More details emerge from Monday afternoon shooting - 580 CFRA Radio

Ottawa Police have confirmed a few more details about the investigation into Monday afternoon's drive-by shooting on Bloomsbury Crescent in the Baseline/Woodroffe area.

Acting Staff Sergeant Ken Bryden - the head of the Guns and Gangs Unit - tells CFRA 20 rounds were fired at the car in which a man was seated.

A .357 Magnum is believed to be the weapon of choice.

The man in the car - a known gang member - was wounded in the arm.

Bryden says "we are looking at the possibility that this shooting may be related to other shootings that we are currently investigating that occurred in the west end."

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Quirky Ruled Canada Stocks in 2014; More Diversity Likely - Businessweek

A quirky collection of companies selling everything from online gambling to Teletubbies propelled Canadian stocks to their third annual gain in 2014. Expect more diversity in 2015 as a range of industries hitch a ride on the U.S. recovery, investors say.

With a global commodity rout hammering energy and material stocks, the traditional workhorses of the Canadian market, the gain for the Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index (SPTSX) relied on the fewest number of companies for a positive year since 2007. The index climbed 7.5 percent for the year, driven by outsized gains from companies such as Amaya Inc. (AYA), the world's biggest publicly held online-gambling company, and DHX Media Ltd., owner of the Teletubbies children's television franchise.

"The world has always been a bizarre place, and this year was a little more bizarre than usual," said David Rosenberg, chief economist and strategist at Gluskin Sheff & Associates Inc. in Toronto, which manages about C$8 billion ($6.89 billion). "Stock picking is going to be a very important theme."

Mergers and acquisitions played a big role in stoking the top Canadian stocks in 2014. Canadian firms were involved in $229 billion worth of transactions through Dec. 29, the highest annual tally since 2007 and a 45 percent increase from a year ago, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Amaya surged 255 percent to become the best-performing stock in the S&P/TSX this year after the Pointe-Claire, Quebec-based company agreed to acquire PokerStars for $4.9 billion in June.

Teletubbies Episodes

Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD/B) Inc. surged to a record on Dec. 19 after agreeing to buy The Pantry Inc. for an enterprise value of $1.7 billion, including debt. The Laval, Quebec-based convenience-store operator, the fourth-best performing stock on the benchmark index this year, has more than 6,300 stores in North America and would add about 1,500 more in the U.S. with the transaction.

DHX Media, a Halifax-based creator and licensor of family entertainment programs, said in June it would produce 60 new episodes of the children's show Teletubbies after acquiring the program in 2013. The stock has gained 73 percent this year.

Smartphone maker BlackBerry Ltd. also made it into the top 10 with a 62 percent advance as Chief Executive Officer John Chen stoked hopes for a recovery with his focus on providing software and security for governments and corporations.

Almost 140 companies in the 250-member S&P/TSX were up for the year as of yesterday. That's the lowest number of stocks gaining in any of the five years the index has advanced since 2007. Canadian stocks slumped in 2008 and 2011.

Economic Growth

Consumer staples, led by Couche-Tard, and technology, paced by Sierra Wireless Inc., which was the third-best performing Canadian stock, drove the benchmark index in 2014. The 10 worst stocks, meanwhile, were all related the the energy industry, led by an 80 percent slump in oil producer Lightstream Resources Ltd.

The U.S. economy, forecast to outpace Canadian growth in each of the next two years, will drive gains in 2015, according to Gluskin Sheff's Rosenberg.

"The companies that are hitched to the only game in town, which is U.S. domestic demand growth, and can take advantage of the weak Canadian dollar, will be good places to be," he said. "That can span the gamut of transport, technology, industrials that service the U.S. market. It packs a powerful punch."

Rosenberg forecasts "high single-digit growth" for the S&P/TSX next year.

'Less Panic'

Takeovers may drive consolidation in the energy industry in 2015 after the 45 percent plunge in crude this year makes smaller producers vulnerable to larger buyers both in and outside of Canada, said fund manager David Cockfield at Toronto-based Northland Wealth Management. The group accounts for about a fifth of the S&P/TSX.

"With the present pricing, pencils have been sharpened," he said. His firm manages about C$300 million. "People are starting to take a more long-term view on oil, less panic."

The S&P/TSX Energy Index slumped 7.8 percent this year, the worst performer among 10 industries in the broader benchmark and the biggest decline since 2011. Raw-materials shares, which account for more than 10 percent of the S&P/TSX, had the only other loss as a group, declining 4.4 percent.

Deals in the oil patch are happening, with Talisman Energy Inc. agreeing to sell itself for $13 billion to Repsol SA in December. The deal was the cheapest among the five largest oil and natural gas purchases on the continent in 2014, including debt.

"Talisman was definitely badly wounded," Cockfield said. "Some of the intermediates could get picked off. I think people are waiting to see."

Inverse Storm

Brian Belski, chief investment strategist with BMO Capital Markets, isn't holding his breath for an energy rebound.

There is "an inverse perfect storm hitting commodities," Belski said in a year-end Canadian outlook report. "Investors are underestimating the potential depth of the current pullback and attempting to call the bottom."

Belski compares the current environment for commodities -- high prices, high capacity and decelerating growth in emerging markets, especially China -- to the opposite conditions at the turn of the century that precipitated the rally.

He suggests investors emphasize investments in telephone stocks, which offer improving earnings, and financials, with stable growth, dividends and U.S. exposure.

Whether returns come from energy or from other areas, next year is sure to be a more volatile one for the Canadian market, Rosenberg said.

"Canada being a stock market that's highly exposed to the crosswinds of global economic, financial and political activity, it will be another roller-coaster ride next year," he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eric Lam in Toronto at elam87@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Jeff Sutherland at jsutherlan13@bloomberg.net Jacqueline Thorpe

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Edmonton mass murder: 6 adults, 2 children dead - CBC.ca

The killings of six adults and two children in Edmonton were committed by a suspect with a stolen 9mm handgun, police chief Rod Knecht said in a news conference Tuesday night. 

The victims were found in two separate residences in Edmonton Monday night. The man police believe responsible was found dead by suicide in a restaurant in the nearby city of Fort Saskatchewan on Tuesday morning. Knecht said the man had a criminal record dating back to 1987.

"It appears to be an extreme case of domestic violence gone awry," he said, stressing that there was no evidence of gang links. He said the slayings were planned and deliberate. 

Police investigate at a restaurant in Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., on Tuesday. The scene is said to be related to multiple deaths that occurred in a north Edmonton home overnight. (Jason Franson/Canadian Press)

 Knecht said the first body found by police, now identified as Cyndi Duong, 37, was found by police officers responding to a weapons complaint in south Edmonton around 6:53 p.m. Monday. A man entered the home and shot the woman, who was pronounced dead at the scene, he said. 

Police then received a call to check on the welfare of a man at a home located at 83rd Street and 180 Avenue in north Edmonton. 

"According to family, the male seemed depressed and overly emotional," Knecht said. "The family was concerned that the male may be suicidal."

When police arrived, the man wasn't there, Knecht said. Then at 12:23 a.m., police went back to the home and discovered the bodies of seven people: three women, two men and two children – a boy and a girl.

The adults found dead were between the ages of 25 and 50, with the children under the age of 10.

At 2:20 a.m., police went to a restaurant in Fort Saskatchewan. There they found a vehicle matching the description of the one owned by the suicidal male. The SUV was the same vehicle seen in the south Edmonton neighbourhood on Monday night, and was missing from the north Edmonton home. 

The man was found dead inside when police entered the restaurant at 8:45 a.m. Tuesday. Knecht said the man died in an apparent suicide. He said police are not looking for other suspects in the slayings. 

Autopsies on the remaining victims and the suspect are scheduled for Jan. 1.

Police have not described the relationships between the victims and the man who committed suicide. Knecht said this was the biggest mass murder in Edmonton since six people were slain in 1956.

The gun used in the slaying was registered in British Columbia in 1997 and stolen from Surrey in 2006. Knecht said the suspect had a business interest in the restaurant where he was found dead. 

The suspect was known to Edmonton Police. Knecht said officers had gone to the north Edmonton home twice: once this year, and once in November 2012, where a man was charged with domestic violence, sexual assault and uttering threats. 

Knecht also explained why police didn't enter the north Edmonton home when police were first called there. He said officers walked around the house but couldn't get in. 

"They looked in windows, they checked a door and they weren't able to get a response," he said. 

Later, they received a call from someone which gave them grounds to enter the home. That's when they found the seven bodies. 

"It was chaotic. It's horrific," Knecht said.  

"This is a horrific event for the city … in my 39 years of policing, I've never seen anything like it."

People in Fort Saskatchewan became aware of the police presence early Tuesday morning. The downtown core of the city northeast of Edmonton was closed. The area has reopened, but police tape remained around the VN Express Vietnamese and Chinese Restaurant.

A small memorial was set up outside the north Edmonton where five adults and two children were killed Monday night. (Leah Larocque/CBC News )

A Mercedes SUV with a smashed side window was parked outside. 

Fort Saskatchewan resident Bonnie Peet first noticed police around 6 a.m.

"My whole road in front of my place was blocked off, so I knew  something was going on and then it got lighter out ...and you see police going up and down the alleys," she said.

Another resident said that a helicopter could be heard circling overhead early Tuesday morning.

A woman who works at a restaurant across the street said she saw police drive a tactical unit through the restaurant door. 

People who live next to the home in north Edmonton say a woman, a grandmother and two school-aged children lived there. The neighbours said they heard domestic arguments inside the home next door. Once they heard a man and woman fighting in the street. 

"We knew the ex-husband didn't live there anymore," neighbour Murray Schermack said. 

Resident Maria Melo said it's the kind of community where people say hi to one another.

Investigators remain on scene at the north Edmonton home where seven bodies were found. (Lydia Neufeld/CBC)

"We don't visit or nothing, but it's just a good neighbourhood," she said."It's so sad to hear about that family. It's really very sad."

In the Haddow community in south Edmonton, where the first person was killed, residents expressed concern for the children who lived in the home. The three children often played with others in the neighbourhood.

Police said they are in a safe place.

"We're all disturbed by it and wondering about how the family is doing," Frank Engley said.

RCMP are also investigating a death in an industrial area near Sherwood Park where a body was found in a burned-out vehicle on Tuesday morning. It does not appear to be related to the other crimes. 

(CBC)

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Crowded skies in Southeast Asia put pressure on pilots, air traffic control - Reuters

By Jane Wardell and Anshuman Daga

SYDNEY/SINGAPORE Wed Dec 31, 2014 1:06pm IST

SYDNEY/SINGAPORE Dec 31 (Reuters) - The sheer volume of flights in the skies over Southeast Asia is putting pressure on outdated air traffic control and on pilots to take risky unilateral action in crises such as that possibly faced by AirAsia Flight QZ8501.

Pilots who have flown the Indonesia to Singapore route say it's not unusual for delays to requests to increase altitude to avoid bad weather - and for requests to eventually be rejected due to the number of other planes in the area.

That leaves pilots flying in a region of volatile weather conditions facing a high-risk challenge: when to take matters into their own hands and declare an emergency, allowing them to take action without getting permission from air traffic control.

Most consider that step - which requires them to broadcast a wideband call to other aircraft in the area and which will later be closely scrutinised by regulators - a last resort.

"As a professional pilot, you are obligated to think quickly," a Qantas Airways pilot with 25 years experience in the region told Reuters. "If you've signed for the plane, as we put it, you've signed for potentially 300 passengers and millions of dollars worth of aircraft; that's a multibillion dollar liability. Part of the job is to balance the risk and make a snap decision."

Weighing those risks has become increasingly difficult in Southeast Asia, an area that has seen explosive growth in budget air travel in recent years.

The number of passengers carried annually across Asia-Pacific has jumped by two-thirds in the past five years to more than 1 billion, according to the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation. Budget airlines, which only took to the skies around a dozen years ago, today make up about 60 percent of Southeast Asia's seat capacity. AirAsia and Indonesia's Lion Air have placed record orders with the main plane makers.

Boeing predicts the region's airlines will need about 13,000 new planes over the next two decades, and Airbus expects Asia-Pacific to drive demand over that period.

LOGISTICAL NIGHTMARE

"There are certain flight corridors that are over-stressed due to traffic," said a former Singapore Airlines (SIA) pilot with a decade's flying experience at the carrier. "One certainly would be the Indonesia/Singapore flights which are flown by many different companies and aircraft types at a variety of altitudes and speeds."

Pilots say that causes a logistical nightmare for the region's air traffic control (ATC), particularly outside high-tech hubs such as Singapore.

"As the airways become more crowded, it takes ATC longer to coordinate and give clearances such as higher altitudes and weather deviations," the former SIA pilot said.

This can be critical in a region where weather conditions can change very quickly, with strong winds and tropical thunderstorms posing time-critical challenges for pilots.

The circumstances around the AirAsia crash are not yet known, but investigators and the airline's chief Tony Fernandes have pointed to changeable weather being a significant factor.

The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines said last month that while airlines were investing heavily in fuel-efficient planes to meet rising demand, there was growing concern about the need to also invest in related infrastructure, such as airport terminals, runways and air navigation services.

OUTDATED EQUIPMENT

To keep aircraft travelling in a flight corridor at a safe distance from each other, air traffic controllers in Indonesia employ procedural separation - where they use pilots' radio reports to calculate their position relative to other traffic.

That takes longer than the more sophisticated radar separation used in Singapore and elsewhere in the world, which allows a controller to more quickly take stock of radar returns from all aircraft in the area.

A lack of up-to-date equipment and volatile weather conditions were cited by pilots and aviation experts in the 2013 crash of a Lion Air Boeing 737, when the pilot reported the plane being "dragged down" by wind into the sea just short of the runway.

That was considered a classic example of wind shear - the sudden change in wind speed and direction. Airports in the region's popular island resorts, including Bali, Koh Samui, Langkawi and Cebu, don't have on-ground wind shear detection equipment to help pilots land and take off. [reut.rs/1D4SLcj ]

Pilots said critical decisions often come down to experience.

"In my opinion, if I don't get permission (to change course) and there's weather ahead, I'll just deviate and deal with the authorities later," said another former SIA pilot who is now with a Gulf carrier. (Editing by Ian Geoghegan)

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UN Security Council Rejects Move to End Israeli Occupation - Bloomberg

The United Nations Security Council rejected a resolution backed by Arab states that would have ordered Israel to withdraw within three years from territories it captured in the 1967 Middle East war.

The measure, introduced by Jordan, failed by a vote of 8-2 today, falling one short of the nine needed for a majority. The U.S. and Australia voted against the measure, while five nations on the 15-member council abstained.

The resolution, which Israel had condemned and the U.S. promised to veto, was a largely symbolic move by Arab states to strengthen Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who's under domestic political pressure to fight for statehood after the U.S. effort to revive negotiations with Israel collapsed earlier this year.

It called for a negotiated peace deal within 12 months that would create two contiguous independent states based on the borders that existed before the 1967 war, modified by agreed-upon land swaps. Israel would have been required to withdraw from occupied territories by the end of 2017.

Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian envoy to the UN, said the Palestinian leadership will meet today to consider its next steps.

"There is a global consensus on the two-state solution," Mansour said at the UN session. "Why are we facing another Security Council failure as the situation unravels?"

Photographer: Abbas Momani/AFP/Getty Images

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during a meeting with Palestinian leaders in the West Bank city of Ramallah, on Dec. 18, 2014. Close

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during a meeting with Palestinian leaders in... Read More

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Photographer: Abbas Momani/AFP/Getty Images

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas speaks during a meeting with Palestinian leaders in the West Bank city of Ramallah, on Dec. 18, 2014.

The Palestinians have said if the resolution fails, then they would pursue their statehood campaign by joining some of the hundreds of international organizations and treaties that opened to them after the UN General Assembly recognized a state of Palestine in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza Strip in November 2012.

'Provocations' Boomerang

Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, while retaining, along with Egypt, control of its borders. The territory is now controlled by Hamas, designated a terrorist group by the U.S., European Union and Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the Palestinian proposal's defeat. Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said on his Facebook page that the resolution's failure "should teach the Palestinians that provocations and attempts to impose unilateral measures on Israel won't win them anything."

U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power faulted the resolution as offering "unconstructive deadlines that take no account of Israel's legitimate security concerns."

While a peace deal is possible through negotiations, Power said, "This resolution sets the stage for more division, not for compromise."

Palestinian Response

Secretary of State John Kerry called about 13 foreign leaders in the last two days urging the defeat of the resolution, said Jeff Rathke, a State Department spokesman.

The European Union's foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, said the vote "underlines once again the urgency of resuming meaningful negotiations." Any renewed peace talks are effectively on hold at least until after Israel's parliamentary elections in March.

In a text message from his office earlier this month, Netanyahu said Abbas "doesn't understand that the result will be the Hamas takeover" of the West Bank.

Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, who voted for the resolution, said its failure risks leaving "a dangerous status quo which we can't accept."

France, China, Argentina, Chad, Chile, Jordan and Luxembourg also voted for the resolution. Lithuania, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Korea and the U.K. abstained.

To contact the reporter on this story: David Lerman in Washington at dlerman1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: John Walcott at jwalcott9@bloomberg.net Amy Teibel, Gwen Ackerman

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A look back at Rob Ford's 2014 - Toronto Sun

TORONTO - 

So Rob Ford is now an Ottawa Senators fan?

Say it ain't so, Rob?

I was teasing Toronto's former mayor Monday when he was on his way back from the nation's capital after a vacation with Renata, Dougie and Stephanie. They were at Saturday's game against Detroit which lit up Twitter. The lineups for pictures with him were huge. Sorry, haters. He's still a rock star.

"We were treated so well by the fans and the team and I want to thank them for that warm welcome," said Councillor Ford. "It was a great game and I do admit I was cheering for the Senators as I would for any Canadian team when I am in their building."

I was putting together my annual top 20 people (running in Wednesday's paper) when I noticed just how many Ford columns I had done. Here are my top ten:

10: The year started with the ice storm and power outrage and Mayor Ford did an excellent job in leadership. He worked tirelessly and some were starting to talk about the idea of restoring his authority until ...

9: The Steak Queen will forever be known for great food and where Mayor Rob Ford reunited with old pal Sandro Lisi. In addition to photos of them there was the now famous Jamaican patois video. So much for a better 2014.

8: It was the next day he didn't show up to the Economic Club of Canada luncheon. Everybody thought the worst. Well, he had a good excuse. He was stuck in the elevator at the Hilton for 45 minutes. ECC president Rhiannon Traill smartly got a picture. The haters really thought they had him that time.

7: Less than two weeks later word got out Mayor Ford was in a squabble with Vancouver police. On the phone he told me he had received a jaywalking ticket. Here he was being surveilled by Toronto Police but B.C. cops got him for walking against a stop light. Even he thought it was funny.

6: In April there was a collective gasp on council when Mayor Ford voted against a motion honouring Nelson Mandela. Turns out he accidentally pressed the wrong button but it still made national headlines. There was worse scandal to come.

5: In late April there were rumours of Ford being out at night "inebriated" at Sullie Gorman's pub in Etobicoke where he is said to have made derogatory comments about Tim Hudak and Councillor Karen Stintz. Turns out this was true and along with Jenny Yuen, Mike Peake and Don Peat, I obtained an audio recording of the disturbing conversation and played it for him, After hearing for himself his belligerent ranting he told me he was embarrassed. To his credit, about 45 minutes later he called to tell me he was "taking a break" and going into rehab. He said he may die if he did not. It was a bad day for him but perhaps the best thing to ever happen to him.

4: The next time I talked to Mayor Ford was May 7 when he told me "rehab is amazing" and "reminds me of football camp." Always optimistic. There were fumbles to come but also a string of sobriety that he claims to enjoy today. People can be cynical but there are many who feel for him. The next big encounter was June 1 when he told me he was getting back in the mayor's race. We had that on front page June 2 with him taking a swim in the treatment centre pool. I love the smile on his face.

3: The election campaign got going and the mayor was holding his own until the first week of September when a pain in his gut landed him in hospital and he was diagnosed with cancer. It was a rare, 13-centimetre tumour that had also spread. Tough days there.

2: Sun photographer Stan Behal and I visited Ford in Mount Sinai while he was in one of this rounds of chemotherapy where his will to live was clear.

1: Ford and his family last Tuesday came into the Newstalk 1010 studios for my Late Shift show and I found them to be happy and feeling positive. It was nice after all they have been through. We reported about his tumour having shrunk and he is hopeful it can get down to 2 cm after radiation so that they operate. Even his harshest critics are hoping for that.

That was quite a year. The guy is a survivor. No quit in him. Ford said all he can do is move forward and represent the taxpayers the best he can. When I spoke with Rob Monday he talked about how he has become closer with his wife, kids and family and is a man who understands his mistakes and is praying for a second chance with his health. He had an appointment with a doctor late Monday. Many are praying along with him. But cheering for the Ottawa Senators?

Ford says he will always be solid Maple Leaf blue and white. Good thing, because that might be one thing in these parts he wouldn't be forgiven for.

joe.warmington@sunmedia.ca

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Wildrose leader has tough job ahead - Sundre Roundup

Editorial

The shocking defection of nine of its MLAs, including former leader Danielle Smith, to the Prentice PCs is a heavy and unprecedented blow for the Wildrose party.

Whether the party can survive the defections and rise again to a position where it represents a viable alternative to the ruling Tories remains anyone's guess.

What is known is that despite former leader Smith's call for the PCs and Wildrose to merge, the party's remaining MLAs and other party leaders appear determined to fight on as a stand-alone party.

In accepting the position as Wildrose interim leader on Dec. 22, Heather Forsyth vowed to carry on with the hope of returning the party to its past glories.

"We are not giving up the fight for Albertans," said Forsyth. "We are here to assure Albertans that we are going to continue to hold this government to account."

Forsyth, a former Tory MLA, crossed to the Wildrose in 2010, and calls the months leading up to the next provincial election "pivotal for Alberta."

While vowing to fight on, Forsyth has also made clear that she believes the defection of Smith, Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills MLA Bruce Rowe and the seven other former Wildrose MLAs represents a dark chapter in Alberta politics.

"I have to tell you that there is no doubt that the overwhelming majority of Albertans feel hurt and they feel that their noble notion of public life has been shattered," Forsyth told this newspaper.

"Alberta deserves an Opposition and it's not only the 440,000-plus Albertans who voted for us in the last election."

For his part, Premier Jim Prentice is all smiles these days, appearing to have little to worry about from any of the three opposition parties he now faces.

In fact, bolstered by the defection of Smith and her colleagues, the PCs seem right on track to score yet another large majority victory in the next election, whether it is held as scheduled in 2106, or comes earlier in a snap election in 2015.

No question, for the Wildrose to regain the initiative over the Prentice PCs after the recent string of crushing defeats will take a monumental turnaround the likes of which have never been seen in Alberta politics.

And as the case of Jim Prentice's rise to power shows, a party hoping to reverse its fortunes needs, above all else, a strong and confident leader at the helm.

The big question now for the Forsyth-led Wildrose is whether the party can find and elect such a leader, one capable of going toe to toe with the now even mightier Prentice PCs.

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Op-Ed: Vancouver Transit police spokeswoman releases details in shooting - Digital Journal

First shooting by transit police The Sunday shooting killed an unidentified man, shot by one or more transit police officers. It's the first time since the transit force's inception almost 10 years ago that a transit cop has been involved in a fatal shooting. Because the incident was taking place at a Safeway near the Surrey Central SkyTrain station it was the nearby transit police who were first on the scene. They attended and shot the man - he died later in hospital - and when speaking with the media about the shooting, Ms. Drennan said the man had a knife and was advancing on the officers when shot. Kellie Kilpatrick is the Executive Director for Public Accountability for the Independent Investigations Office (IIO), the police watchdog in the province that is conducting the investigation, and she said that Ms. Drennan should not have released details to the public. "While I understand why a police agency may want to get their version out sooner rather than later, we have an agreement with all B.C. police agencies to minimize any potential actions/sharing of information that may be viewed as self-serving, biased or may end up being inaccurate," she wrote in an email to the Globe and Mail. Ms. Kilpatrick is waiting on autopsy reports and on herself and her agency to conduct an investigation. But what good does it do the public to have no information released on the shooting? One of the things it would do is begin to sway some toward thinking that it was an unjustified shooting. Shooting statement helpful to public While Ms. Drennan's statement is not proof it was justified, it gives the public an early view of what may have happened. It allows us to reason there may have been justification. In this case witnesses spoke to media about the man having stolen the knife inside the store - he was shot outside of it - and that while inside he stabbed himself with it. In this case, it could lead members of the public to think "well, he was only hurting himself. Why would they shoot a man stabbing himself?' Such an event fuels that kind of speculation and muting the police would only give more space to the making of assumptions. Further, it could be the man was stabbing himself in a tragic effort to take his own life and then, on seeing police, felt it easier to ignore their commands and rush at them, getting them to do the job for him. If that was the case we are not likely to know with certainty. But knowing police say the man came at them with the knife, that provides members of the public who may have otherwise made assumptions, to recognize there are two sides to the event and that it is best to wait for the investigation to come to a close before drawing conclusions. The public is not stupid. Citizens are aware a statement from a spokesperson does not carry the weight of the results of an investigation. They can still be skeptical and will still have the right to advocate for the man who died should the investigation suggest the shooting should not have occurred. But now they can be skeptical on both sides of the coin. And the investigation can play out with less of a chance of there being the potential of false assumptions that impugn the good name of the transit police.

This opinion article was written by an independent writer. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not necessarily intended to reflect those of DigitalJournal.com

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Indonesia: Bodies found near site where AirAsia plane disappeared - CTV News

The Associated Press
Published Tuesday, December 30, 2014 3:31AM EST
Last Updated Tuesday, December 30, 2014 3:47AM EST

PANGKALAN BUN, Indonesia -- Indonesian officials on Tuesday spotted six bodies from the AirAsia flight that disappeared two days earlier, and recovered three of them, in a painful end to the aviation mystery off the coast of Borneo island.

The bodies were found in Java Sea waters about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from Flight 8501's last communications with air-traffic control. The plane with 162 people on board disappeared Sunday on its way from Surabaya, Indonesia to Singapore after encountering storm clouds.

The three recovered bodies, swollen but intact, were brought to an Indonesian navy ship, National Search and Rescue Director SB Supriyadi told reporters in the nearest town, Pangkalan Bun. The corpses did not have life jackets on.

Images on Indonesian television showed a half-naked bloated body bobbing in the sea. Search and rescue teams were lowered on ropes from a hovering helicopter to retrieve corpses.

As family members of the plane's passengers sat together in a waiting room at the Surabaya airport, they watched the graphic details on television. Many screamed and wailed uncontrollably, breaking down into tears while they squeezed each other. One middle-aged man collapsed and was rushed from the room on a stretcher.

The discovery came after several pieces of red, white and black debris were spotted in the Java Sea near Borneo island.

AirAsia group CEO Tony Fernandes tweeted, "My heart is filled with sadness for all the families involved in QZ 8501. On behalf of AirAsia my condolences to all. Words cannot express how sorry I am."

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Fowler's overtime goal, Beauchemin's first of season help NHL-leading Ducks ... - Waterloo Record

ANAHEIM, Calif. - Things weren't looking too promising for the Anaheim Ducks until a couple of their defenceman came through with the tying and winning goals.

Cam Fowler scored at 2:42 of overtime after Francois Beauchemin provided the equalizer in the third period with his first goal of the season, and the National Hockey League-leading Ducks rallied for a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday night.

"The core group here has wanted to win ever since I got here, and they never give up," coach Bruce Boudreau said. "That's one of the reasons why we've had so many come-from-behind wins the last couple of years. These guys believe that they can win, and that's half the battle."

Frederik Andersen faced only 14 shots altogether — the fewest by the Canucks this season — in the opener of an eight-game homestand. Corey Perry missed his 15th straight game because of a sprained knee.

Ryan Getzlaf, who assisted on both Anaheim goals, got the puck to Devante Smith-Pelly at the edge of the crease and Ryan Miller made the save as the puck deflected off the blade of his stick. But Fowler was right there to bury the rebound for his third career overtime goal.

"It was kind of a weird play," Fowler said. "It was stuck in someone's feet and I gave it a good whack. By the time I stood up, I saw people celebrating."

The two-time defending Pacific Division champions are 8-0-1 in their last nine games against Vancouver. The Canucks, who were tied with the Ducks atop the Western Conference standings four weeks ago at 35 points each, are now 11 points behind them.

"We got a big point. We didn't deserve it, but we'll take it," Vancouver's Henrik Sedin said.

Boudreau singled out Andrew Cogliano's line with right-winger Jacob Silfverberg and Nate Thompson for praise after they held the Canucks' top line of Henrik Sedin, twin brother Daniel and Radim Vrbata to just one shot on net between them.

"We don't usually assign checking lines to teams, at least in the first half of the season," Boudreau said. "But tonight we moved Nate with Silf and Cogs and put them against the Sedin line, and I thought they did a great job."

Yannick Weber scored early in the second period for Vancouver and Miller made 29 saves as the Canucks lost for the sixth time in eight games.

Vancouver right wing Jannik Hansen, who lost consciousness and collapsed on the bench moments after a collision with Calgary's Dennis Wideman on Dec. 20, was back in the lineup after sitting out a game. Defenceman Dan Hamhuis missed his 14th straight game since injuring his leg against the Ducks on Nov. 20.

The Canucks opened the scoring at 2:04 of the second. Hansen beat Fowler to a loose puck and circled the net before finding Weber way over at the right point for a 60-foot wrist shot that beat a screened Andersen to the stick side.

Beauchemin tied it with 13:08 left in regulation, using Smith-Pelly as a screen and beating Miller with a slap shot from a few feet inside the blue line after Getzlaf won a faceoff deep in the Vancouver zone.

'We really pressed them the last period and a half, and I think it was good justice for our guys to get rewarded," Boudreau said.

Beauchemin's goal ended a 24-game drought by the 10-year veteran, who was playing in his second game after missing the previous 13 due to a broken finger. He also sat out five games last month because of the mumps.

NOTES: Fifteen of Anaheim's last 17 wins have been decided by one-goal. The Ducks are 14-0 in one-goal games that are decided in regulation or overtime. They have lost three times in shootouts. ... Cogliano hit two goalposts, the first one just seconds before the second intermission and the other with 2:39 left in regulation. ... Andersen's 10th victory of December set a club record for a wins in any month. ... Max Friberg, a 22-year-old LW promoted by the Ducks from Norfolk of the American Hockey League, made his NHL debut on a line with Patrick Maroon and Rickard Rakell.

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NATO formally ends 13 yr combat mission in Afghanistan - Business Standard

Nato has officially ended its 13 year combat mission in Afghanistan, starting a new chapter of support for the Afghan troops.

According to BBC, mission commander Gen John Campbell said that they had pulled the people of Afghanistan "out of the darkness of despair" with a hope for the future.

Commanders lowered the flag during a ceremony in the capital, raising the flag of the new mission Resolute Support.

The role of the alliance, from January 1, would remain to a support mission and training the Afghan army.

Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the security of Afghanistan would remain completely in the hands of 350,000 Afghan soldiers and police and Nato allies would train and advise them.

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Crash with off-duty cop that killed Abbotsford teen could take weeks to investigate - Vancouver Sun

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AirAsia Flight QZ8501: Plane spots objects in sea within search area - CBC.ca

An Indonesian official says objects have been spotted in the sea by a search plane hunting for the missing AirAsia Flight QZ8501.

Jakarta's air force base commander Rear Marshal Dwi Putranto says he was informed Monday that an Australian Orion aircraft had detected suspicious objects near Nangka island, about 160 kilometres southwest of Pangkalan Bun, near central Kalimantan, or 1,120 kilometres from the location where the plane lost contact.

"However, we cannot be sure whether it is part of the missing AirAsia plane," Putranto says, "We are now moving in that direction, which is in cloudy conditions."

Meanwhile, Air Force spokesman Rear Marshal Hadi Tjahnanto told MetroTV that an Indonesian helicopter in the eastern part of Belitung island spotted two oily spots on the sea about 105 nautical miles east of Tanjung Pandan — much closer to the point of last contact. He said samples of the oil would be collected and analyzed to see if they are connected to the missing plane.

The Indonesia AirAsia plane, an Airbus A320-200, disappeared after its pilot failed to get permission to fly higher to avoid bad weather during a flight with 162 people aboard from the Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore on Sunday.

Flight QZ8501 did not issue a distress signal and disappeared over the Java Sea five minutes after requesting the change of course, which was refused because of heavy air traffic, officials said.

Plane likely 'on the sea floor'

Indonesian search and rescue officials said Monday the plane almost certainly crashed and is believed to be at the bottom of the Java Sea. 

"Based on our co-ordinates, we expect it is in the sea, so for now (we think) it is on the sea floor," Henry Bambang ​Soelistyo, head of Indonesia's search and rescue agency, told reporters when asked about the missing plane's likely location.

The search operation for Flight QZ8501 is based out of Jakarta, Indonesia and consists of personnel, equipment and planes and vessels from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Australia. (Darren Whiteside/Reuters)

Onboard Flight QZ8501 were 155 Indonesians, three South Koreans, and one person each from Singapore, Malaysia and Britain. The co-pilot was French.

The incident caps a disastrous year for Malaysia-affiliated airlines, with Indonesia AirAsia 49 per cent owned by Malaysia-based budget carrier AirAsia.

Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 went missing on March 8 on a trip from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 passengers and crew and has not been found. On July 17, the same airline's Flight MH17 was shot down over Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board.

The AirAsia group, including affiliates in Thailand,Philippines and India, had not suffered a crash since its Malaysian budget operations began in 2002. The group's shares in Kuala Lumpur fell as much as 12.9 per cent on Monday.

Thahjanto said two C-130 Hercules planes were focusing the search for Flight QZ8501 in areas northeast of Indonesia's Bangka island, which lies roughly halfway between Surabaya and Singapore, in the Java Sea.

An Australian P3 Orion surveillance plane had joined the search, the Australian Defence Department said earlier. 

Singapore said it had sent two navy ships to help, while Malaysia said it would send three naval vessels and a C-130.

China also offered to send aircraft and ships to help in the search, as well as any other assistance Indonesia needed.

'Underwater search is not easy'

Soelistyo said Indonesia might not have the best technology to search underwater and had accepted offers of help from the U.S., Britain and France.

"An underwater search is not easy based on experience," Soelistyo said, referring to the months it took Indonesia to recover flight data recorders from a Boeing 737-400 operated by Indonesia's Adam Air which crashed off Sulawesi island in 2007, killing all 102 people on board.

Flight QZ8501 was travelling at 9,750 metres above the Java Sea and had asked to fly at 11, 582 metres to avoid clouds, said Joko Muryo Atmodjo, air transportation director at Indonesia's transport ministry.

Many families of passengers aboard Flight QZ8501 remained gathered at the airport in Surabaya Monday, waiting for any news about their loved ones. (Beawiharta/Reuters)

Permission was not given at the time due to traffic in the area. Five minutes later, at 6:17 a.m. on Sunday, the plane lost contact with air traffic control, Atmodjo said.

Data from Flightradar24.com, which tracks airline flights in real time, showed several nearby aircraft were at altitudes ranging from 10, 360 metres to nearly 11,000 metres at the time, levels that are not unusual for cruising aircraft.

Pilots and aviation experts said thunderstorms, and requests to gain altitude to avoid them, were not unusual in the area where the flight disappeared.

"You can climb to push above the cloud layer to get clearance and radar readings to pick your way over the storm," said a Qantas Airways pilot with 25 years experience flying in the region.

"But the airplane's performance is directly related to the temperature outside and increasing altitude can lead to freezing of the static radar, giving pilots an erroneous radar reading."

The resulting danger is that pilots take incorrect action to control the aircraft, said the pilot, who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the record.

'This is my worst nightmare'

The Indonesian pilot was experienced and the plane last underwent maintenance in mid-November, the airline said. The aircraft had accumulated about 23,000 flight hours in some 13,600 flights, according to Airbus.

Malaysia AirAsia chief Tony Fernandes flew to Surabaya and, along with Indonesian officials, updated distraught relatives of passengers at a makeshift crisis centre at the airport in Indonesia's second-largest city.

AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes said a news conference Monday that the scenario is "worst nightmare," but also pointed to AirAsia's relatively strong safety record. (Beawiharta/Reuters)

"This is my worst nightmare," Fernandes said on Twitter. "But there's no stopping", he said of the search.

Indonesia's Transportation Ministry said the government would carry out a review of AirAisa's Indonesian business unit to improve safety.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo urged his people to pray for the safety of the passengers and crew. Pope Francis, during his Sunday address at St. Peter's Square in the Vatican, said those on board were in his prayers.

Louise Sidharta was at Singapore's Changi Airport waiting for her fiancée to return from a family holiday.

"It was supposed to be their last vacation before we got married," she said.

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Greek ferry passengers, rescued after major fire, begin to reach land - CBC.ca

A cargo ship with 49 people evacuated from a Greek ferry that caught fire in the Adriatic Sea arrived in the Italian port of Bari on Monday, the first big group to reach land. More than 160 people remained trapped on the smoke-filled vessel adrift in rough seas between Italy and Albania.

One person was killed in the risky rescue operation and two others were injured as Italian and Greek rescue ships and helicopters plucked passengers off the stricken vessel and brought them to safety aboard the 10 or so mercantile ships nearby. Those evacuees were to be brought to shore later after the rescue was completed, Greek officials said.

One of the cargo ships, the Spirit of Piraeus, docked in Bari just after 7:30 a.m. local time Monday with 49 survivors aboard. The first to disembark was an injured man wrapped in a yellow striped blanket and wearing bandages around his bare feet, helped down the ship's ladder by two rescue workers.

Other evacuees, many wrapped in blankets, made their way slowly down the ladder with assistance, some thrusting their hands in a victory sign as they waited their turn. Among them were four children. TV crews and relatives gathered on the docks below in near silence.

The evacuees then boarded bright red fire department buses. Officials have said hotels have been booked for them around town.

The ship came ashore in Bari after first trying to dock overnight down the coast in Brindisi. Rough seas forced a change in plans.

Italian and Greek rescue crews battled gale-force winds and massive waves as they struggled Monday to evacuate hundreds of people from a ferry on fire. (Italian Coast Guard/ Associated Press)

The fire broke out before dawn Sunday on a car deck of the Italian-flagged Norman Atlantic, carrying 422 passengers and 56 crew members. All day and night, passengers huddled on the vessel's upper decks, pelted by rain and hail and struggling to breathe through the thick smoke.

By early Monday, 316 people had been evacuated, leaving 161 more on board, Greek Merchant Marine Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis said.

Helicopters rescued passengers throughout the night, completing 34 sorties with winds over 40 knots (75 km per hour).

"Notwithstanding the weather and the darkness, which is another factor, we persisted throughout the entire night," Italian coast guard Admiral Giovanni Pettorino told Sky TG24.

Those remaining on board were given thermal blankets and found places to wait protected from the elements `'even if the conditions remain very difficult," Pettorino said.

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Bill Cosby 'hires investigators' to dig up pasts of women who have accused him ... - Mirror.co.uk

Bill Cosby has reportedly hired private investigators to dig up the pasts of women who have accused him of sex attacks.

According to The Sun newspaper, the 77-year-old TV star, who denies the alleged assaults which are said to have happened over two decades, has hired a team of six Los Angeles police detectives.

The actor is eager to find out more about the women he is accused of assaulting, including some who claim he drugged them when they were younger.

A source claims the star said: "If you are going to say to the world that I did that to you, then the world needs to know, 'What kind of person are you?'

The comedian has denied the claims

"You can't say that I put something in your coffee, threw you in a cab and then you go on and live a high-profile life and never complain."

The star's wife of more than 50 years, Camille, is standing by Cosby, amid allegations that he is a serial rapist.

In a statement, she said: "The man I met, and fell in love with, and whom I continue to love, is the man you all knew through his work.

Bill Cosby is accused of assaulting at least 20 women

"He is a kind man, a generous man, a funny man, and a wonderful husband, father and friend. He is the man you thought you knew."

"A different man has been portrayed in the media over the last two months. It is the portrait of a man I do not know."

At least 20 women have accused him of sexual assault and he is now taking legal action.

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Conservatives lead rival parties in fundraising ahead of 2015 election - The Globe and Mail

Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservatives lead their rivals in fundraising and candidate selection ahead of the 2015 federal election, key early advantages for the incumbent party.

The Conservatives have nominated more candidates, are raising more money and already have more cash in both national and local coffers, a Globe and Mail review of Elections Canada records shows.

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The election is scheduled for Oct. 19, and Mr. Harper and his officials have repeatedly said they have no plans to call an earlier vote. The Conservative campaign war chest offers one incentive not to do so. While there are limits to spending during the official campaign period, the Conservatives are free to advertise extensively leading up to an election actually being called.

The Conservatives have continued this year to lead their rivals in fundraising, with $13.5-million in contributions through the first nine months of 2014, Elections Canada figures show. The Liberals received $9.9-million and the NDP $5.8-million, although the New Democrats say they're on track to raise $1-million in December alone. All three parties traditionally have also received government subsidies based on how many votes they received in the previous election. That funding has been phased out, with the final payment due Jan. 1.

Nationally, the Conservative Party ended last year with $16.3-million in net assets, ahead of the Liberals' $9.4-million and the NDP's $5.9-million. The Conservatives also have more money at the local level. The party's electoral associations ended last year with $15.8-million in net assets, while the federal party's 2013 annual report said it had another $4-million being held on behalf of its local electoral associations. Liberal riding associations had a collective $8.1-million in net assets, while NDP associations had $4-million.

The federal Conservative Party's 2013 annual report said it had another $4-million being held on behalf of its local electoral associations. Liberal riding associations had a collective $8.1-million in net assets, while NDP associations had $4-million.

Meanwhile, the Tories have nominated 187 candidates, ahead of the Liberals at 156 and the NDP at 96, Elections Canada records show. However, the parties say those records are often delayed – the Liberal website, for instance, lists 182 nominated candidates, while the NDP say they have 104.

"Our fundraising totals show that Canadians have been responding and donating so the Prime Minister can continue his strong, dependable leadership," Conservative Party spokesman Cory Hann said in a recent e-mailed statement.

Despite Tory assurances that the vote won't come until late 2015, both the New Democrats and the Liberals are preparing for an early election call, with the NDP booking a plane for both spring and fall.

The early Conservative preparation puts them well ahead of the other parties, particularly the NDP, who are the Official Opposition but regularly poll in third place. However, NDP national director Anne McGrath brushes aside the concerns, saying the party will be ready.

"I remember, going into the last election, the common narrative was the NDP wasn't ready, that we didn't have the money," Ms. McGrath said in an interview this fall. The NDP ended up surpassing the Liberals in that election and, while trailing their major rivals, are debt-free. The party measures itself against its past election, not against the other parties, Ms. McGrath said. "We run on our timeline and we know what things we need to get ready by what time, and we're in very good shape."

Liberal spokesman Olivier Duchesneau‎ acknowledged the persistent fundraising gap with the Conservatives. "We don't deny the fact the Conservatives raised a lot of money, locally and nationally. We have a lot of work to do and that's what we're doing‎," he said in a recent interview after third-quarter figures were released.

Of the nominations in place for all parties, the Liberals have had the most votes, rather than seeing candidates run unopposed. Sixty-one of the 156 Liberal candidates, or 39 per cent, won contested votes, according to Elections Canada records. By comparison, 27 of the 187 completed Conservative nominations, or 14 per cent, required a vote, as did 15 of the 96 NDP nominations, or 16 per cent, the records show.

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Les Coteaux unites for boy who lost his family in apartment fire - Montreal Gazette

A Sûreté du Québec officer at the scene of an overnight fire in Les CoteauxTuesday December 23, 2014. Eight-year-old Mathis Gagnon was the only survivor of the blaze.

The small town of Les Coteaux is coming together to help the lone survivor of a family of five, ravaged by a fire last week.

Mathis Gagnon, 8, woke up from a coma on Christmas Day after his mother, Karine Desrochers-Gauthier, 32, father, Patrick Gagnon, 37, sister Lorie, 4, and brother Félix, 2, all perished in an apartment fire that broke out on Des Bouleaux St. about 2:30 a.m. on Tuesday.

"Our town is in mourning," said Les Coteaux Mayor Denise Godin-Dostie. "Everyone here knows either a parent, a grandparent a great-grandparent, or an aunt of little Mathis."

The boy's great-great-aunt, Pauline Lalonde, told Le Journal de Montréal that the sister of Karine Desrochers-Gauthier is likely to take Mathis in and raise him. Most of his family lives in Les Coteaux and the surrounding area, and Mathis's great-grandmother is very active in community organizations. She is the one who called in the fire, since she lives in the apartment below.

Everyone here knows either a parent, a grandparent a great-grandparent, or an aunt of little Mathis. — Les Coteaux Mayor Denise Godin-Dostie

The region's firefighters will be stopping cars on Sunday between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. at the corner of Route 338 and Montée du Compté in Les Coteaux. At least three fire trucks will be stopped with lights flashing, and firefighters will be collecting money. This will likely be the first of several fundraisers expected to be held for the family. As of Jan. 5, citizens will be able to make a donation at the town hall when municipal offices are open.

Michel Pitre, the director of the Régie Intermunicipale d'incendie du Lac Saint-François, said firefighters arrived on the scene 11 minutes after the first call came in, which is well within the minimum limits prescribed by provincial law, but there was little they could do because of the amount of smoke in the apartment. Firefighters did not see any smoke detectors in the apartment.

"The team was really touched by this tragedy," he said. "We pulled five people, including three children, out of the fire. Most firefighters here are also parents, so it really affects us a bit more when we see something like that."

Sylvie Joly, the municipal councillor for the district where the fire took place, said she has received many calls from area residents asking how they can help.

"I have had calls from all around the province asking what they can do," Joly said. "At this time, it's hard to express our deep sympathies, and it's a bit easier to take action. That's why we started this fundraising campaign.

"I am 56 years old, and I grew up in this town, and this family was always here," Joly said. "The family has been here for a very long time, and is well known."

jmagder@montrealgazette.com

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Ex-NHLer, child abuse advocate Sheldon Kennedy joins Order of Canada - Montreal Gazette

Former NHL player and victim to sexual abuse Sheldon Kennedy speaks after Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the induction of legislation to create a Canadian Victims Bill of Rights in Toronto on April 3, 2014.

OTTAWA

The 45-year-old former NHLer, one of Canada's most vocal advocates on the issue of child abuse, is one of 95 admissions and promotions to the Order of Canada announced Friday.

"For me, I'm not doing this work to win awards for Sheldon Kennedy. I'm doing this work because I understand the damage that this crime has on our kids," he said.

"And it's killing our kids."

The list of those being honoured include Richard Pound, the Montreal lawyer who has served twice as a vice-president of the International Olympic Committee and is also the former president of the World Anti-Doping Agency. Pound was elevated to the highest level of the order, a companion.

"I've never thought it is right that you should get cheated out of a result because somebody is deliberately breaking the rules and taking doping substances," Pound said.

"It's not right, and it destroys a lot of the value of sports for everybody who plays fair and gets beaten for having done what everyone promised to do, which is to play fair."

Among those appointed officers, the second highest rank, were Mark Carney, the former Bank of Canada governor who took the same post at the Bank of England in 2013, and Peter Milliken, the longest serving Speaker of the House of Commons from 2001 to 2011.

The husband and wife musician team of Chantal Kreviazuk and Raine Maida, were among 79 new additions to the members category. Kreviazuk and Maida have been involved in various humanitarian causes throughout their careers, taking up issues including climate change, mental health and international child poverty.

Some of the other new members include:

Tim Cook, the military historian and award-winning author who formerly served as the director of research at the Canadian War Museum.

Brenda Clark, the illustrator behind the popular children's book series Franklin the Turtle.

Bill Graham, the former Liberal minister of foreign affairs and national defence who also served as interim leader of the Liberal Party in 2006.

Lawyer Michael Meighen, the grandson of former Canadian prime minister Arthur Meighen, who was appointed to the Senate in 1990 by his longtime friend and former prime minister Brian Mulroney and retired from the upper chamber in 2012.

Author and journalist Charles Foran and science reporter Peter Calamai, who has worked for years to foster literacy.

Kennedy, who has opened an advocacy centre in Calgary to help abused children, said he still can't believe he has joined such a vaunted club as the Order of Canada. But he said he hopes it inspires other victims to come forward and seek help.

"For these issues to represented and understood and to be recognized at this level, to me, is absolutely huge," said Kennedy, a 10-year-NHL veteran.

Kennedy went on to become a leading voice for sexual abuse victims following his own experience being abused by his coach, Graham James, for five years during his time as a junior hockey player.

"My message is really about hope, and that you're not alone. Our country is a lot more understanding of these issues today than we were even 10 years ago, and to me that should give people confidence to come forward," he said.

In the past year, Kennedy said his centre has done 2,000 investigations into abuse allegations from children seeking help. One-third of those under age 12 were showing signs of suicidal ideation, sexualized behaviour, addiction issues, violence, mental health issues.

"And when they get up over 15, over half are presenting all of the above. To me, these issues, we need to understand the damage this crime has."

The Order of Canada was established in 1967, the country's centennial year, to recognize "outstanding achievement, dedication to community and service to the nation." More than 6,000 Canadians from all walks of life have been invested with the Order since then.

The new recipients will be given their insignia in a ceremony at a later date.

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Fire Marshal's office investigating fire that destroyed two Toronto restaraunts - Hamilton Spectator

Heavy equipment has been brought in to assist fire investigators as they work to determine the cause of a fire that destroyed two Yorkville restaurants on Thursday evening.

According to Peter Hamilton, an investigator with the Ontario Fire Marshal's office, crews are conducting a "systemic delayering" of 116 Avenue Rd., the building that housed Sotto Sotto and Spuntini's Ristorante, in order to make it safe for investigation.

"Due to the construction techniques used at that period of time, the entire building has slid down inside," Hamilton said during a press conference outside the remains of the restaurants on Saturday afternoon.

Hamilton added that it will be several days before investigators complete their on-site assessment.

While the fire was initially considered suspicious because it broke out while both restaurants were closed and engulfed the entire Avenue Rd. building, Toronto Fire Services platoon chief Colin Reid told reporters Saturday afternoon that there is not enough information to confirm that yet.

"We have not ruled anything out and all things are still on the table," Hamilton said, adding that the Fire Marshal's office was working with heritage preservation services as the building was a designated heritage property.

Sotto Sotto enjoyed a reputation as a celebrity hangout, with stars such as Oprah Winfrey, Matt Damon, Mary J. Blige, Bill Murray, Elton John and Ewan McGregor all choosing to dine at the Yorkville restaurant.

The blaze caused about $1 million in damages, and firefighters were still putting out "hot spots" into Friday.

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Marcus Larabie, 14, killed by car driven by off-duty Abbotsford officer - CBC.ca

A teenage boy who was struck and killed by a car driven by an off-duty Abbotsford, B.C., police officer Friday has been identified by family and friends as 14-year-old Marcus Larabie.

A makeshift memorial was growing Saturday, as those who knew Larabie visited the Seven Oaks bus loop near where he was hit and laid flowers against a nearby tree.

Joshua Rawlings, a close friend, said he's going to miss his longboarding partner.

Marcus Larabie's friends gathered at a makeshift memorial Saturday to lay flowers, console each other and remember him. (CBC)

"He'd always go longboarding with me," he said. "He could be everyone's best friend. He was like a little angel. I don't know. I'm going to miss him. Everyone's going to miss him."

The incident happened at 6:15 p.m. PT Friday near the intersection of Mill Lake Road and West Bourquin Crescent in Abbotsford.

The province's Independent Investigations Office, which provides civilian oversight of serious police incidents, said Larabie was airlifted to hospital immediately after the accident, but died of his injuries.

"We learned shortly before midnight that the young person had not survived his injuries," IIO spokesperson Kellie Kilpatrick said. "We had an investigator at the hospital providing support to the family, but unfortunately he [the boy] did not survive."

Lewis Tucker, Larabie's uncle, said the family was notified shortly after 7 p.m. and spent the last minutes with him at the hospital.

"Mostly I'm just very upset that something had happened and that nothing could be done for him," he said.

Lewis Tucker, Marcus Larabie's uncle said Larabie was full of life and it's upsetting that "something happened and nothing could be done." (CBC)

"Full of life, that little boy. He was at our house every weekend with his older uncle Dryden and we had many great moments together, camping trips, PNE, Coliseum. He was like another son. The house is going to be empty for awhile."

Larabie is a student at nearby Abbotsford Middle School.

The driver of the 2009 Mazda 3, who was identified as an off-duty Abbotsford police officer, remained at the scene.  

The IIO was then called in to investigate.

Kilpatrick said the accident site is a very busy area near a mall and a bus loop. She said investigators heard reports the teen may have been on a skateboard, but weren't able to confirm the reports. 

"We certainly have received that information as well, so it's critically important to the young person's family, to the police officers, to the community, that we get accurate, reliable, independent information," she said.

"Whether the young person was, or was not, on a skateboard is certainly something we are going to be pursuing.

Teens offer their condolences near a tree that has turned into a makeshift memorial for Marcus Larabie, 14. (Farah Merali/CBC)

​"We understand there may be video surveillance in the area where the buses are. So there will be several investigators, likely our team director and our traffic re-constructionist, out trying to obtain all information that is available to us."

Kilpatrick said investigators believe there were other witnesses to the accident. Anyone with information is asked to contact the IIO infoline at 1-855-446-8477.

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AirAsia plane with 162 people on board missing in Indonesia, search underway - Xinhua

Picture taken on Dec. 28, 2014 shows the arrival information board displaying the status of Air Asia flight QZ8501 at Changi Airport in Singapore. The flight QZ8501 took off from Surabaya, Indonesia, at 5:20 a.m. local time and was scheduled to arrive at Singapore's Changi Airport at 8:30 a.m.. Singapore air traffic control was informed at 7:54 a.m. that the flight lost contact with Jakarta air traffic control at 7:24 a.m. local time on Sunday. (Xinhua/Then Chih Wey)

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JAKARTA/KUALA LUMPUR, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- An AirAsia passenger plane with 162 people aboard lost contact with the air traffic control on Sunday soon after taking off from Surabaya in Indonesia 's East Java province.

"At the present time we unfortunately have no further information regarding the status of the passengers and crew members on board, but we will keep all parties informed as more information becomes available," the Malaysia-based budget airline said.

There were 155 passengers and seven crew members on board the Airbus A320-200 aircraft, including 16 children and an infant, the airline said in a statement.

The captain in command had a total of 6,100 flying hours and the co-pilot a total of 2,275 flying hours, according to AirAsia.

The passengers and crew members include one Singaporean, one Malaysian, one French, three South Koreans and 156 Indonesians.

The Flight QZ8501 lost communication with the ground 42 minutes after taking off at 5:35 a.m. (2235 GMT Saturday) at Indonesia's Surabaya airport. The plane is scheduled to land in Singapore at 8: 30 a.m. local time (0030 GMT), AirAsia said.

The plane had undergone its last scheduled maintenance on Nov. 16, it added.

Indonesia has been deploying three planes and ships to search the missing plane that lost contact at 6:17 a.m. Jakarta time Sunday (2317 GMT Saturday), an Indonesian official said.

Director General of Air Transport of Indonesian Transport Ministry Djoko Murjatmodjo told a press conference at the Jakarta airport that the plane went missing after the pilot requested to divert from its route because of cloud, and raise the height of the flight from 32,000 feet (9,700 meters) to 34,000 feet (10,303 meters).

The director said the airliner went missing in the Java Sea between Tanjung Pandan of Bangka Balitung province and Pontianak city of West Kalimantan province.

Djoko said the aircraft, which sent no distress signal, must have run out its fuel if it kept flying.

AirAsia also confirmed that the pilot of Flight QZ8501 had requested "deviation" from its flight plan because of bad weather.

"The aircraft ... was requesting deviation due to en route weather," the Malaysia-based carrier said.

"Communication with the aircraft was lost while it was still under the control of the Indonesian Air Traffic Control," it added.

The Singapore air force and the navy also were searching with two C-130 planes.

Meanwhile, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak offered his country's assistance to help locate the missing AirAsia plane.

"I haven't received much information at this time and I can only confirm that the plane is missing," he said.

"The government will help AirAsia to find the missing plane," Najib told reporters in Lipis, western Pahang state.

The incident came at the end of a disastrous year for the Malaysian aviation. Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, a Boeing 777, with 239 people on board, disappeared on March 8 after diverting from its Kuala Lumpur-Beijing course. No trace of the jetliner has been found despite massive search efforts.

Months later, MH17, also a Boeing 777, went down on July 17 in the war-born eastern Ukraine enroute from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, killing all 298 aboard.

AirAsia, a low-cost carrier, has dominated cheap traveling in the region for years.

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'Unusual' delay on Health Canada ruling on abortion pill, professor says - The Globe and Mail

Health Canada has taken longer to issue a decision on the abortion pill than on any other new drug approved in recent years, according to a Toronto professor who studies the federal drug regulator.

Joel Lexchin, a professor in the school of health policy and management at York University, reviewed the time it took Health Canada to approve 41 new drugs in the two years leading up to March 31 of this year.

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The longest took 644 days. More than 750 days have elapsed since a small European drug company re-submitted its application to sell mifepristone, a pill that can terminate an early pregnancy when combined with a drug that is approved in Canada for other uses.

"It's pretty unusual," Dr. Lexchin said of the delay.

The Globe and Mail reported on Tuesday that Linepharma International applied to have its 200 mg mifepristone tablet approved in October, 2011. The company refiled its application in October, 2012, at the request of Health Canada, which was seeking more "quality documentation," Linepharma's chief operating officer said.

Dr. Lexchin said the delay is especially confounding because mifepristone is already approved in 60 countries, including the United States, Australia and most of Europe.

"The more data that's available from outside of Canada, the easier it should be to make a decision, especially if you're looking at safety data," he said.

Health Canada has an internal service standard of 300 calendar days to issue a decision on a new drug – which can be an approval, a rejection or a request for more information.

A spokesman for Health Canada would not comment on the mifepristone application, citing confidentiality policies.

However, he said some new drug applications can take as long as two or three years if Health Canada asks the manufacturer for more information.

The National Abortion Federation, which represents abortion providers in Canada and the United States, has been pushing for years to see mifepristone approved in Canada in hopes that the pill would make first-trimester abortions more discreet and widely available.

NAF and Linepharma say they are expecting Health Canada to issue a ruling by mid-January.

"The difference that mifepristone could make is that all of a sudden any family physician across Canada … will be able to offer this to women and girls with unintended, unwanted pregnancies," said Wendy Norman, a family physician and professor in the department of family practice at the University of British Columbia. "This then can happen within the privacy of the relationship you have with your primary care provider."

Dr. Norman co-authored a recent survey that found, in 2012, less than 4 per cent of abortions performed in Canada are done using drugs, a process known as medical abortion.

Although mifepristone is not approved in Canada, doctors can use the chemotherapy drug methotrexate off-label to kick-start a medical abortion that is completed using misoprostol, the contraction-inducing drug that would be used with mifepristone.

However, abortion providers generally consider methotrexate inferior to mifepristone. It takes longer to work, is less predictable and can lead to birth defects if the abortion fails.

Ellen Wiebe, the director of the Willow Women's Clinic in Vancouver, is a strong supporter of mifepristone. But she doubts general practitioners will take up the drug as enthusiastically as some of her colleagues hope.

"Theoretically, it could make a huge difference," she said. "But why didn't methotrexate do it if it's just a matter of people not having the surgical skills or the surgical clinic available?"

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Chinese city bans Christmas celebrations in schools - Economic Times

BEIJING: A city in China has banned all Christmas celebrations in schools and kindergartens stating that it wants to keep the focus of the students on traditional Chinese festivals.

Wenzhou city in Zhejiang province said the decision is meant to guide schools in highlighting China's traditional festivals.

"No middle school, primary school or kindergarten may hold any Christmas-themed activity or celebration," said the circular issued by the city's educational authority, adding that there would be inspections on the enforcement.

The purpose of the Christmas ban is not to crack down on all Western festivals, but to reverse the schools' obsession with Western festivals at the expense of Chinese ones, state- run Xinhua news agency quoted Zheng Shangzhong of the city's educational bureau as saying.

Schools have more of an obligation to tell children the meaning of traditional festivals such as the Lantern Festival, Dragon Boat Festival and Lunar New Year, he said.

Celebrating Christmas has become trendy among young Chinese, who see the Christian festival as a merry time to shop, party and dine with their friends and significant others.

Meanwhile, proponents of traditional Chinese culture have warned against cultural invasion.

A college at Northwest University in Shaanxi province reportedly kept its students from joining Christmas celebrations by having them watch traditional cultural films on Christmas Eve.

Its official microblog account said that Chinese traditional festivals and culture were fading away as more Chinese embrace Western traditions, the Xinhua report said.

Christmas followed by New Year are a major draw in China with malls well decorated.

Shops are also offering discounts during the season which goes up till the Chinese New Year is celebrated as Spring Festival in February.

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Suspect arrested in Barberian's Steak House fight - CBC.ca

Police are asking for the public's help identifying this woman who was seen taking Arron Barberian's cel phone as he fought off a mugger. (Toronto Police Service)

Toronto police have arrested a suspect in the recent, attempted robbery of Toronto restaurateur Arron Barberian. 

Barberian was accosted on Monday morning as he walked a cashbox between his two Elm Street restaurants. The incident, which was caught on video, saw the 50-year-old businessman struggle with his would-be robber in the middle of the downtown street. The suspect eventually fled. 

Police arrested Joel Brown, 44, of Toronto early Wednesday morning. He is charged with robbery and two counts of failing to comply with probation. 

Investigators are still looking for the woman who made off with Barberian's cellphone, which fell to the ground during the fight. 

She is described as non-white, with a long, black ponytail. She was wearing a black hat, a dark three-quarter length winter coat with a fur trim, black winter boots with tassels and red soles, and was carrying a black purse. 

She was seen getting out of a dark-blue Honda CRV, with a trailer hitch, which was parked on the south side of Elm Street. 

Anyone with information is asked to contact 52 Division at 416-808-5200 or Crime Stoppers at either 416-222-TIPS (8477), or www.222tips.com.

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The Ebola epidemic is slowing in Africa, but it's not yet controlled - The Verge

Though the world has made progress in ending the Ebola epidemic, reports from Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone suggest the fight against Ebola isn't over, according to correspondence from the World Health Organization published online today by The New England Journal of Medicine. Fewer people are being infected, but successes against the disease have been unevenly distributed and the outbreak isn't under control.

---

As of Monday, there were 19,340 Ebola cases and 7,518 deaths, mostly in West Africa, according to the WHO. Sierra Leone had the greatest number of cases, 8,939 — almost half of all reported illnesses. Liberia had 7,830, a decrease; and Guinea had 2,571, with an incidence that the WHO described as "fluctuating." The disease seems to be slowing in Sierra Leone, and the response to Ebola in all three countries — the hardest-hit by the outbreak — has significantly strengthened, the WHO said.

The situation is considerably better than a projection in September, when health officials unveiled a worst-case scenario of 1.5 million infections by January if nothing was done to stop the disease's spread. Even when that estimate was released, officials from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggested that level of infection would be unlikely, since more aid was already reaching the most-affected countries in West Africa.

These charts, from the report, show at top the number of people infected by each sick person (the case reproduction number). The lower panels show the observed and projected weekly incidence of confirmed and probable Ebola cases. (WHO Ebola Response Team)

Until international intervention, the hospitals in west Africa were overwhelmed. But by December 14, the most recent data available for the NEJM report, the total number of beds exceeded the number of Ebola patients reported each week — reflecting decreasing numbers of infection and increasing aid. But some areas fared better than others, the report said. Gaps in care remained in western Sierra Leone; the southeastern forest area and some northern districts of Guinea; and in western Liberia. And though about 200 trained burial teams helped lessen the risk of infection from contact with the dead, deaths that weren't reported to health authorities may still pose a hazard.

Sierra Leone has banned caroling, holiday parties, and other Christmas festivities

A case study from the Freetown area of Sierra Leone also appeared in The New England Journal of Medicine, showing a much lower case fatality rate than previously reported. About a third of the 581 patients who were seen by doctors at the Hastings Police Training School near Freetown died — which is a lot of deaths, but a considerably lower fatality rate than had been previously reported. The previous study, of 108 Ebola patients in Sierra Leone, showed that almost three-quarters of patients who came to the hospital died.

It's not clear why the fatality rate at Hastings was lower than the earlier report's, since multiple things were done differently there, the authors wrote. But the decreased fatality rate is a glimmer of hope, suggesting that some progress has been made in combatting the disease.

it's too early to declare victory

The fight's not over, though. While patients in the hardest-hit areas now have access to treatment centers that didn't exist as recently as 6 months ago, it's too early to declare victory, writes Jeffrey Drazen, the editor-in-chief of The New England Journal of Medicine, in an editorial co-signed by three other experts. More volunteers and resources will be needed to make sure that the fight against Ebola in west Africa isn't still ongoing a year from now, they write.

In an attempt to control the outbreak, Sierra Leone has banned caroling, holiday parties, and other Christmas festivities that could give Ebola more opportunities to spread, according to the AP. Today, the country declared a lockdown in the north, with an exception for Christmas, according to the AFP.

"To deliver a victory, we need more volunteers who are willing to serve, to live in austere conditions, and to put themselves in harm's way," they write. "All estimates indicate that the number of personnel needed far exceeds the current supply."

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Green Christmas to greet millions of Canadians - CBC.ca

Video

From the Maritimes to parts of Ontario, Canadians should prepare for a wet, soggy holiday

CBC News Posted: Dec 24, 2014 10:46 PM ET Last Updated: Dec 24, 2014 10:46 PM ET

Christmas Day will be green (or grey) for millions of Canadians as unseasonably mild temperatures blanket much of the country.

"I think this year, we may see one of the greenest Christmases we've ever seen," said David Phillips, senior climatologist at Environment Canada. 

From the Maritimes to parts of Ontario, Canadians should prepare for a wet, soggy holiday. The Prairies may get a sprinkling of snow while it'll be balmy in Victoria and Vancouver.

Phillips said that when December started, it was clear there was little chance of a white Christmas.

"We've seen this warm Gulf of Mexico air with lots of warm rains ... so the snow just doesn't have a chance under these kinds of tropical kinds of conditions," Phillips said.

Watch the full story by clicking the video.

Comments on this story are moderated according to our Submission Guidelines. Comments are welcome while open. We reserve the right to close comments at any time.

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Note: The CBC does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comments, you acknowledge that CBC has the right to reproduce, broadcast and publicize those comments or any part thereof in any manner whatsoever. Please note that comments are moderated and published according to our submission guidelines.

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Isis 'did not shoot down Jordan war plane' before capturing pilot, says US - The Independent

Earlier Isis militants claimed it had targeted the plane with a heat-seeking missile.

But the US military has hit back at the suggestion, by clarifying that this was not the case and the plane was instead lost in territory held the group, before reiterating that it is a "terrorist organisation".

"Evidence clearly indicates that ISIL [Isis] did not down the aircraft as the terrorist organisation is claiming," the US military's Central Command said in a statement.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported earlier that the aircraft was shot down yesterday near the northern province of Raqqa, which is almost entirely under the control of Isis.

Relatives of the pilot, believed to be First Lieutenant Muath al-Kasaesbeh, 26, said he was captured by fighters after his plane was downed. Two relatives told Reuters they were notified by the head of the Jordanian air force of his capture.

The incident makes Al-Kasaesbeh the first foreign soldier to fall into the extremist's hands, and the first coalition aircraft to be lost in Isis territory since strikes started in September.

The Jordanian military said in a statement read on state television today that its air force was carrying out a military mission against Isis "hideouts" on Wednesday morning, when "one of our warplanes crashed."

"The pilot was taken hostage by the Daesh terrorist organisation," it added, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group.

It said IS and "those who support it" will be responsible for the safety of the pilot.

Later, Jordan's Information Minister Mohammad Al-Momani told satellite TV station Al Hadath the jet fighter "was shot at from the ground by rocket missiles and was brought down" and that an attempt to rescue the pilot before he was captured failed.

Al-Momani vowed that "the war on terrorism will continue," saying, the fight with the extremists was "to defend the Islamic religion."

The statement went on to describe Isis as a group that "does not want to conceal its terrorist plots" and which commits "many criminal acts from wanton destruction to killing innocent Muslim and non-Muslims in Syria and Iraq".

The pro-Isis Raqqa Media Centre (RMC) said the plane was downed near the village of Hamra Ghannam, outside Raqqa.

The organisation posted pictures of the pilot surrounded by more than a dozen militants, some masked, shortly after he was captured. It also released images of the militants posing with pieces of wreckage.

Another image published by the RMC showed the man — wearing only a white shirt and soaking wet — being captured by three gunmen as he was taken out of what appeared to be a lake. Al-Kasaesbeh's relatives verified these images.

The Raqqa Media Center released this picture of what they say is the pilot's ID Members of the Islamic State group with a captured pilot
A friend said Al-Kasaesbeh, who is from a prominent Jordanian family, was strongly committed to his mission and felt it was his religious duty to fight extremist groups that are "distorting the true spirit of Islam".

AL RAI Chief International Correspondent shared a picture of what he said was the captured pilot meeting the King of Jordan.

RMC later posted a photograph of the Jordanian military identity card of the pilot identifying him as Mu'ath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh who was born on May 29, 1988.

The Raqqa Media Center said Isis fighters are searching the area in case there is a second pilot.

The previous claims by Isis were at first thought to be credible, as activists believe Isis have Igla missile systems, which were either taken or bought from rival Syrian rebels, or looted fro Syrian or Iraqi state arsenals.

The US-led coalition, which includes has carried out hundreds of air strikes against Isis positions in Syria since 23 September,

Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have joined in air strikes against the extremist group, while Qatar is providing logistical support.

A staunch US ally, Jordan has also acted as a logistics base for the US-led campaign, and is a hub for intelligence-gathering operations against the jihadists, a western diplomatic source told Reuters.

Earlier, a Pentagon official said any further questions about the alleged capture should be referred to the government of Jordan. He spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the reports by name.

Additional reporting by AP and Reuters

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Liberals to reimburse taxpayers $10Gs allegedly paid to wipe computers - CANOE

Antonella Artuso, Queen's Park Bureau Chief

Dec 23, 2014

, Last Updated: 2:52 PM ET

TORONTO — The Ontario Liberal Party has decided to reimburse taxpayers the $10,000 Peter Faist was allegedly paid to wipe government computers.

"To ensure no tax dollars are expended for work performed in the office of the former premier in relation to the matters currently under investigation by Ontario Provincial Police, the Ontario Liberal Party executive council voted (Monday) to cover the cost of a January 2013 invoice from Mr. Faist to the Liberal Caucus Service Bureau," Zita Astravas, a spokesman for Premier Kathleen Wynne, said in a statement Tuesday.

"The payment of these funds is in no way intended as a prejudgment or comment upon the findings of the ongoing police investigation — it is to ensure no tax dollars were expended for the work performed."

In recently released OPP search warrant documents, investigators report Faist told them he was contracted for $10,000 out of the taxpayer-funded Liberal caucus fund to erase computer hard drives.

Faist, through his lawyer, has denied all wrongdoing, and told police he was under the impression Cabinet Office was aware of his activities.

OPP are investigating whether government records were illegally destroyed in the office of former premier Dalton McGuinty in early 2013.

The allegations in the search warrant documents have not been proven in court.

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Irish nun in Sierra Leone brings joy to children affected by Ebola - The Guardian

Students and nuns at St Joseph's with their shoeboxes of presents. Sister Mary is far left. Photograph: Lisa O'Carroll/Guardian

Christmas gatherings have been cancelled in Sierra Leone, but 900 children in one town have been brought some cheer by celebrating it early, thanks to the foresight of a local school teacher.

Sister Mary Sweeney, an Irish special needs teacher, has been distributing presents to children whose families have been hit by Ebola in Makeni, a busy commercial hub three hours north of Freetown, after private donations of 1,000 shoeboxes stuffed with presents arrived from schools in the UK.

"We started to distribute the presents because we wanted them to have something. We couldn't bring them altogether because of the ban on gatherings this Christmas," she says.

"They were all so beautifully wrapped and it was a joy to see the little ones' eyes light up. They were so excited. There were the most gorgeous things inside: socks, shoes, sunglasses, notebooks, markers, football jerseys. In one of them a child had even put in a few pound coins," said Sister Mary, who has lived in Sierra Leone for 42 years.

"The first thing they did after taking a peek was put the box on their heads and take them home. Some of these children have been traumatised. It is so fantastic to give them something to show them somebody is looking out for them.

"The gifts are bringing a lot of joy to the children, despite the grief and trauma that they have to deal with."

The boxes arrived at St Joseph's school for the hearing impaired in early December after supporters in the UK decided to take action in the absence of an international response to Ebola in Makeni.

Sisters and students at St Josephs. Photograph: Lisa O'Carroll/Guardian

The Christmas delivery was one of 12 pallets of freight to be sent out since September by UK supporters. Although humanitarian aid is flooding into Sierra Leone, little was reaching Makeni in the first few months. The pallets cost about £14,000 to get through customs, more than half the charity's annual funds.

Supplies from chlorine tablets and body bags to gloves and medical equipment filled the first few pallets, packed by volunteers Scott Wilkinson, a freight expert, and Louise Baines, from St Anselm's college in the Wirral.

"Having been so closely connected with Sister Mary over the last five years and seeing her desperation at trying to do something for the school and the community, and knowing the international response was so slow, we felt we needed to do something," said Linda Freestone, one of the trustees of St Joseph's.

The Bombali district, of which Makeni is the capital, is one of three hardest hit by Ebola in Sierra Leone, but got its first treatment centre only this month.

Like in many other places, families have been ripped apart by the virus, leaving young people as heads of their households.

Sister Mary says people in Makeni were getting "fed up" because of the lack of support. There may be medical care now, but food and psychological support is still thin on the ground. "Where are the NGOs? Where are the NGOs?" she says.

She says she knew one 24-year-old woman who is now caring for 12 children after the death of her sister and brother. "They are one, two, three years old. My legs were shaking thinking how are they going to survive? The breadwinners are gone so where are they going to get food?"

Can you imagine what it must be like for a child who survives Ebola and then nobody comes for you?

Sister Mary

Another problem she has identified is missing children. Recently, one woman told how she had managed to get outside the quarantine zone and get to Kailahun where Ebola patients were initially sent. She had retrieved two of her three children. Another woman said she thought her children were there too, and alive.

The failure to trace families across district borders raises questions about efforts to reunite families. Sister Mary says that in some cases whole families were sent to Kailahun but got separated.

"Can you imagine what it must be like for a child; you survive, you are discharged and then you spend three or four months in an orphanage and nobody comes for you? Can you imagine the trauma of it?"

But Sister Mary, whose school was commandeered by rebels during the civil war, says there is hope amid the despair in Makeni.

"Knowing the resilience of Sierra Leoneans and their gratitude for life will not stop them rejoicing as the new year church bells ring out at midnight on 31 December and they all dance and sing 'Papa God we tell you Tenkie, me no die oh': Thank God, I did not die."

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