Three people were sent to hospital Saturday in what Cornwall police are calling a gang-involved shooting and what one eyewitness described as a terrifying attack pitting one groups of bikers against another.
Cornwall Police Services spokesperson Stephanie MacRae said three people were injured but could not confirm the nature of their injuries. They are in hospital in stable condition.
“There was an altercation that occurred between motorcycle gangs,” she said. She did not name the gangs.
The shooting occurred in the area of Vincent Massey Drive and 14th Street W in Cornwall, according to police, who said officers responded at about 8:20 p.m.
MacRae said several people are in custody, though she would not say how many. The investigation remains ongoing.
“We can confirm that there’s no further risk to public safety,” she said, adding that it was an “isolated” incident between people who knew each other.
Barb Leggett, a commander with Cornwall SDG Paramedic Services, also said three people were transported to a hospital in Ottawa. She could not comment on their conditions.
Boopathi Venkatesan, owner of Wow India, said he witnessed an altercation between motorcyclists from his restaurant window. (Radio-Canada)
Boopathi Venkatesan, who owns the nearby restaurant Wow India, said he saw a serious altercation at the site before police arrived.
He described four motorbikers sitting near the Cora restaurant between about 7:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. Sometime after 8 p.m., he saw a group of between eight and 12 other people arrive on motorbikes and immediately start beating the other four.
“There was a lot of blood,” he said.
Injured biker couldn’t get up: eyewitness
Venkatesan said he went to call 911 but noticed police were already arriving on the scene.
He said some of the motorbikers drove away. His view was partly obstructed by remaining motorbikes but he saw at least one person lying on the ground.
“He couldn’t stand up, so right away police came and start to give first aid,” he said.
Venkatesan said he did not see or hear gunshots, though he was inside his store watching from the window and could not hear much of the altercation either.
“This is scary,” he said. “This is something new from us … this is the first time I have seen something like this.”
Cornwall Mayor Justin Towndale said the incident was shocking.
“We’re a safe community. We’re not used to seeing anything like this, and it certainly sends a shock through the entire community… People are worried, people are scared.”
Acting police chief Vincent Foy agreed that the incident was “alarming,” and rare for Cornwall.
“We have dedicated appropriate resources to actively investigate this incident and are working closely with our law enforcement partners,” he said in a statement.
‘It was crazy’
Vinai Cherian said he was working at the nearby Quickie convenience store at the time of the shooting. He heard a sound like a gunshot, though he initially thought it was a bursting tire.
Soon after, he said, a customer came into the store and said there had been a shooting.
“I took it seriously and just closed the store and stayed inside,” said Cherian.
Police came within a minute or so. He could not see the site of the altercation, which is behind the Quickie, but said he saw two motorbikers drive away as officers arrived.
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
