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Your guide to weekend fun THURSDAY JANUARY 19, 2023 LOCAL NEWS – LOCAL MATTERS
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MENTAL HEALTH
Crisis team now up and running Mental health calls can now be diverted away from police Theresa McManus
tmcmanus@newwestrecord.ca
The new peer assisted care team (PACT) is up and running in New Westminster, and it has already responded to its first call. After months of preparatory work, the mobile team — made up of a mental health worker and a peer support worker — launched earlier in January.The team is designed to respond to the needs of people impacted by mental health issues and substance use, especially those who are marginalized and/or at higher risk of experiencing distress or criminalization from police contact. “We’re out there. So far, it’s been pretty quiet; we’re just slowly kind of doing our outreach,” said Nicole Sto Tomas, coordinator of the local PACT program. “But we did actually get our first call on Friday, so that was exciting.” The team’s first call came via New Westminster Fire and Rescue Services, whose members had responded Continued on page 3
GONG HEI FAT CHOY: Seven-year-old Alice Wang of Burnaby works on a sky lantern with her grandmother, Lucy Wu. They were among the folks who attended a Jan. 15 workshop at Anvil Centre, part of the city’s Lunar New Year celebrations. See page 13. PHOTO JENNIFER GAUTHIER
Witnesses, car sought in brutal assault NewWestminster police are searching for a blue Pontiac Sunfire that’s believed to be connected to a brutal assault just before Christmas. The NewWestminster Police Department is also appealing for witnesses and dash-
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cam footage connected to the incident, in which a man was found unconscious and suffering from serious injuries near Begbie and Carnarvon streets. Police say the man was sent to hospital and treated for “life-altering injuries” fol-
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lowing the attack, which happened on Friday, Dec. 23, 2022 at about 11:15 p.m. Police say the man, who’s in his 50s, was assaulted by someone who was with two other people.The group left the area in a car, which police
describe as a blue, four-door Pontiac Sunfire with black rims. Anyone with information is asked to call the NWPD’s major crime tip line at 604-5292430 or email mcucrimetips@ nwpolice.org.
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