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May 13, 2015 (Vol. 40 No. 38)
ÂŽ
V O I C E
O F
W H I T E
R O C K
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S O U T H
Try-fecta: All three senior girls rugby teams in South Surrey – Semiahmoo, Earl Marriott and Elgin Park secondaries – are focused on provincials, after Fraser Valley championships wrapped up Thursday. i see page 29
S U R R E Y
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Not valid with any Extra Value Meal, Happy MealŽ, or other McCafÊ beverage. At participating McDonald’sŽ restaurants in Canada. Product availability varies by restaurant. Š2015 McDonald’s
City-ordered work divides community along White Rock’s waterfront
Bluff clearcut catches many off guard Melissa Smalley Staff Reporter
White Rock residents were shocked to see the extent of “vegetation clearing� on the Marine Drive bluff last week, expressing anger and disbelief at the clearcutting of the hillside. Several residents called Peace Arch News and took to social media last week to express their disappointment after work began to remove trees, shrubs and other vegetation
along the ‘hump,’ work the city said was for “maintaining slope stability, increasing line of sight and eradicating invasive species.� Historically, any such work in the area has been contentious. Critics this year speculated that the clearing work was actually done to improve the views of Marine Drive residents along the stretch of waterfront, from the pier to Johnston Road. “It just doesn’t make any sense to me,� said
David Ludwar, a Columbia Avenue resident. “There’s got to be some other motivation in terms of why they’ve done what they’ve done.� Not everyone was disappointed with the work, however. In an email to PAN Thursday morning, resident Peter Dunik said the work opened up “gorgeous and inviting views of the pier, bay and rock for everyone.� i see page 2
Melissa Smalley photo
Trees and other vegetation were cleared.
Woman enabled attack
3 years for role in home invasion Tracy Holmes Staff Reporter
A woman who facilitated a violent home invasion in South Surrey last year was sentenced Wednesday to three years in prison for her role. Prior to learning her punishment, Dixie Lee White told Surrey Provincial Court Judge James Sutherland that she blamed her actions on a drug-use relapse. “Obviously, this isn’t something I would do clean and sober, so I would like an opportunity to get my life back together,� White told the court. “I don’t think the best place to recover is in jail.� White, 29, was one of three people arrested following the June 22 earlymorning beating and robbery of a resident in the 15200-block of 36 Avenue. One of the victim’s dogs was also injured in the incident. The court heard that White had attended a home in the area after responding to an online request for an escort and arranging by text message to meet the resident. Shortly after arriving by taxi, White asked to use the 36-year-old resident’s washroom and headed upstairs. i see page 4
Melissa Smalley photo
White Rock Elementary students, along with teacher Kerry Peters, take a ride in the Quake Cottage, which simulates a magnitude 8.0 earthquake.
Earthquake simulator encourages preparedness for natural disaster
Students take thrill ride of their lives Melissa Smalley Staff Reporter
The rumbling noise starts softly, gradually increasing until the booming is so loud you can feel it in your chest. Suddenly, the movement starts – slow at first but, before long, violently thrusting you front-to-back, side-to-side. Images of buildings crumbling, people panicking and black smoke billowing flash before your eyes on a big-screen TV. What seems like several minutes pass as you hold on for dear life, your hands gripping the handles in front of your chair, the only thing stopping you from being flung from your seat. The experience is called the Quake Cottage, and last week, students in White Rock had
the chance to test out the mobile earthquake simulator, which was in town for Emergency Preparedness Week. The cottage was on site at the White Rock Fire Hall Thursday, as part of a four-day tour throughout the Lower Mainland. The Peninsula stop saw more than 150 excited elementary students experience the sensation of a magnitude 8.0 earthquake. While the students reacted much the way they would to an amusement-park ride – with excited screams and nervous laughter – the underlying message was not lost on them. White Rock firefighter Ed Wolfe gathered a group of shaken Grade 6 students to talk about the importance of emergency preparedness. “A real earthquake wouldn’t be as fun as the
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ride,� one student pointed out. “If there was an earthquake and you needed to get under a desk, would you crawl or walk?� another student asked. “You would get there the quickest and safest way possible,� Wolfe replied. Speaking to Peace Arch News after the event, Wolfe explained one of the main objectives was to relay the importance of having items in their homes and classrooms secured. “Allowing them to see how violent the shaking is, and why they need to be securing things to the walls, these are all things that they should be thinking about, and their parents too,� he said, noting residents should have a plan in place for all types of disasters.
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