Ottawa Fire Services (OFS) recently honoured three boys for their life saving efforts. Avery Crouchman, Ethan Larocque and Owen Peever were recognized at a ceremony at Fire Station 62 in Fitzroy Harbour for their quick thinking and courage. On June 3, 2016, the boys were hunting frogs at a creek when they found an elderly gentleman who had fallen down an embankment and his leg became wedged among some large boulders. Avery, Ethan and Owen were instrumental in notifying OFS. Ethan helped keep the gentleman safe and provided comfort and reassurance. The two other boys ran to the road to flag down emergency personnel. The OFS crew from Station 62 was the first to arrive and they safely removed the man from the embankment. Crews suspect he had been stranded there for close to three hours. If the boys had not found him when they did, he may have spent the night outdoors or worse.
Last week it was announced that the City of Ottawa will begin the planning work needed to extend light rail transit (LRT) from Bayshore to Kanata. Staff will be preparing the first stage of the Environmental Assessment for Bayshore Station to Palladium Drive over the summer, so that the Statement of Work will be ready for Transportation Committee this September. This is great news for west-end transit users. Stay tuned for updates as things progress.
On a related note, on June 7 OC Transpo released three reports that include important information about changes to transit service that will be made when the O-Train Confederation Line opens in 2018. The changes will affected the everyday trips of most transit users. The reports are: Bus Service Identification, OC Transpo 2018 Route Network, and OC Transpo Fare System. The reports are available for review on ottawa.ca. If you are a transit user, I highly recommend reviewing them to familiarize yourself with the changes being planned.
Ottawa has received the prestigious designation of being Number 1 on the list of Best Places to Live in Canada and the Best Places for New Canadians by MoneySense magazine, based on a ranking of 219 Canadian cities. Well done Ottawa!