There’s no indication that a vehicle crash and explosion Wednesday that killed two people on the American side of the Rainbow Bridge — which connects Ontario and New York — is linked to terrorism, says New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.
“Based on what we know at this moment, there is no sign of terrorist activity in this crash,” Hochul said at a news conference.
She said an individual from Western New York was “involved” in a “crash,” but she did not clarify if the person was the driver.
“We’re going to ensure the public is safe before they go back on the Rainbow Bridge.”
Late Wednesday evening, the FBI in Buffalo confirmed in a statement posted on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, that it had concluded its investigation at the scene of the incident. The post said that a search “revealed no explosive materials” and that investigators found no connections to terrorism.
It said the investigation is now in the hands of the Niagara Falls Police Department in New York state.
<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/NEW?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#NEW</a> Statement from <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/FBI?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#FBI</a> Buffalo regarding the investigation at Rainbow Bridge: <a href=”https://t.co/4lwvq8PsAe”>pic.twitter.com/4lwvq8PsAe</a>
Hochul said events began at 11:27 a.m. ET. The explosion led to the closure of four area bridge border crossings ahead of the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend.
Information about the second person who died was not available.
Shortly after 5 p.m., Ontario Provincial Police said the Peace, Queenston-Lewiston and Whirlpool Rapids bridges had reopened. The Rainbow Bridge remained closed.
“Naturally, at a time of heightened alert, everybody springs into action,” Hochul said. “We’re not aware of any threats to this area, but I state the caveat that the investigation is ongoing.”
Canadian government sources told CBC News on Wednesday afternoon that answers about what happened may take some time as the vehicle involved was badly burned. Ottawa is “highly confident” the car originated in the United States, they said.
Vehicle basically ‘incinerated’
Hochul said a video shows how the vehicle basically “incinerated” and nothing was left but the engine.
“It’s going to take a lot of time for our federal law enforcement partners … to be able to piece together the real story.”
A police officer directs tourists in Niagara Falls, N.Y., away from the Rainbow Bridge border crossing after a car exploded within the customs plaza on Wednesday. (Derek Gee/The Buffalo News/The Associated Press)
Earlier Wednesday, the FBI Buffalo Field Office posted on X that it was investigating a vehicle explosion.
“The FBI is coordinating with our local, state and federal law enforcement partners in this investigation. As this situation is very fluid, that’s all we can say at this time.”
The Buffalo Niagara International airport said on X that it was open and “fully operational.”
PMO in contact with U.S. officials
The Rainbow Bridge connects the tourism sectors of Niagara Falls, Ont., and Niagara Falls, N.Y. It has 16 car inspection lanes into the U.S. and 15 into Canada. The Niagara Falls Bridge Commission website, which oversees the bridges, says they see about seven million passages annually.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s press secretary, Jenna Ghassabeh, said in an email shortly after the explosion that Trudeau was briefed “by the national security and intelligence adviser about the situation in Niagara Falls.”
The email said the Prime Minister’s Office is “in contact with the U.S. officials. The minister of public safety, RCMP and CBSA [Canada Border Services Agency] are fully engaged and providing all necessary support.”
Trudeau, speaking in the House of Commons, called it “a very serious situation” and said his office would “remain engaged” on the incident the rest of the day.
Government sources told CBC on Wednesday afternoon there was no firm conclusion on whether the explosion was intentional. Because it was at a site of critical infrastructure, the operating assumption from government is there is a security threat until proven otherwise, they added.
A spokesperson from Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center confirmed a border patrol agent was treated and released with non-life-threatening injuries from the explosion.
Shortly after the explosion, the CBSA told CBC Hamilton via email that it was “liaising with our U.S. counterparts on this matter.”
The U.S. transportation agency, the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority, said it was “increasing security system-wide.”
Security was also stepped up at other Canadian border crossings.
The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel said it was operating at a “heightened level of security” in the wake of the explosion at the Rainbow Bridge. In a statement, the tunnel’s chief executive officer said the crossing remained open but some delays were expected. Officials are monitoring the situation at other Windsor-Detroit border crossings as well.
In northwestern Ontario, border crossings at the Fort Frances Bridge between Fort Frances, Ont., and International Falls, Minn., the Pigeon River crossing near Thunder Bay remain open. The CBSA also lists the bridge crossing between Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., and Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., as open.
The Niagara Regional Police Service wrote on X there was “no known threat on the Canadian side” of the border. The service added the public should expect to see more police out, as well as road closures near the bridges and “significant traffic congestion on Niagara roadways, including highways.”
Also on X, Toronto police wrote that while they are unaware of any threats to the city, they would be increasing officer patrols “out of an abundance of caution.”
‘One city divided by a border’
Jim Diodati, the mayor of Niagara Falls, Ont., told CBC Hamilton he was getting out of a dentist appointment around lunchtime when he learned about the explosion.
“As soon as I saw [the] border closed, the hair on my back stands up,” Diodati told CBC.
“We often say Niagara Falls is one city divided by a border.”
If you can imagine, the bridge was packed with cars that had to turn around and be sent back to Canada. It was nerve-racking.”– Forrest Willett, Ontario resident
As a border town, he said, the crossings are important to Niagara Falls. They facilitate trade and tourism, and many locals have loved ones on the American side.
“It’s cause for alarm,” he said, especially given people tend to cross this time of year for the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday and Black Friday shopping.
In a situation such as this, the mayor said officials prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
Witness accounts
Ontario real estate agent Forrest Willett was waiting to cross into the U.S. over the Peace Bridge for work on Wednesday when border officers began approaching cars.
He said an officer told him they were evacuating the bridge as there had been an explosion at the nearby Rainbow Bridge.
Canadian shopper describes reaching border crossing right after explosion
Featured VideoAlex Moran and his girlfriend reached the Rainbow Bridge just after the explosion. He describes the experience of being caught up in the violent incident and the subsequent border crossing closures.
Willett said he felt like the “elevator floor” had dropped out from under him and he was counting down the seconds until he could get off the bridge.
“If you can imagine, the bridge was packed with cars that had to turn around and be sent back to Canada,” Willett said. “It was nerve-racking.”
He said the officers directed traffic and all personal vehicles drove off the bridge within 20 minutes. They’re now crammed on streets and parking lots and people wait for the bridge to reopen, he said mid-afternoon.
Jose Ventura Jr. was visiting Niagara Falls, N.Y., with his family on Wednesday. They had just stopped at a nearby park and were heading toward the Rainbow Bridge when they heard a loud bang and saw thick smoke.
He told CBC Hamilton his 10-year-old daughter was “really scared and screaming out.”
Moments later, he said, police began evacuating the area.
“We just had to get out of there,” Ventura said. “We were worried something else might occur and for sure didn’t feel safe.”
EDMONTON – The legendary k.d. lang got the band back together at the Canadian Country Music Association awards show.
Lang teamed up with the Reclines for the first time in 35 years to belt out “Big Boned Gal” from their last album together in 1989.
Clad in a blue and green western-style dress, lang strut across the stage in Edmonton to embody the “big boned gal from southern Alberta.”
The awards show saw Alberta’s MacKenzie Porter and Ontario’s Josh Ross take home hardware for being best female and male artists of the year.
Ross also won entertainer of the year and single of the year for “Trouble.”
Ontario artist Jade Eagleson won album of the year for “Do It Anyway.”
The James Barker Band from Woodville, Ont., won fans’ choice and group of the year.
During their acceptance speech, frontman Barker hinted at new music and a possible tour in 2025.
Ross says he and his band play roughly 150 shows every year and are never home, but says taking home entertainer of the year made the hard work worth it.
Porter won for female artist of the year and top video for “Chasing Tornadoes.”
The female artist win ends the five-year streak of Tenille Townes being awarded the coveted hardware.
Porter had been nominated seven times previously for the award in the past decade but hadn’t won until now.
The artist from Medicine Hat, Alta., says it takes a lot of hard work and hustle to succeed as a female in the country music industry and gave a shout out to her fellow singers and her newborn daughter.
Joining the two artists in the winners’ circle was Ontario singer-songwriter Owen Riegling, who won for breakthrough artist of the year.
The show began with American artist and co-host Thomas Rhett being dubbed an honorary Canadian by Edmonton Oilers players Corey Perry and Leon Draisaitl.
Rhett donned an Oilers jersey that was gifted to him by the pair.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2024.
EDMONTON – Ontario country artist Jade Eagleson has won album of the year at the 2024 Canadian Country Music Association Awards in Edmonton.
The singer from Bailieboro, Ont., was up for six awards alongside Alberta’s MacKenzie Porter.
Eagleson took home album of the year for “Do It Anyway” and says he’s thankful to his wife and management team for helping him reach the level he’s at.
The James Barker Band from Woodville, Ont., also won fans’ choice and group of the year at the award show, held in Edmonton.
During their acceptance speech, frontman Barker hinted at new music and a possible tour in 2025.
Another Ontario crooner, Josh Ross, has taken home a trio of awards, receiving entertainer of the year, male artist of the year and single of the year.
He says he and his band play roughly 150 shows every year and are never home, but says taking home entertainer of the year makes the hard work worth it.
Porter took home female artist of the year, ending the five-year streak of Tenille Townes being awarded the coveted hardware.
Porter had been nominated seven times previously for the award in the past decade but hadn’t won until tonight.
The artist from Medicine Hat, Alta., says it takes a lot of hard work and hustle to succeed as a female in the country music industry and gave a shout out to her fellow singers and her newborn daughter.
Joining the two artists in the winners’ circle was Ontario singer-songwriter Owen Riegling, who won for breakthrough artist of the year.
The show began with American artist and co-host Thomas Rhett being dubbed an honorary Canadian by Edmonton Oilers players Corey Perry and Leon Draisaitl.
Rhett donned an Oilers jersey that was gifted to him by the pair.
The return of k.d. lang and the Reclines was expected to be a highlight of the show.
The appearance will mark the first time the Alberta songstress has teamed up with the band in 35 years and is tied to lang’s induction into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame.
The awards show is back in Alberta’s capital for the first time since 2014. It was held in Hamilton last year and in Calgary in 2022.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2024.
VANDERHOOF, B.C. – British Columbia Conservatives are promising changes they say will bring more stability to the province’s struggling forest industry.
Leader John Rustad announced his plan for the sector a week before the official launch of the provincial election campaign, saying a Conservative government would do away with stumpage fees paid when timber is harvested and instead put a tax on the final products that are produced.
Rustad said Saturday that under a provincial Conservative government, a small fee may be charged upfront, but the bulk would come at the end of the process, depending on what type of product is created.
He also promised to review how wildfires are managed, as well as streamline the permit process and review what he calls the province’s “uncompetitive cost structure.”
“British Columbia is by far the highest cost producers of any jurisdiction in North America. We need to be able to drive down those costs, so that our forest sector can actually be able to do the reinvestment, to be able to create the jobs and make sure that they’re still there to be able to support our communities,” he said.
The governing New Democrats meanwhile, say eliminating stumpage fees would inflame the softwood lumber dispute with the United States and hurt forestry workers.
In a statement issued by the NDP, Andrew Mercier, the party’s candidate in Langley-Willowbrook, said Rustad failed to support the industry when he was in government under the former BC Liberals.
“Not only will Rustad’s old thinking and recycled ideas fail to deliver, his proposal to eliminate stumpage would inflame the softwood lumber dispute — punishing forestry workers and communities,” Mercier said, accusing Rustad of ignoring the complexity of the challenges facing the industry.
The softwood lumber dispute between the U.S. and Canada stretches back decades. In August, the U.S. Department of Commerce nearly doubled duties on softwood lumber.
International Trade Minister Mary Ng has said Canada has taken steps to launch two legal challenges under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement.
Rustad said a provincial Conservative government would push hard to get a deal with the United States over the ongoing dispute “whether it’s with the rest of Canada or by itself.”
He said his party’s proposed changes are in the name of bringing “stability” and “hope” to the industry that has seen multiple closures of mills in rural communities over the last several years.
Most recently, Canfor Corp. decided to shutter two northern British Columbia sawmills earlier this month, leaving hundreds of workers unemployed by the end of the year.
According to the United Steelworkers union, Canfor has closed 10 mills in the province since November 2011, including nine in northern B.C.
Jeff Bromley, chair of the United Steelworkers wood council, said Saturday the idea of changes in favour of taxing the final product has been floated in the past.
He said the finer details of the Conservative plan will be important, but that the system needs to be improved and “new ideas are certainly something I’d be willing to entertain.”
“Something needs to happen, or the industry is just going to bleed and wither away and be a shadow of its former self,” Bromley said.
“Politics aside, if (Rustad) can come up with a policy that enables my members to work, then I would be supportive of that. But then I’m supportive of any government that would come up with policies and fibre for our mills to run. Period.”
When Canfor announced its latest closures, Forests Minister Bruce Ralston said the sector was a “foundational part” of the province and the current NDP government would work to support both local jobs and wood manufacturing operations.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2024
