Cortes Currents

Roy L Hales/ CKTZ News - As of Sunday, August 1st, there will be a 75% cutback in number of paramedics available to the Cortes Island Ambulance Service.

In fact, there won’t be any paramedics available on August 1st, or eleven other days that month.

This is a two person job, but there will only be two paramedics available for 16 of the 62 shifts in August, and service levels will continue at that level.

A full crew is two paramedics; half and half means one paramedic available for half a shift – chart drawn up by Roy L Hales

According to one of the island’s paramedics, who asked to remain anonymous because of the consequences:

“My understanding of the options that remain for sick/injured people when there are not paramedics on call include:

–sending a crew over from Quadra during ferry-running times

-sending a crew from Campbell river by coast guard and having patients meet them at the Manson’s dock if possible.

-sending paramedics by helicopter, who can then access and make use of the ambulance on Cortes (but will have a hard time finding their way)

-the supervisor for Cortes will call off-duty paramedics at home, hoping someone might be available and willing to become an on-duty paramedic. Some paramedics have said they would be willing to do this, sometimes.

“These solutions come with challenges, increased wait times, and they make use of resources that are already probably operating at capacity… The Quadra Island crew is often busy looking after Quadra island residents.”

This is the dark side of the BC Emergency Health Services (BCEHS) enhanced emergency services, which will create more than 170 regular positions across the province – while slashing service levels in more remote communities like Cortes Island, Zeballos, Tahsis and Sayward.

For the past four years, paramedics have been guaranteed at least four hours pay for each of their 12 hour shifts.

This has been abolished. Now paramedics are back to $2 an hour standby pay unless they are called out.

Unfortunately, $2 an hour is not a living wage.

“All the paramedics I have spoken to feel very abused and neglected and rejected by their employer. Many have quit. Others are hanging in there, hoping for change but only doing the minimum that they are committed to. All have found other employment and are engaged in doing what they need to do to look after their needs,” said the anonymous paramedic.

“Those hanging in there have had their trust in the system shattered. It is uncertain whether that trust can ever be rebuilt. That is perhaps the greatest tragedy – good people, giving up while an institution undermines its foundation – the workers – and sacrifices patient care to save some dollars. … All this after one of the toughest years for paramedics around the world and a global awakening to the value of essential workers, perhaps especially in health care.”

What can Cortes residents do?

“Reach out to your local decision-makers,” said the paramedic.

North Island MLA Michele Babchuk is aware of this situation, but could not respond to Cortes Currents request for an interview in time for this broadcast.

Photo credit: The Cortes Island Ambulance Chief during a 2017 exercise - photo by Roy L Hales

Anastasia Avvakumova/ CKTZ News - At the Cortes Island Museum and Archives Society (CIMAS), a current exhibit celebrates bees while the online archives take off in popularity.

The Listening to Bees exhibit opened on World Bee Day, May 20, earlier this year with a live demonstration of a beehive -- catch it at the museum again on Thursday, August 14 10 am - 12 noon. The exhibit includes bee lore, past and present beekeepers’ tools, informative displays showcasing the four native species, a slew of educational videos which can be watched on demand, fascinating bee facts and the work by mycologist Paul Stamets in recovering the health of honeybees through mycelium extracts.

The second current exhibit, That WasThen | This Is Now, is a retrospect of CIMAS in its various iterations since its public inception in 1998.

The online archives have been attracting a lot of digital attention and traffic to the archives room, as well as research requests.

Since starting its summer hours 6 days a week in June, the museum on Beasley Road, which also functions as a tourist information centre, has seen a lot of visitors -- almost entirely from British Columbia. 21 people joined the Gumboot Walk in Manson’s Lagoon on July 10; another is planned for August and one more in September.

Jane Newman has been the managing director for CIMAS since the spring of 2018 and finds great enjoyment in learning about and working with the people and place of Cortes Island.

Photo Credit: display showing Paul Stamets' work on how mycelium extracts can save honeybees. photo by Anastasia Avvakumova

Roy L Hales/ CKTZ News - Chief Darren Blaney, of the Homalco Nation, suggests that six months training is not enough to equip the Campbell River RCMP to deal with intense situations like that which led to the recent shooting of Jared Lowndes.

>> Lack of training in dealing with complex issues

“There is a lot of emphasis on physical training and physical fitness, but not policing with social problems and mental health issues. Escalation and racial bias are not really examined during the training period,” said Blaney, who has relatives in the force. “I think there are a lot of things we miss in the lack of training. I wonder how they handle stress? How do they handle pressure situations like what happened to Jared?”

Jared Lowndes fled when they attempted to serve an outstanding warrant for weapons offences, on July 8th. When the RCMP caught up to him in the Tim Hortons parking lot, they allegedly smashed into his vehicle from three sides - boxing Lowndes in. Then they sent a police dog in. Lowndes defended himself with a knife, killing the dog, and the police responded by gunning him down.

The Independent Investigation Office said it cannot comment, but the victim’s family informed CKTZ News that the warrant was old and Lowndes had already been acquitted by the court.

Chief Blaney said that if the police were better trained and knew how to de-escalate, both Lowndes and the police dog would be alive today.

Lowndes two daughters, Phoenix and Patience, would still have a father.

>>> Too many Indigenous killings

It has been six years since RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson admitted there are racists in his police force.

”Yet nothing was done about it. All these deaths … are from the lack of action,” said Blaney.

Blaney mentioned the recent police shooting of Chantelle Moore, in New Brunswick.

“It was a health check, health and wellness, and they shot her five times. There was some real lack of de-escalation training and it is our people that pay the price in many of those situations,” he said.

Moore was one the four Vancouver Island First Nations people that police have killed in a little over a year. Three of these deaths occurred on Vancouver Island.

“I was listening to CBC and they were talking about the training police receive. A nurse called in and said that it takes her four years of university to become a nurse. For a police officer, who has the authority to use lethal force, it only takes six months,” said Blaney.

Photo credit: the street-side memorial to Jared Lowndes, across from where he was shot - photo by Roy L Hales

Anastasia Avvakumova/ CKTZ News - On Monday July 19, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that August 9 is slated as the starting date for allowing fully vaccinated U.S. citizens into Canada for non-essential travel.

The border restrictions will lift at 12:01am EST on Monday, August 9, three weeks following the milestone announcement, provided case numbers continue the trajectory of decline.

The local data shows cause for optimism. Island Health cited 2 new cases this week for a total of just 14 active cases as of Wednesday, July 21. Of these, only 1 is hospitalized and none are in critical care. The total for patients currently hospitalized across B.C. is 48, the lowest it has been since last September. In the Greater Campbell River Local Health Area, the reported number of cases decreased from 3 to 1 for the week ending July 17. The overall rate of samples testing positive for COVID-19 is less than 1% on Vancouver Island and most of the province.

Canada’s border restrictions have been in place since March 18, 2020. The upcoming big shift will see U.S. citizens and permanent residents who meet the specific criteria to be exempt from the previously mandatory 14-day quarantine and essential travel reasons.

U.S. President Joe Biden did not reciprocate with an easing. Two days following Trudeau’s announcement, the U.S. administration confirmed the extension of its closure to the nationals of both Canada and Mexico until August 21. This is speculated to be due to the U.S. not being ready to reopen its southern border and navigating political complexity by choosing to keep all land borders shut.

Meanwhile, the Canadian government plans to lift restrictions for eligible travellers from the rest of the world on September 7. It’s possible this decision will be reviewed, as international flights arriving from overseas -- notably Mexico -- have been reporting a rise in infected travelers. This is despite the fact that passengers must show proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test prior to boarding an aircraft.

An increase in cases has also been reported in countries such as Israel, the United Kingdom and other European nations. Among these recent cases internationally, a large portion is attributed to people who have only received one or neither of the vaccine doses. (A similar phenomenon was reported in British Columbia last month). France has responded domestically with harsh regulations requiring vaccine passports, which caused huge protests to erupt nationwide in the last week. Demonstrators are appalled at losing their freedoms and signs such as “Hands off my natural immunity!” summarize the clash in beliefs.

Manda Aufochs Gillespie/ Folk U - Lake Biology 101 - Learning to love our Lakes on Folk U Radio .

What does it mean to love our local lakes? Learn more this week at Folk U Radio with Friends of Cortes Island and local guests Miranda Cross and Rex Weyler.

What is the basis of lake biology? How can humans impact and heal lakes? Tips on what can be done about: algal blooms, better drainage, climate change affects on lakes, protecting drinking water, and more.

And updates from the FOCI lake monitoring program and other reports on our local lakes.

And get an update on our local Dillon Creek Wetland Restoration project: planning, permitting, fundraising, jobs, project partners, construction, ecological benefits, wildlife habitat.

Call in the station from 1 to 3 p.m. with questions at 250-935-0200 or email [email protected] in advance.

Roy L Hales/ CKTZ News - About a hundred people attended the memorial for Jared Lowndes, who was gunned down by the RCMP outside the Campbell River Tim Hortons takeout on July 8, 2021.

One of the three stops they made was at the RCMP station, where the crowd voiced their anger outside the door.

Lowndes mother, Laura Hamilton, and more than a dozen protesters went inside, where three officers met them. You could see the officers mouth’s moving, but their words were drowned by the roar that erupted in response. The only voice you hear in the audio is Hamilton’s, who would not accept the RCMP explanation.

“There is no possible way you could understand the terror every time I close my eyes. I see the holes in his face, I see the f____ holes in his face. Do you understand, every time I close my eyes I see my son’s brains blown out,” she shouted, above the rising chants.

Chief Darren Blaney, of the Homalco Nation, blames the shooting on the RCMP’s lack of training. He said the police should not have the authority to use lethal force after only six months training. The first nations community, and people of colour, are paying the price.

The RCMP were attempting to serve an outstanding warrant for weapons possessions.

According to Fay Blaney, the great aunt of Lowndes daughters Phoenix and Patience, Lowndes was acquitted of the associated charges years ago. The court dismissed them after Lowndes common-law wife confessed she had planted the gun in his possessions.

However the warrant, to obtain a sample of DNA that could show if Lowndes touched the gun, was still in the system.

Fay Blaney said the First Nations community has been targeted by police. She suspects that Lowndes fled because he knew the RCMP could inflict violence upon him with impunity.

According to a memo sent to Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale in 2017, 36% of the people fatally shot during the previous decade were Indigenous, but they constitute less than 5% of the population.

Lowndes is the fourth member of Vancouver Island’s First Nation community that police have killed in a little over a year.

When they caught up with him at the Tim Horton’s take-out, the RCMP rammed Lowndes car from three directions. Lowndes and his four month puppy were trapped inside. The RCMP sent the police dog Gator in after them. Lowndes defended himself with a knife. The RCMP responded by shooting him in the face three times. Unconfirmed reports state he may have been shot 6 times.

Photo Credit: Lowndes mother, Laura Hamilton, standing beside Chief Darren Blaney of the Homalco Nation at the police dog Gator's memorial - photo be Roy L Hales

Anastasia Avvakumova/ CKTZ News - Closely observing and responding to weather fluctuations has always been key to a grower’s success, however the recent extreme heat in early July is forcing farmers to rethink plans for future resiliency.

“This heat dome was the first time where I actually felt, holy crap, here it comes. We've been talking about it, we've been hearing the impact of the droughts in some of our southern neighbors. We're going to have to get a lot stronger about how we're doing things and how we're supporting each other as community members and how we can support the food producers.”

Tamara McPhail and Adam Schick of Linnaea Farm gave their perspective on this 2021 summer season. The dryness of this summer means mitigating fire danger is paramount. The heat also dried the grass reducing its nutrition content, and the 11 cows who also live at Linnaea were mooing continuously during the worst of the heat. McPhail can translate this as their discontent and was concerned that she would have to supplement their diet with hay, which would mean depleting their stockpile of winter provisions.

Making hay is an important annual activity at Linnaea. The first step is cutting, then what’s known as “tedding” or fluffing the hay so that it dries sufficiently to then be raked and baled. Tedding traditionally takes two days and farmers listen for the sound the hay makes when it’s ready for the next step. This year “it definitely had that sound on on the first day … and the bales were super light, too. We felt like über strong humans by lifting up these bales. I've never seen hay dry that fast or feel that light, and they were difficult to stack in our barn.”

Linnaea growers are grateful for the community support they receive during their haying workbees. “I never know who's going to show up, but I've never felt that we are short handed.”

When asked about the dry spell, Schick replied, “The weather's been so up and down for a long time, I would say since the early 2000s. This is my 25th year of gardening. When you farm, you see these cycles and you adapt to it. So, it's not the weather that happened today. It's whether you and I can do things to change the outcome.” Gut instinct and the agrarian senses play a big part in decision-making on the farm.

The conversation also touched upon climate change, local sustainability, shrinking our impact and the seed library starting up at Linnaea.

CKTZ also heard about the challenges of dry weather from grower Noah Davidson of the Whaletown Garden Centre, who emailed a few gardening tips:

“I tend not to expect rain in the summer and rely solely upon thorough waterings to keep the garden happy. The small amounts of rain we get in the summer are rarely enough to penetrate the soil very deeply.

The few days that we had with the extreme heat was a challenge but most plants will adapt with a little extra watering. A plant under stress from extreme heat will wilt to protect itself from the sun, which a deep and thorough watering in the early morning can help alleviate, as can misting plants with water midday, which lowers leaf temperatures.”

Roy L Hales/ CKTZ - Dino Tsakonas: the face of CityWest in our area

After more than two decades with local internet provider Twincomm, Dino Tsakonas has become the face of City West throughout much of our our region.

In this morning’s interview he explains how this came about and gives a few more details about the Last Mile project that will bring more reliable high speed internet to homes on Cortes and Quadra Islands, as well as other communities throughout our region.

“It really started with me being involved in the undersea fibre project, that was the partnership between the SRD (Strathcona Regional District) and CityWest. I was heavily involved because I was trying to get more fibre for Twincomm, “ he explained. “What happened was we were trying to work out a deal last fall, between Twincomm and City West, that kinda fell through a little bit and then CityWest just offered me a job.”

Now Tsakonas is CityWest’s Regional Manager for our area. He is overseeing a potential expansion into multiple islands, - including Quadra and Texada Islands - as well as potentially Powell River and parts of Vancouver Island.

One of his first actions, however, was to get Twincomm and CityWest back to the negotiating table.

“Right now we are in negotiations to see if CityWest can purchase Twincomm,” he explained.

Cortes will also be the first local location where fibre optic cables are brought directly into the homes. They will be using a technology that can go under roads, without disturbing them.

Tsakonas advises everyone on Cortes to get it, while its free.

He also discusses different prices layers in the podcast above.

Manda Aufochs Gillespie/ Folk U - Folk U Radio April 9th 2021 is Spring and the Big 3 Predators.

In partnership with the Cortes Island Museum and Archives, this Folk U features Jane Newman sharing news of the museum and stories of Spring from the archives. The second hour features Laurel and Donna curators of the upcoming Big 3 Exhibit opening soon at Wild Cortes! to learn about this exciting new exhibit and the stories of Cortesian interactions with bears, cougars, and wolves from over the ages.

Manda Aufochs Gillespie/ Folk U - Folk U Radio celebrates 50 with the Awakaneers

Folk U Radio celebrates 50 live shows on CKTZ 89.5 FM this Friday at 1 p.m. Please join host Manda Aufochs Gillespie and Cortes's local musicians the Awakeneers (developers of the Folk U Radio theme song Think!) for live music and a peak "back stage" into the music-making lives and inspiration of these neighbours.

Folk University has brought hundreds of neighbours together to share their interests, skills, and knowledge in the fewer than three years since its founding. And when the pandemic shut most everything else down, Folk U didn't miss a beat thanks to a partnership with Cortes Community Radio and Cortes Currents and neighbours willing to tune-in rather than turn-out.

In 50 shows we've learned more about the local environment, wild fire, the brain, art, and what the big issues of our day mean to small towns and smaller islands. You can catch-up at folku.ca/podcasts.

Now, let's dance! Celebrate! Listen with a friend! Folk U Radio is taking old school viral every Friday at 1 and Mondays at 6:30 @CKTZ89.5FM or livestreamed at cortesradio.ca or you can find repeats anytime at www.folku.ca/podcasts.