A recent disturbing incident in Burleigh Falls north of Peterborough has prompted a local business operator to urge visitors to the area to “respect the land, the beauty and, most importantly, the people.”

Jennifer Craig, general manager and operations manager of Burleigh Falls Inn and Suites on Highway 28 in North Kawartha Township, made her frustration abundantly clear in a July 6th Facebook post — which has since gone viral, with more than 1,000 reactions and 2,000 shares.

“What we do not want, and can’t have any more, is overcrowding, defecating, trespassing on private lands, parking on private lands, intoxication, drug use, garbage and an increase in violence,” Craig writes in her post.

“Do not harass area residents and businesses for the lack of public facilities (this is not our fault). Don’t swear, curse and verbally abuse us. We don’t deserve it. Most importantly, treat all those you come in contact with as you would like to be treated.”

According to Craig, since the partial lifting of COVID-19 restrictions, the small community of Burleigh Falls has seen an influx of visitors it has never experienced before.

“On a typical day, you might 10 or 15 people at the falls; on long weekends, that might increase to 50, even 70,” she says. “We’re talking 150 to 200 people now, wall to wall on the shoreline. We’re not saying ‘Don’t come.’ We’re saying ‘If you come, here are some of the things we want you to do. Be respectful.'”

The proverbial last straw for Craig occurred last Friday evening (July 3) when Peterborough County OPP officers responded to a complaint involving a group of young men damaging a vehicle with baseball bats and golf clubs. That alleged action was preceded by an altercation between two groups of people swimming at Burleigh Falls. The suspects left the area but were located by OPP near Young’s Point and arrested.

Allan Strong, 18, of Oshawa, is charged with possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, assault with a weapon, driver fail to properly wear seat belt, litter highway, drive motor vehicle with no plate validation, drive motor vehicle or boat with cannabis readily available, drive motor vehicle with liquor readily available, and novice driver – blood alcohol count above zero.

Jeffrey Chessman, 21, of Ajax, is charged with possession of an imitation weapon for a dangerous purpose and passenger fail to properly wear seat belt.

Randy Chessman, 25, of Ajax, is charged with two counts of mischief under $5,000, possession of an imitation weapon for a dangerous purpose, being intoxicated in a public place, and consuming liquor in other than a licensed premise, residence or private place.

All three are scheduled to appear September 8th in Peterborough provincial court.

While this incident prompted Craig to make her impassioned plea on Facebook, she says illegal parking, littering, and defecation have been prevalent since eased COVID-19 restrictions made visiting the falls possible again.

“The first weekend (of public access to the falls) there was an emergency and they (first responders) had difficulty getting in,” says Craig.

Craig has written a letter outlining her concerns with the parking crunch, the lack of public washrooms, and “the unbelievable mounds of garbage” and sent it to the area’s governing municipalities — Selwyn Township, North Kawartha Township and the Municipality of Trent Lakes — as well as to Peterborough County Warden J. Murray Jones, Peterborough & the Kawarthas Economic Development, Peterborough and the Kawarthas Tourism, Peterborough Public Health, and the Ontario Ministry of Health.

“Yes, our property is here but we’re not for public parking,” says Craig. Despite restrictions that limit the inn to 50 per cent capacity, she arrived on Canada Day to find its parking full by 7 a.m.

“Not one of those were our customers,” says Craig. “On my property, there are three different businesses. Not one of those cars was there for those businesses.”

“We didn’t have them towed. I was very calm about it. I don’t want that imagery, I don’t want people having a bad taste in their mouth, but we spent the whole day in the parking lot coordinating what people were trying to do.”

As frustrating and time consuming as that situation was and remains, Craig adds “Then we saw the aggressive behaviour.”

“We had our ice cream parlour open. I was absolutely appalled at grown adults berating two 14-year-olds about the lack of public washrooms. Had they asked politely and followed our protocols and were wearing a face covering, we probably would have said ‘Yes, feel free, go ahead.’ But because you don’t want to follow my protocols and you call me every name in the book because I insist on face coverings inside our main building, they don’t want to fold.”

“We’ve tried to be proactive. We had four staff members here at 7 a.m. Saturday (July 4) to try and control parking. We had our first confrontation with a group at 7 a.m. that turned into a confrontation with the same group at 8 p.m. that turned into a confrontation with the OPP that turned into a racial incident.”

The Friday night incident on Old Burleigh Road that led to the three arrests is “disheartening” says Craig, adding “I have guests on our property and now I’m exposing them to violence.”

And then there’s the matter of human excrement.

“Residents are down there every morning cleaning up other people’s dirty diapers and picking up used toilet paper. They’re being berated when they say to somebody, ‘Here’s a garbage bag, will you help us?'”

Burleigh Falls, says Craig, provides access to water that many are looking for during pandemic-restricted times. She adds “A lot of people arriving here don’t even know where the falls are.” They tell they aren’t local and are visiting from out of the region.

Moving forward, that letter Craig wrote and sent off may soon bear some fruit that could be evident as early as this weekend.

“We’ve had some encouraging news from the township and the OPP,” she says, noting Selwyn Township council acknowledged the issue during a recent meeting and has sent it to staff for a review of what can be done. She has also heard back from Alana Solman, the CAO of North Kawartha Township, who indicated it will be brought up at the next council meeting.

“If we can’t get all the agencies to work together — it is a multi-agency issue — it’s never going to be resolved. Enforcement will be one of the heavy areas. We have stepped up and offered space on our property for portable washrooms. We just can’t take on that cost.”

“I’ve always looked at a problem that there’s a solution or an opportunity. This is an opportunity for us to recognize ‘Great, people love our area.’ We want the economics to come into play but we’ve go to do it responsibly. If we’re going to do this, what are the things we need to do and what are processes needed to get there.”

Due to hot and dry conditions, Haliburton County has imposed a county-wide total fire ban effective at 9 a.m. on Tuesday (July 7).

No burning is allowed at any time of day.

The fire ban includes fires for cooking or warmth as well as fireworks.

Haliburton County’s fire ban follows fire bans or restrictions in the townships of Peterborough County announced on Monday (July 6).

Peterborough mayor Diane Therrien will be the next guest on 4th Line Theatre’s “Friday Morning Business Breakfast Talks with Kim Blackwell”.

The online event takes place at 8 a.m. on Friday, July 10th on the Zoom video conferencing platform. Register at eventbrite.com/e/business-breakfast-talk-kim-blackwell-in-conversation-with-diane-therrien-registration-111171547090.

The Friday Morning Business Breakfast Talks series is one of the virtual events under the umbrella “Nexicom Presents 4th Line Theatre @ Home”, which 4th Line Theatre has developed to keep the community engaged and connected during the COVID-19 pandemic. The outdoor theatre company in Millbrook has postponed its 2020 summer season due to the pandemic.

In her Friday morning talks, 4th Line’s artistic director Kim Blackwell invites local political and business leaders in the community to talk about their day-to-day challenges and opportunities, what led them on their chosen career paths, and the impact the “new normal” is having on how they lead, both in business and the communities they serve.

Born in Mississauga, Diane Therrien attended McMaster University in Hamilton for an undergraduate degree in history and peace studies. She moved to Peterborough to attend Trent University for a postgraduate degree and graduated with her Master’s Degree in Canadian and Indigenous Studies in 2012.

After working for the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs in Toronto, Therrien returned to Peterborough to work as facilitator of community education and engagement with the Peterborough Poverty Reduction Network.

She ran for Peterborough City Council in Town Ward for the first time in 2014 and was subsequently elected. She sat on a number of city committees and boards including the Affordable Housing Action Committee, the Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area, and the Art Gallery of Peterborough.

In October 2018, Therrien was elected Mayor of Peterborough at the age of 32. She defeated two-term incumbent Daryl Bennett in a landslide after running a change campaign. She is only the third woman ever to hold the office of mayor in Peterborough.

Environment Canada’s heat warning is continuing, seven days after it was first issued, with even higher temperatures expected for the rest of the week.

The heat warning has also now expanded to include all of southern Ontario, with the exception of the northern Kawarthas region (including Haliburton and Hastings counties).

In the greater Kawarthas region, the highest temperatures will be in Peterborough and Kawartha Lakes.

Daytime temperatures will reach 34°C on Tuesday (July 7) and Wednesday, 33°C on Thursday, and 32°C on Friday.

However, humidex values will make the temperatures feel more like 39°C on Tuesday and Wednesday.

There is also a risk of thunderstorms in the afternoon of both days.

Overnight temperatures will remain at 20°C, providing little relief from the heat.

A slightly cooler air mass may move into the area on Saturday (July 11), bringing rain and temperatures in the mid to high twenties.

However, Environment Canada states there is “considerable uncertainty” about the system moving in by the weekend.

Environment Canada senior climatologist David Phillips predicts that July’s first heat wave is a “dress rehearsal” for the rest of the summer, which he says will be hotter and dryer than normal according to the agency’s seasonal forecast.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is predicting that 2020 may be the hottest year ever recorded, and will almost certainly rank among the five warmest years on record.

April 2020 was the planet’s second hottest April since record keeping began in 1880 and May 2020 was the hottest May on record. June 2020 is tied with June 2019 for the hottest June on record.

Most townships in Peterborough County have announced either total fire bans or fire restrictions as of Monday (July 6) due to extremely hot and dry conditions.

In North Kawartha, a total fire ban is in place until further notice. Absolutely no fireworks or open-air burning is permitted.

In Asphodel-Norwood, no open-air burning is permitted.

In Douro-Dummer, a fire ban is in place, prohibiting all open-air fires including campfires, burn barrels, and fireworks. All open-air burning permits are suspended. Certified gas appliances such as CSA-approved fire tables, bowls, pits, and BBQs are not considered an open-air fire and can be used in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions during the fire ban.

In Otonabee-South Monaghan, no open-air burning is allowed. This does not include a small and confined fire that is used to cook food on a grill, barbeque, or spit and is supervised at all times.

In Selwyn, brush burning or fireworks are not permitted. Small campfires are allowed but all fires must be supervised. No burning is allowed in built-up areas of the township, including Lakefield, Bridgenorth, Woodland Acres, Ennismore, and Young’s Point.

In both Cavan Monaghan and Havelock-Belmont-Methuen townships, no open-air burning is permitted except for campfires in the evenings from 7 p.m. until 6 a.m.

On Tuesday (July 7), Trent Lakes issued a ban on all open-air burning until further notice. This ban suspends all approved open-air burning permits and includes burning of clean wood and brush, outdoor campfires, all outdoor wood burning appliances, and fireworks.

This story has been updated to include an announcement from Trent Lakes.

Four people have been injured following a head-on collision on Highway 28 in Woodview south of Northey’s Bay Road.

The Peterborough OPP and emergency crews responded to the crash involving two vehicles, which happened at around 1:05 p.m. on Sunday afternoon (July 5).

Police say one person has been transported by air ambulance to a Toronto-area hospital and three people have been transported to a local hospital.

All injuries are considered non life-threatening.

Highway 28 is closed while police measure and document the scene. Detours are in place on Highway 28 at Northey’s Bay Road and Mount Julian-Viamede Road. The closure will remain in place for several hours while police investigate.

Highway 28 between Burleigh Falls and Woodview has been the scene of several serious accidents, including fatalities.

Most recently, 34-year-old Travis Richardson and 33-year-old Shane Simkins-Mather were killed in May when their car collided with a tractor trailer.

This story has been updated to include a photo from Facebook of the traffic on Highway 28.