Exactly three months ago Southwestern Public Health (SWPH) warned the rate of opioid-related harms has been on an upward trend in St. Thomas over the past several years.
In 2021, the rate of opioid-related St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital emergency department visits was 126.1 per 100,000 population as compared to 114.0 per 100,000 province-wide.
That same year, the rate of opioid-related hospitalizations in St. Thomas was 72.4 per 100,000 population, far above the provincial average of 16.3 per 100,000.
Those alarming numbers prompted the health unit to undertake a study into the feasibility of drug treatment and consumption services in the region.
This study (undertaken between January and March of this year) defines feasibility as a combination of community support, political buy-in, and the likelihood of people with lived or living experience of substance use (PWLE) using these services in the health unit’s region.
Monthly Archives: June 2023
A change in St. Thomas Canada Day fireworks venue lights up more than just the sky
The announcement from the city seemed harmless enough.
Canda Day celebrations this year will culminate in a spectacular fireworks display.
However, the light-up-the-sky show will take place at 1Password Park and not the traditional venue in Pinafore Park.
We asked Mayor Joe Preston what prompted the change in location.
He noted 1Password Park “has three accesses, a lot more parking and it gives us the ability to put on a better fireworks show.”
A reference, no doubt, to the tighter confines at Pinafore and the proximity of neighbouring homes.
Preston continued, “In discussions with the Kinsmen, who help us with the fireworks and also help us with Canada Day, we thought IPassword would be a great thing to try.”
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“The growing investment in women’s sports and athletics is amazing.” – St. Thomas professional hockey player Brittany Howard
Plenty of far-reaching discussions of late about the state of women’s sports in Canada. Most notably the salary discrepancy between the men’s and women’s national soccer teams.
There is now serious talk of a national women’s soccer league to debut in 2025.
Earlier this spring, optimism was in the air over the interest generated by the WNBA game played in Toronto and whether that could result in an expansion franchise for that city.
Hockey meantime has witnessed steady growth of the Premier Hockey Federation and the Isobel Cup-winning performance in March of the Toronto Six.
The first time the championship has been won by a Canadian team.
So, who best to speak to about the future of women’s hockey than a member of that successful squad?
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‘You see it all on a piece of paper, but at the end of the day the people who live in those spaces have to love those spaces.’ – Moving on to Phase 2 of Alma College Square
Exactly three years after the great concrete pour at Alma College, preparatory is underway for what will prove to be another record-breaking event.
On June 27, 2020, close to 3,000 cubic metres of concrete was poured for the footings for Phase 1 of the three-tower residential complex at 96 Moore Street known as Alma College Square.
Adam Morris of Sierra Contracting confirmed it was a record-setting pour by quite a margin, involving just under 300 truckloads of concrete in a single day.
The eight-storey building with 156 units has been well received and so the concrete pour for the nine-storey second tower adjacent to the ravine is expected to require close to 4,000 cubic metres of concrete when undertaken this fall.
