Peterborough police are investigating a fatal fire on Thursday night (June 24) at a residential building at College and McDonnell streets in Peterborough.

Just before 11 p.m., police received several calls — including one from an officer on general patrol — about the fire.

The fire has claimed the life of a 68-year-old woman and several pets.

Police are asking anyone with information about the fire — including information about anyone seen in the area at the time with fireworks — to contact Detective Constable Stephens at 705-876-1122 x303 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or online at www.stopcrimehere.ca.

Police are also investigating as suspicious a second fire, at an abandoned home on Cumberland Avenue, that happened around midnight on Thursday night.

There are currently no known links between the two fires, police say in a media release.

A Peterborough resident was shocked to see a squad of armed police suddenly appear in their Lock Street neighbourhood on Thursday (June 24).

The resident, who has asked to remain anonymous, provided kawarthaNOW with exclusive dramatic video footage and several photos of the incident.

In a media release, Peterborough police say their street crime unit and emergency response team were executing a search warrant at a Lock Street residence.

In the video, the emergency response team — with one officer carrying a battering ram — disappears behind a home.

You can hear a loud bang moments later, presumably from police knocking a door in. One man then emerges from the front of the home, is commanded by police, and raises his hands.

Police say they seized a quantity of crystal methamphetamine and arrested and charged three people with various offences.

VIDEO: Drug bust on Lock Street in Peterborough

Ginny Ellis, 32, of Campbellford was charged with possession of a Schedule 1 substance, possession of a prohibited weapon, four counts of breach of release order, and breach of probation

Lucan Watters, 43, of Peterborough was charged with breach of undertaking and warrant for fail to appear in court.

Joel Telford, 24, of Peterborough was charged with possession of property obtained by crime, in connection with the theft of a parcel from a porch in March 2021.

Ellis was held in custody and will appear in court on June 25.

Watters, who is also facing charges from another police service, was released on an undertaking and is scheduled to appear in court on July 8.

Telford was released on an undertaking and is scheduled to appear in court on July 8.

The Ontario government has confirmed that all Ontarians 18 years of age and older who have received their first dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine will be eligible to book an appointment to receive their second dose as of 8 a.m. on Monday, June 28th.

To date, more than 30 per cent of all adults in Ontario have been fully immunized. Around 1.5 million more Ontarians will become eligible for their second doses on Monday.

“Ontario’s vaccine rollout continues to pick up speed, allowing us to provide more second doses ahead of schedule while supporting our communities most at risk,” said health minister Christine Elliott in a media release issued on Friday (June 25).

“All vaccines provide strong protection against COVID-19 and the Delta variant, and I encourage everyone to book your second dose appointment as soon as possible,” Elliott added.

In June, Ontario is confirmed to receive 5.2 million doses of Moderna and 4.7 million doses of Pfizer.

An additional 3.54 million doses of Pfizer will arrive in July, although only 907,000 doses will be received during the first two weeks of the month instead of the 1.7 million doses originally expected. The remainder of the Pfizer doses will arrive during the last two weeks of July.

All available COVID-19 vaccines provided provide strong protection against COVID-19 and its variants, including the Delta variant. The National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) states that mixing vaccines is safe and effective, so it makes no difference if you receive Moderna as your second dose even if you received Pfizer as your first dose.

Starting Monday, all Ontario adults needing a second dose can book an appointment by visiting ontario.ca/bookvaccine or calling 1-833-943-3900 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The decision of the Peterborough, Victoria, Northumberland and Clarington Catholic District School Board to not install secondary flagpoles at its schools and the Catholic Education Centre for the purpose of displaying ‘special purpose’ flags is being met with growing frustration, anger and criticism.

On Tuesday night (June 22), trustees Helen McCarthy, Kevin MacKenzie, and Braden Leal voted in the favour of the move while trustees Michelle Griepsma, Emmanuel Pinto, and Linda Ainsworth voted against the motion. The tie vote resulted in board chair David Bernier being forced to vote. He subsequently voted against the proposal.

Student trustees Eli McColl and Josh Hill spoke in favour of the move but, due to the rules governing the board’s procedures, neither could vote on the matter.

While the motion called for secondary flagpoles being put in place to display the flags of organizations and events being held during specified months and weeks of awareness, the matter mostly zeroed in on the display of the multi-coloured Pride flag symbolic of the LGBTQ2S+ community and its recognition, as well as wider acceptance.

In the aftermath of the board’s decision, Jewel McDonald, whose children are in the Catholic school system, launched an online petition noting the importance of ‘ALL students’ being made ‘to feel welcome and equal in our learning environments.’

As of Thursday evening after one day of being posted, more than 2,700 people had signed on, breezing well past the original goal of 1,500 signatures. The petition can be accessed at change.org/p/pvnccdsb-we-want-the-pride-flag-at-our-pvnccdsb-schools.

Among the many comments is one from a Catholic board teacher who is ‘sad and disappointed that the board voted against protecting and celebrating student identities … I worry about how safe students and teachers will feel in our school board.’ Another respondent wrote ‘I am embarrassed and ashamed to be part of a community that does not want to be loving and inclusive to all, especially in light of the latest residential school tragic discoveries.’

McDonald says she was “furious” when she first heard word of the board’s decision to not allow flags such as the Pride banner to be displayed at schools.

“I’m an ally of the LGBTQ community and it felt like a punch to the gut,” she adds.

“We’re at time now, fortunately, where it feels like the majority are being loud with their support. It’s not enough but we’re getting there. When you are part of the minority that says ‘No, we’re going to support but we’re going to do it quietly,’ that’s not good enough.”

We are proud of the efforts our schools have made and will continue to make to ensure all our students, regardless of orientation, are unconditionally loved and supported, and we will continue the great work we are engaged in to foster inclusive and loving school communities.

— PVNCCDSB (@PVNCCDSB) June 23, 2021

On Wednesday (June 23), both Bernier and board director Joan Carragher issued statements.

Bernier noted Catholic schools “welcome and value all students and celebrate diversity within our communities, and we are committed to supporting the LGBTQ2S+ members in our PVNCC community. We are committed to nurturing safe and inclusive learning environments in each of our schools.”

For her part, Carragher affirmed “our steadfast commitment to supporting our LGBTQ2S+ students. We must now work even harder to ensure all of our students, especially our most vulnerable students, feel our love and know that they belong in our school communities. We will not deny their BEING, we will celebrate their unique selves and they will know through our words and actions that they are loved, and indeed that they are wonderfully made.”

Both statements can be read in their entirety at www.pvnccdsb.on.ca by clicking on the links listed in the News section on the home page.

Making it clear she can’t and won’t speak against a board ruling, McCarthy laments that the opportunity for “a teachable moment” for the board was lost with the motion’s defeat.

“About 30 years ago, I took a course on moral decision making in the Catholic Church … I wanted to know, being a teacher, what the answers were,” she recounts.

“I learned in that course that the Church does not presume to come between an individual’s conscience and God. This may be inconsistent with Catholic teaching but Catholics are free to choose and think out stuff themselves. That didn’t seem to impress anybody at the meeting and I’m so disappointed.”

“If people want to be happy Catholics, they can be. They don’t have to be locked into betrayal that they just cannot, in their best-informed conscience, support. It’s almost defying the teachings on conscience to tell somebody ‘Too bad for you. This is the Catholic way.'”

Among those watching the meeting’s proceedings closely was Braden Clark, vice-chair of Norwood Pride and treasurer of Pflag Peterborough. He says this isn’t just a Pride flag issue. Rather, it’s an attempt to ensure all marginalized students feel recognized and included.

“The motion that Helen put forward … the concept is a secondary flag pole that’s meant to raise flags for Autism Week or Black History Month or Indigenous Month. Everyone was so heated and one-sided about Pride and the ‘homosexual manifesto’, all students are being penalized. Marginalized students are being excluded based on the personal beliefs of four trustees.”

An amendment to term the secondary flagpoles as “social justice” flagpoles, put forward by Leal, was defeated. That resulted in a vote on McCarthy’s original motion.

Clark says when he saw the agenda for the meeting he saw that were four delegations who would be speaking on the Pride flag.

“Three of them had very strong views about homosexuality and that the Pride flag was part of a homosexual manifesto. They didn’t know what the flag itself actually means.”

Clark praises student trustees McColl and Hill for representing students well and speaking passionately to the Pride flag’s display.

“What it really boils down to is the vote of the trustees and the personal beliefs of four individuals that basically is telling students your opinion doesn’t matter. We don’t value you. We don’t wish to have visible representation of you within the schools.”

Looking ahead, Clark says “I don’t think the fight is over.”

“Someone suggested to me that perhaps we should organize a protest. A physical protest is not really going to drive action. It’s a sign of support but we’re all about action. Our (Norwood Pride’s) letter of support for raising the flag had been sent to the trustees in advance and a copy did go to the Ontario Human Rights Commission. Part of our follow-up will be another letter to the commission.”

Meanwhile, McDonald says she plans at some point to present the online petition to the board, and that the matter returns for reconsideration and another vote.

“No matter what the board decides, it’s important that enough people know and enough students see that, on the ground level, the support is there,” she says, adding “The petition has already done that. I’m beyond thrilled.”

As a Catholic school parent, McDonald says the board decision has given her pause.

“It’s made me feel almost ashamed to be a part of this system. But the educators my children have are teaching my children the same things I’m teaching my children. That is what matters … the people that spend the time with my children. I know they’re being cared for. I know the educators within the system, regardless of what the board thinks or says, are raising a beautiful generation of children.”

Lang Pioneer Village Museum in Keene will be opening for its 54th season on Friday, July 2nd.

Due to the pandemic, the museum will once again only be offering guided tours this summer that must be booked in advance.

Until step three of Ontario’s reopening plan takes effect later in July, the guided tours will be outdoors only.

While members of the public will not be allowed to tour inside the historic buildings, interpreter guides will open their doors for a peek inside while sharing their history. The outdoors-only tours will also include additional trades demonstrations, such as blacksmithing or tinsmithing.

Staggered tours will begin every 15 minutes and must be booked in advance by visiting the museum’s Shopify page at lang-pioneer-village-museum.myshopify.com.

The price of a guided tour is $40 for a group of four. Additional group members may be added to the tour at an additional cost, up to the group maximum permitted by public health measures. While the museum’s snack shop will not be open, packaged traditional treats and drinks as well as items from the museum shop can be purchased at the time of booking.

Visitors will be required to self-screen prior to coming onsite, observe physical distancing with other groups, and to wear masks when in buildings.

New for 2021, the museum will have its first full-time First Nations interpreter at the village’s Aabnaabin Camp.

The museum has also increased accessibility for visitors with mobility issues. While the village features accessible hard-packed pathways, the historic buildings were built in the 19th century prior to accessibility standards.

Since some of the buildings are not accessible or have upper levels with steep stairs, the mseum is launching a new digital accessibility platform that will provide guests with mobility challenges the opportunity to sign out a tablet with access to a database of photographic and video footage of the inaccessible spaces within the village.

For more information about Lang Pioneer Village Museum, visit langpioneervillage.ca.

With Ontario set to move into step two of the province’s reopening plan on Wednesday, June 30 at 12:01 a.m., Peterborough’s medical officer of health is encouraging residents to get their second doses of vaccine as soon as they can.

During a Peterborough Public Health media briefing held Thursday (June 24), Dr. Rosana Salvaterra said she’s reviewing the list of what’s allowed in step two and — if there’s something she sees as needed to address “any potential gaps” in protection — she will direct local residents accordingly.

As for the move to step two when the vaccination-related benchmarks needed for step three have already been achieved, she said she’s in full agreement with a cautious approach.

“The three weeks (before moving to step three from step two) allows time not only for the incubation period of 14 days but it also builds in additional time for the delay in reporting,” she explained. “Typically people who get sick need to get tested and there’s a 48-hour delay until they get their results.”

Noting both the highly transmissible alpha (B.1.1.7) and even more transmissible delta (B.1.617) variants are present in the Peterborough region, Dr. Salvaterra stressed the best protection remains being fully vaccinated with two vaccine doses.

“Second doses will stop the fourth wave,” she said.

The updated vaccination numbers indicate that Peterborough-area residents are hearing that message loud and clear.

As of yesterday afternoon, 96,708 area residents have received at least a first dose — an increase of some 3,500 since June 14. However, the big increase is in the number of residents who are now fully vaccinated, with more than 14,000 having received their second dose in the same period, to bring the total of fully vaccinated residents to 30,649.

Close to 77 per cent of all residents aged 18 and up have received a first dose, while just under 60 per cent of youths aged 12 to 17 now have the same level of protection.

Those looking for a reason to feel optimistic over what’s ahead need look no further than the local case count statistics.

As of yesterday, the number of active cases in Peterborough city and county, Curve Lake, and Hiawatha are at 17 — a decrease of 18 since June 14.

However, Dr. Salvaterra noted the number of close contacts of positive cases being monitored “isn’t decreasing at the same rate”, with that number having doubled to 76 over the last 10 days.

Five new cases have been confirmed so far this week, which is the lowest weekly case count number since early February.

To date in June, with the month almost over, 77 new cases have been reported, down considerably from May’s count of 273 new cases. Meanwhile, there are no current outbreaks in the region — a trend that has held steady since May 28.

Also commenting during Thursday’s briefing were Peterborough-Kawartha MP Maryam Monsef, Peterborough Mayor Diane Therrien, Peterborough County Warden J. Murray Jones, and Peterborough board of health chair and Selwyn mayor Andy Mitchell.