’ group reassembled’ at 9:30 a.m. Monday and word was received that the dam flow had increased to such an extent that a “break” was anticipated in 30 minutes. Once the dam “break” information was issued, every hour was condensed to 10 minutes for the purposes of the ex } “It takes 17 hours for the river to rise noticeably in Castlegar,” Stevens said. “It takes 38 hours before the river has come up to full flood level.” Society says ‘thanks’ By CasNews Staff memberships Thursday at its annual genéral meeting to businessmen and individuals who have contributed to the society. Life memberships were presented to fetiring direc- tors Elmer Verigin and Pete Ogiow, founding fathers of the society, for their contri- butions over the past 15 years. The society also bestowed honorary life memberships on the Castlegar Airport, Pass Creek and Robson fire departments for their “trem: endous efforts” in fighting last fall's Doukhobor Village fire: “The fire departments have kept us alive (in saving the two main buildings), Polonicoff said. “Without you we would have been holding this meeting at the restau rant. Life memberships were also presented to 17 other people, ing numerous businessmen helped clear the site after the firk. Recipients included Harley Taylor, Paul Moroso, Mike O'Connor, Jack _Polonicoff, Alex Lutz, Nick Chernoff, Mickey Podovinikoff, Paul Markin, George Markin, Louie Hoolaeff, Mike Tomlin, Walter Poohavhoff, Alex Theveidave; Pat Pereversoff, Ann Chursinoff, Ed Chernoff and Terry Markin. Outgoing director Pete Og: low also presented spoons to various groups and indivi- duals for their support. Meanwhile, the society's new executive was elected by acclamation. Directors for 1986 are: Jack Polonicoff, Paul Moroso, Christine Fam- inoff, Ron Schmidt, Bill Jun- ker, Mark Mealing, Alex Lutz, Colin Pryce, Ken Caza koff, Mike O'Connor and Nick Ogloff. The executive will be elected by the directors at a later date. Ottawa approves student projects Kootenay West MP Bob Brisco, announced this week the approval of 123 Challenge "86 projects. The projects will provide employment for nearly 240 students in Kootenay West this summer. The federal contribution to the projects will be just under $400,000. STO a RR I BUDGET—— VILLAGE—— continued from front poge continued trom front poge counselling and supplies, all totalling the construction costs, because of the some $254,000. insurance company’s insistance on “all As well, the board has listed another sorts of safeguards.” $156,000 worth of “needed” services Polonicoff said the society will be not included in the budget Among them are $40,000 for an elementary counsellor, $20,000 for a child care worker, and $10,000 for new programs such as child abuse and drug and alcohol abuse $1,640. fall relying on donations to make up any shortfall. Donations so far have totalled In his report to the society, Polon icoff said that the fire has taken up the bulk of the directors’ time since last If the board reinstates former He said the museum will reopen to programs and the “needed” services, it the public on May 1. He said a would have to include another $410,000 _ provincial grant has been secured to in its budget. help hire three tour guides. However, Johnson stresses the “We are starting to move again,” proposed $8,577 million budget isn't — Polonicoff said. “It's spring and we are etched in stone. rolling.” “| fjeve reviewed each ap plicatipn,” Brisco said in a prepared release, “and the calibre of jobs being offered to students this* summer is quite satisfactory. Again, I must commend the business. es, non-profit groups, and local governments in Koot enay West for meeting the challenge of the federal gov- ernment, and providing work for our young people this summer.” Brisco also noted that the $396,000 in federal funding exceeds the amount com mitted at this time last year under the Challenge ‘85 pro gram by $81,000. “This increase is further proof of our government's continued commitment to providing employment opportunities for our young people,” Brisco added. In announcing the Chal lenge ‘86 program last De- cember, Employment Minis ter Flora MacDonald an nounced that a total of $180 this year summer employment. $16.6 million of that will be spent in British Columbia. ' Retiring directors are: E!- mer Verigin, Pete Ogiow, John Mansbridge, Doris Shukin, Walter Kanigan, Harry Voykin and Gwilym Hughes. Trail teachers withdraw services By The Canadian Press Trail area teachers have voted unanimously to withdraw from all extra-curricular activities to protest what they say is the leeal school board's reluctance to consider a fair agreement on layoffs. About 125 of the Trail and District Teachers’ Association's 200 members voted to reject the board's latest offer. They will begin working to rule on Monday, refusing to take part in sports or elub activities, graduation exercises, dances or after-school meetings with parents. “Teachers don't want this hassle, but they're not going to lay back and accept all this,” said-association president Harry Popoff. Jean Cormack, bargaining committee chairman for the school_ board, said trustees are disappointed with the decision, but remain “confident we will reach an agreement before the deadline.” . If the two sides do not agree by May 15, they will be subject to the terms of Bill 35, an act introduced last year by the provincial government that makes it easier for school boards to lay off teachers without taking into account their seniority. SFP offers shares Shares of Siocan Forest Products Ltd. began the week trading at $7 3/8 - $7: up from their recent issue price of $6% in the com pany’s first public offering of its stock. SFP has been a private company since it was formed in 1978 to acquire timber holdings and sawmills at Slo can and Quesnel. In December, 1985, the company bought a logging and sawmill operation at Radium Hot Springs. The public issue of 12 million* shares raised $7.4 million net to the company, which it will use for capital spending on its three saw mills. The publicly-issued shares represent just over 25 per cent of SFP’s outstanding stock. biggest individual shareholders are president LK. Barber (17.3 per cent of the stock), Canadian Enter prise Development Toronto (15 per cent), Ronald D. Price, a company officer (8.7 per cent): The prospectus for the share issue shows that SFP earned $2.8 million on sales of $55.9 million in 1985. Last year was the com pany’s third consecutive prof- itable- year, after tosses—in 1982 and 1981. Sales dipped from 1981's $34.9 million to $28.7 million in 1982, before rising to last year's level. The company is forecasting 1986 earnings of $3.9 million on $82.3 million in sales. Results for 1986 will in- clude operations of the Ra- dium Hot Springs mill, which is expected to increase SFP’s production by about 30 per cent over 1986. The company’s three saw- mills have a combined annual milling capacity of more than 300 million board feet of lumber. The prospectus discloses that as of Feb. 21, 1986 (and after giving effort to the share issue), short-term debt was $8 million; long-term debt amounted to $10.1 mil lion; and shareholders’ equity — including $4.9 million of retained earnings — was $14.9 million. Book. value (equity) per share now optstanding amounts to $2.99. Dividends in 1985 amount- ed to 9.3 cents a share, and a 2%-cent dividend was paid March 21 this year. week Stevens was “quite pleased” with the city’s “I think we did a very admirable job,” Henne said. He added that Stevens will have a written report on the emergency exercise in about a week. HEU members vote to strike By CasNews Staff and News Services Hospital Employee Union at Trail and Rossland Hospitals have voted overwhelmingly in fa. vor of strike action. A spokesman at HEU's regional office in Nelson would not disclose the actual outcome of the strike vote held this week at Castlegar Hospital. HEU members at Koot. enay Lake District Hospital in Nelson voted earlier in favor of strike action. Meanwhile, an industrial inquiry commissioner has been appointed to investigate the current contract dispute between the Hospital Em- ployees Union and the Health Labor Relations Association. After meeting Friday with union and association rep- resentatives, Labor Minister Terry Segarty appointed lawyer Donald Munroe to conduct the inquiry. Munroe will make non binding recommendations to the minister. No time limit has been set for him to complete his work. Munroe is an arbitrator who is a past chairman of the provincial Labor Relations Board and a law professor at the University of Victoria. Segarty said mediator Jim Toogood will also remain ac- tive in the dispute, prevent-; ing any legal job action. _/ He said the agreement” ‘on the appointment of 4 com missioner could help resolve differences without a disrup- tion of health care services. “By their actions, the par- ties have demonstrated their concern for the importance of maintaining British Colum bia’s health care delivery system, and for providing uninterrupted services to those people most in need of health care.” Segarty said in a news release. The union served 72-hour strike notice April 15 at St. Paul's Hospital in downtown Vancouver. Union leader Jack Gerow said strike votes have also been counted 27 other health care facilities in the province and all give full support to striking if nec essary to back demands for a new contract. Among. the 27 are: Van couver General, Lions Gate, Burnaby General, Royal Col umbian, Victoria General Hospital, Mount St. Joseph Hospital in Vancouver, Delta Hospital, Gorge Road Hos. pital in Victoria, Kitimat General Hospital, G.R. Baker Memorial Hospital in Ques- nel, Salmon Arm Hospital, Invermere Hospital, Terrace Hospital, Williams Lake Hos pital, Kimberley Hospital, Penticton Hospital and Ver- non Jubilee Hospital. Gerow said votes are also being taken at 114 other health care facilities. Peter McAllister, chief negotiator for the association which represents 119 acute- care hospitals involved in the dispute, said then that hos. pitals might lock out work ers. He said the union, which represents non-professional workers, appeared more in terested in embarrassing the provincial government than in reaching a settlement. The union said the hos pitals are trying to extract wage and benefit concessions amounting to more than $300 a month for members. vvsuvoeenenencoecnocvuedvunnencengnvaneouocas oucsvusnasanaggegvereocovenuautvsvaevveggoencceouecousvancuenauvutcusnnavanggcanete ee A CasNews Photos by Ron Norman, C Calderbank, and Doyg Harvey