LOCAL NEWS: VOLUNTEER WEEK ▼ A8 & A9
Times
Thursday, April 3, 2014 ▼ Volume 50 No. 14 ▼ www.clearwatertimes.com ▼ $1.35 Includes GST
THE
NORTH THOMPSON
PARCEL TAXES:
District explains tax review. See page A3 inside.
Second Place Best All Round Newspaper Third Place Best Editorial Page All of Canada <1,250 circulation 2013 Second Place General Excellence B.C. and Yukon <2,000 circulation 2013
The wonder of the falls The Murtle River thunders into the icecone at the bottom of Helmcken Falls in this photograph taken a few weeks ago. Several ice-climbers had succeeded in climbing the overhang just to the left of the falls a few days before the photo was taken. Photo by Keith McNeill
CN gates crossing after snowmobile incident Keith McNeill A snowmobiler stopped a train near Blue River several weeks ago. The stoppage resulted in the CN mainline being shut down for more than four hours. As a result of this and other incidents, CN gated the Mud Lake Forest Service Road railroad crossing, which is within a few hundred meters of where the stoppage had occurred. On Friday, March 21, a variety of stakeholders met in person or by teleconference to try to resolve the issue. According to Ron Storie, manager of community services with the Thompson-Nicola Regional District, the snowmobiler apparently was unable to
leave the tracks when a train approached because of the high snowbanks. The rider stayed with his sled, forcing the train to stop. Transport Canada was informed and the rail line was shut down entirely for more than four hours. According to Storie, the train crew was unable to identify or detain the snowmobiler. "I’d like to think it wasn’t someone local," said the TNRD official. The incident occurred near the Mud Lake Forest Service Road crossing, which is located immediately north of the Blue River airstrip. "This has not been the only incident of misuse at the tracks," Storie said. Apparently,
VIA has lodged numerous complaints about the crossing over the years. CN then proceeded to gate the crossing. Mud Lake Forest Service Road has been in existence for more than 50 years but apparently the railroad has the license to gate it. Blue River Powder Packers issued a notice on Feb. 21 informing snowmobilers that access to the Redsands parking lot had been closed by CN until further notice. The club encouraged the sledders to ride in the Finn Creek Zone south of Blue River instead. Although the road has been used primarily for logging, a long list of stakeholders soon became involved. Continued on page A20
A gate restricts access across the CN tracks at the Mud Lake Forest Service Road north of Blue River. Tracks to the left indicate that some have been using the crossing despite the gate. Photo courtesy of Willow MacDonald
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