Coldwater River nearing village’s treatment infrastructure
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Nov 19, 2021 • 9 hours ago • 3 minute read • 90 Comments
The British Columbia government is rationing gasoline and restricting travel on Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, southwestern parts of the province and the Sunshine Coast after this week’s unprecedented storm severed highways and cut supply lines.
Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said a limit of 30 litres of fuel per visit to a gas station is an important step to maintaining the supply as the province works to bring in more gas by truck and barge from Alberta, Washington state, Oregon and California.
He said the order would apply for 10 to 11 days and he trusts that people won’t be greedy while keeping critical services in mind as they focus on residents whose communities have been devastated by flooding.
He says police will not be enforcing the 30-litres-per-visit rule, but will be relying on residents to “do the right thing.”
Farnworth says if people follow the restrictions, B.C.’s gas supply will hold for the next 10 to 11 days.
He says gas stations are required to ensure their supplies last until Dec. 1 in southwestern B.C., the Sea To Sky region, Sunshine Coast, Gulf Islands and Vancouver Island.
Farnworth said non-essential travel has also been prohibited on sections of highways 99, 3 and 7 starting Friday and passage through restricted areas will be reserved for commercial transport of such goods as food, water and medical supplies.
“As roads are repaired and the backlog of essential traffic clears, restrictions on essential travel can and will be eased. We will be releasing the details on enforcement in short order,” he said.
“But my hope is that everyone understands the need for these restrictions and fully co-operates. In other words, if you don’t need to be travelling right now, don’t. Stay home. And if you can’t do that, carpool or take public transit or work from home.”
Officials in Merritt are working with the provincial Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resources on what the city called the “new course” of the Coldwater River.
The city inundated by floodwaters says the river is now much closer to Merritt’s wastewater treatment infrastructure, causing problems with its operation.
An update posted on Merritt’s Facebook page on Friday says the city and the ministry are starting to investigate whether rerouting the river to its original course would be possible, though no plans exist yet.
B.C. Agriculture Minister Lana Popham says affected farmers will be eligible for the province’s disaster relief, and she has been assured by her federal counterpart that there would also be support from that jurisdiction.
Highways throughout the southern parts of the province saw major damage, and some, like the Coquihalla, will not be rebuilt for several months while limited access has been restored to others with single-lane traffic permitted.
Transportation Minister Rob Fleming said Highway 3 from Hope to the southern interior of the province had opened for essential travel and Highway 99, which links up with Highway 97 north of Cache Creek, could be open by Sunday depending on whether crews can continue their work.
“I want to emphasize this will not be travel as we’d expect under normal conditions. Crews will be on site with heavy equipment to continue to repair the roads. And until that work is complete, the traffic is going to be slow on these routes.”
TORONTO – Roots Corp. may have built its brand on all things comfy and cosy, but its CEO says activewear is now “really becoming a core part” of the brand.
The category, which at Roots spans leggings, tracksuits, sports bras and bike shorts, has seen such sustained double-digit growth that Meghan Roach plans to make it a key part of the business’ future.
“It’s an area … you will see us continue to expand upon,” she told analysts on a Friday call.
The Toronto-based retailer’s push into activewear has taken shape over many years and included several turns as the official designer and supplier of Team Canada’s Olympic uniform.
But consumers have had plenty of choice when it comes to workout gear and other apparel suited to their sporting needs. On top of the slew of athletic brands like Nike and Adidas, shoppers have also gravitated toward Lululemon Athletica Inc., Alo and Vuori, ramping up competition in the activewear category.
Roach feels Roots’ toehold in the category stems from the fit, feel and following its merchandise has cultivated.
“Our product really resonates with (shoppers) because you can wear it through multiple different use cases and occasions,” she said.
“We’ve been seeing customers come back again and again for some of these core products in our activewear collection.”
Her remarks came the same day as Roots revealed it lost $5.2 million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of $5.3 million in the same quarter last year.
The company said the second-quarter loss amounted to 13 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Aug. 3, the same as a year earlier.
In presenting the results, Roach reminded analysts that the first half of the year is usually “seasonally small,” representing just 30 per cent of the company’s annual sales.
Sales for the second quarter totalled $47.7 million, down from $49.4 million in the same quarter last year.
The move lower came as direct-to-consumer sales amounted to $36.4 million, down from $37.1 million a year earlier, as comparable sales edged down 0.2 per cent.
The numbers reflect the fact that Roots continued to grapple with inventory challenges in the company’s Cooper fleece line that first cropped up in its previous quarter.
Roots recently began to use artificial intelligence to assist with daily inventory replenishments and said more tools helping with allocation will go live in the next quarter.
Beyond that time period, the company intends to keep exploring AI and renovate more of its stores.
It will also re-evaluate its design ranks.
Roots announced Friday that chief product officer Karuna Scheinfeld has stepped down.
Rather than fill the role, the company plans to hire senior level design talent with international experience in the outdoor and activewear sectors who will take on tasks previously done by the chief product officer.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:ROOT)
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, are set to resume today as a strike that has stopped most services drags into a second week.
No timeline has been set for the length of the negotiations, but Joe McCann, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they are willing to stay there as long as it takes, even if talks drag on all night.
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people unable to navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last Tuesday, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
Hundreds of drivers rallied outside TransLink’s head office earlier this week, calling for the transportation provider to intervene in the dispute with Transdev, which was contracted to oversee HandyDART service.
Transdev said earlier this week that it will provide a reply to the union’s latest proposal on Thursday.
A statement from the company said it “strongly believes” that their employees deserve fair wages, and that a fair contract “must balance the needs of their employees, clients and taxpayers.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
MONTREAL – Travel company Transat AT Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year earlier as its revenue edged lower.
The parent company of Air Transat says it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31.
The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue in what was the company’s third quarter totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
Transat chief executive Annick Guérard says demand for leisure travel remains healthy, as evidenced by higher traffic, but consumers are increasingly price conscious given the current economic uncertainty.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:TRZ)
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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