Archive For The “news photo” Category
A near blizzard did not stop the people of Kitimat turning out for the Remembrance Day service on November 11, 2017.
Building a snowman before the Remembrance Day service (Robin Rowland)
Laura Mckenzie and Linda Lewis checking the wreaths prior to the service (Robin Rowland)
An RCMP officer leads the colour party (Robin Rowland)
The colour party (Robin Rowland)
The RCMP march to the cenotaph. (Robin Rowland)
The invocation, left to right, Dwight Magee, Royal Canadian Legion, Rev. Dr. Dona Lethbridge, Legion chaplain, Marg Bogaert, Royal Canadian Legion. (Robin Rowland)
Cubs and scouts at the Remembrance Day service (Robin Rowland)
Lucy Beatty of the Royal Canadian Legion Ladies Auxiliary lowers the flag during the two minutes of silence (Robin Rowland)
A moment of silence. (Robin Rowland)
Veteran Jason Parrill lays a wreath on behalf of Canada. (Robin Rowland)
Anne Berrisford lays a memorial wreath for Captain (Chaplain) D. Schmidt. (Robin Rowland)
A cub lays a wreath. (Robin Rowland)
Mayor Phil Germuth lays a wreath. (Robin Rowland)
The wreaths (Robin Rowland)
A Mountie salutes during the playing of O Canada. (Robin Rowland)
Two women dressed as suffragettes hold a Canadian flag during the Canada Day parade in Kitimat, July 1, 2016. The theme for the parade marked one hundred years of the woman’s vote in Canada. (Robin Rowland)
The parade began in heavy rain. (Robin Rowland)
Mayor Phil Germuth wields water guns during the parade. Everyone was soaked anyway in the pouring rain. (Robin Rowland)
A cartoon by Kitimat resident Gerry Hummel celebrates the suffrage movement in Canada. (Robin Rowland)
Another float also celebrates women’s suffrage. (Robin Rowland)
A woman marcher also celebrates women’s suffrage. (Robin Rowland)
The Spirit of Kitlope Dancers. (Robin Rowland)
Councillor Rob Goffinet marches in the parade. (Robin Rowland)
A small boy with Canadian flags rides a pony. (Robin Rowland)
The Unifor float. (Robin Rowland)
A boy in a soapbox race car. (Robin Rowland)
A large float urging approval of the LNG Canada project represents an LNG tanker. (Robin Rowland)
The District of Kitimat and Mayor Phil Germuth honoured former Kitimat Daily editor Walter McFarlane for his 10 years of service to the region as a journalist. (Robin Rowland)
Phil Germuth granted former mayor Joanne Monaghan with the Freedom of the District of Kitmat. (Robin Rowland)
The winning float in the 2015 Kitimat Canada parade from the Community Supper Club. (Robin Rowland)
Staff Sergeant Phil Harrison who is retiring from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police leads the Canada Day parade. (Robin Rowland)
Kitimat Fire and Rescue. (Robin Rowland)
Kitimat Marine Rescue Society (Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue SAR 63) still affectionately known as “Snowflake Responder” (Robin Rowland)
Mayor Phil Germuth. (Robin Rowland)
Rio Tinto Alcan’s Gaby Poirier leads the RTA entry in the parade. (Robin Rowland)
Kids enjoy the parade. (Robin Rowland)
The Haisla Nation Spirit of Kitlope Dancers. (Robin Rowland)
(Robin Rowland)
(Robin Rowland)
The gymnastics club. (Robin Rowland)
Handing out goodies to spectators along the parade route. (Robin Rowland)
The Canada Day cake at Riverlodge ready for cutting. (Robin Rowland)
Later on the afternoon of Canada Day, a wildfire broke out on the hydro transmission corridor near the Rio Tinto Alcan smelter. It was contained a couple of days later. (Robin Rowland)
Fireworks. (Robin Rowland)
Fireworks. (Robin Rowland)
Attempting to dig out in Kitimat, as the blzzard continues, Saturday morning, Feb. 7, 2015. (Robin Rowland)
A “Pineapple Express” brought a major blizzard to the Kitimat region last week, dropping approximately 180 centimetres of snow from the morning of Thursday, February 5, 2015 until the skies cleared late on the afternoon of Saturday, February 7. In my neighborhood, the power first went out at about 3 pm on Thursday, came back at 11 pm. It went out about 11 am on Friday and didn’t come back until about 2:30 pm on Saturday.
Power was also out at Kitamaat Village from Thursday until late Sunday. Early Sunday morning, the Haisla Nation Council ordered a voluntary evacuation, with two convoys of vehicles heading to Kitimat. While many people stayed with friends and families, about 20 people took refuge at the Riverlodge Leisure Centre. Other members of the Haisla Nation stayed in the village, gathering at the Haisla Recreation Centre.
The clean up continues in Kitimat.
Images from Thursday night until Wednesday afternoon. A mixture of photos and frame grabs from video.
This gallery does not include the images I fed to The Canadian Press.
Here is a link to the CBC News photo gallery of my CP images.
Thursday, February 5, 2015, approximately 6:15 pm
At this point, early into the storm, all the power was out in Kitimat, with the exception of the street lights on Haisla Boulevard, which illuminated a few trees as I shot this on Albatross Avenue. Sony Alpha 6000, ISO 3200, 1/30, F3.5 from my window. (Robin Rowland) (Higher ISO images were too noisy)
Friday February 6
The same view, from ground level, the next morning. Framegrab (Robin Rowland)
Heavy snow on branches (Robin Rowland)
As the power goes out again on Friday, heavy snow continues to fall. (Robin Rowland)
Trying to dig out in the early afternoon. Framegrab. (Robin Rowland)
A pick up tries to make it through the heavy snow. Framegrab (Robin Rowland)
A District of Kitimat crew digs out the fire hydrant in front of my house, Friday afternoon. (Robin Rowland)
A woman in white makes her way through the blizzard, Friday afternoon. (Robin Rowland)
The snow was really heavy near sundown on Friday. (Robin Rowland)
Trying to dig out as night falls. Note that is supposed to be a pedestrian crossing. (Robin Rowland)
Friday night
This front end loader was called in late Friday evening. Framegrab (Robin Rowland)…….
….so a Kitimat Fire and Rescue pumper could get back to the fire hall. Framegrab (Robin Rowland)
Saturday morning
About 3 am Saturday, some lights came on in the Kildala neighborhood, while much of the rest of Kitimat was still in the dark. (Robin Rowland)
On Saturday morning, much of Kitimat was buried under about 170 centimetres and the snow was still falling. (Robin Rowland)
Digging out begins again as the blizzard tapers off. (Robin Rowland)
A raven flies overhead as the snow stops falling. (Robin Rowland)
As the storm ends, two people walk on the heavy snow on Albatross Avenue. (Robin Rowland)
With the storm ending, the beauty of the trees and snow. (Robin Rowland)
A view of the snow covered Kitimat estuary and Douglas Channel after the storm. (Robin Rowland)
Sunday, February 8
Volunteer chefs hard at work in the Riverlodge Leisure Centre kitchen during the voluntary evacuation of Kitamaat Village. Framegrab. (Robin Rowland)
Digging out the trailer park. Framegrab. (Robin Rowland)
BC Hydro contractors at a road block at the entrance to the Kitamaat Village Road. Framegrab. (Robin Rowland)
Monday, February 9
Clearing a roof Monday morning. Framegrab. (Robin Rowland)
The snow was clearly a heavy load on one roof. Framegrab. (Robin Rowland)
On Monday morning, side streets were still clogged with snow. Framegrab. (Robin Rowland)
And the Service Centre was still digging out. Framegrab (Robin Rowland)
While the District of Kitimat snowblower was still working on main roads, like Nalibila. Framegrab (Robin Rowland)
Tuesday
A snowblower clears the sidewalk behind my house. For those not familiar with Kitimat, as part of the original Garden City plan, sidewalks are generally behind houses. (Robin Rowland)
Wednesday
Heavy equipment digs out the fire hydrant in front of my house. As seen above it’s usually two guys with shovels. I estimated there was at least three metres, perhaps four metres, of snow on top of the hydrant, put there earlier by the snow blower clearing the street. (Robin Rowland)
Snowflake Responder III, Kitimat’s new Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue Type II Falkins Class rigid hull inflatable dedicated rescue vessel practices in Kitimat harbour after the boat’s official christening, October 25, 2014. (Robin Rowland)
Kitimat’s Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue Station 63 (SAR 63) christening its new enclosed rescue vessel on Saturday, October 25, 2014 at MK Bay marina. Almost all the more than $600,000 need for the state-of-the-art rigid hull inflatable Type II Falkins Class dedicated rescue boat was raised locally by the Kitimat Marine Rescue Society with support from local businesses, the District of Kitimat and individuals as well as grants from BC gaming.
As SAR 63 says on its website:
RCM SAR 63 Kitimat is located at the head end of the Douglas Channel on the North Coast of B.C. The station was founded in 1988 and is supported by the Kitimat Marine Rescue Society. The area served is from Kitimat to the Hecate Straits. Mission distances and durations are the longest of all RCM SAR stations. The nearest Canadian Coast Guard station is 130 nautical miles with response time in a 8 hour window. The Kitimat Station is considered a prime resource in the area.
The Douglas Channel and area reach 80 kilometers inland from the inside passage. The narrow fiords through the mountains produce extreme winds and temperatures. In winter the salt spray freezes before it lands on the boat and crew. Minus 20 is not uncommon.
Snowflake Responder III, left, and the open Snowflake Responder II, tied up at Kitimat’s MK Bay Marina. Snowflake Responder II is an open 26 foot (eight metre) rigid hull inflatable powered by twin 200 horsepower outboards. Cruising speed is 35 knots with a range of over 200 nautical miles.
Kitimat mayor Joanne Monaghan waits to speak at the start of the christening ceremony for the new Snowflake Responder III.
Duncan Peacock, president of the Kitimat Marine Rescue Society and veteran member of Station 63 speaks about the new vessel prior to the christening ceremony. (Robin Rowland)
Sammy Robinson, the eleventh Haimus, hereditary Chief of the Haisla Nation at Kitimaat Village, explains that he will use a traditional Haisla blessing for a new canoe, a ceremony that hasn’t been used for decades, during the christening of the Snowflake Responder III, as Duncan Peacock, seen reflected in the window, listens. (Robin Rowland)
Sammy Robinson prepares to bless the Snowflake Responder III and banish any hostile spirits from the boat. (Robin Rowland)
Sammy Robinson uses down feathers as part of the blessing ceremony. (Robin Rowland)
Kitimat mayor Joanne Monagahan uses the traditional bottle of champagne (inside a safety jacket) to christen the Snowflake Responder III as coxswain Christopher Peacock watches. (Robin Rowland)
The Snowflake Responder III does a demonstration practice in Kitimat harbour (Robin Rowland)
Snowflake Responder III (Robin Rowland)
Approaching the dock at MK Bay Marina. (Robin Rowland)
|
The Snowflake Responder III is a Falkins Class Type II Vessel with the following specs: – LOA: 33′ – Beam: 11’9″ – Draft: 28″ – Top speed: 40 knots – Cruising speed: 30 knots – Crew: 4 to 5 – Maximum capacity: 12 – Stretcher capacity: 3 – Gross weight: 17,000 lbs – Engines: Twin D6 Volvo – Horse power: 435 per engine – Propulsion: Twin Hamilton Jet Drives – Service years: 30 – Range: 240 nautical miles – Infrared heat sensor: “FLIR” M626 |
The CCGS Gordon Reid, a Canadian Coast Guard offshore patrol vessel, is seen on a stormy, wet and windy Douglas Channel, off Coste Island, south of Kitimat, on Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014.
The Gordon Reid is currently (as of 2200 Oct 17, 2014) towing the Russian container vessel Simushir which lost power off the coast of Haida Gwaii and threatened to run aground on the island’s pristine shores. (CBC story as of 2200 Oct. 17, 2014)
A BC wildfire helicopter flies through smoke and clouds into the sun over the Kitimat River preparing to dump water on the afternoon of July 17, 2014. (Robin Rowland)
Updates with cause, Friday morning situation
A wildfire broke out in the Strawberry Meadows neighborhood, about two kilometres south of Kitimat, around 4 p.m. on Thursday, July 17, 2014. Kitimat Fire and Rescue quickly responded to the call, setting up a command post at the back of the Oviatt Contracting construction yard which was close to the fire. The District of Kitimat says the fire was caused by an unattended canpfire on the Kitimat River bank. The fire began about 100 metres square and driven by strong winds, quickly spread to two hectares and then about three. (The District release says the fire was about one hectare, the one to three hectare estimate came from those on scene at the time). Oviatt officials say the fire was technically in Haisla territory, within the boundaries of the estuary and river reserve area #1, a traditional Haisla fishing area.
Kitimat Fire and Rescue found that the overgrown brush near the river was too thick and called in the BC Wildfire forestry service firefighters. As they waited, Kitimat Fire organized a firebreak with the help of Oviatt employees on site which luckily had all the heavy equipment needed to cut a gap through the bush to the river. By 5 p.m. winds had spread the smoke and haze throughout the town.
At one point fish camps on the Lower Dyke Road were evacuated as a precaution. First one, then two Forest Service helicopters arrived to fight the fire, and later were joined by a aerial tanker from Smithers which made about six or seven drops on the fire. A second firebreak was pushed through the bush.
Smoke and haze from the fire blanket Kitimat around 7 p.m. Thursday (Robin Rowland)
The tanker was then redirected to a fire near Terrace while the helicopters continued to drop water on the fire. At the height of operations, according to a release from the District of Kitimat, seven BC Forestry Service Firefighters on the scene and 12 Kitimat Firefighters were there monitoring the fire guards for any hot spots.
A wildfire helicopter picks up water near the Silja Festival in Kitimat harbour to fight the blaze at about 8 p.m. (Robin Rowland)
The firefighters were worried that strengthening winds would drive the fire either toward the upscale homes in Strawberry Meadows or toward the fishing camps along the river on the Lower Dyke Road. While the wind did become much stronger in the early evening, the weather was quickly turning cool and there were light raindrops by the time the District said the fire was contained at 8:18 p.m. Kitimat Fire and Rescue left a crew at the Oviatt site overnight to monitor for hotspots.
Kitimat Fire and Rescue assess the fire situation after arriving at the command post set up at the Oviatt Construction yard. (Robin Rowland)
Firefighters and Oviatt employees work on plans to create a firebreak. (Robin Roiwland)
Two heavy ecavatorss head into the bush, watched by the fire crew (Robin Rowland)
Eventually three big excavators were used to create the fire break. (Robin Rowland)
The first forestry helicopter arrives on scene. (Robin Rowland)
As of Friday morning forestry crews were surveying the area for “a dangerous tree assessment” and to check for hotspots. The District of Kitimat reminded everyone in the news release that a campfire ban is in effect.