Wheatley residents and businesses remain in limbo one year following town centre explosion
CBC
The fate of Wheatley's town centre remains unknown, and some residents and businesses continue to be on the outside looking in a full year after an explosion tore apart its downtown core.
The explosion, which is suspected to have been caused by a gas leaking from abandoned wells, took place the evening of Aug. 26, 2021. It destroyed two buildings, injured 20 and left nearly 100 households and dozens of businesses displaced.
Earlier this year, the municipality of Chatham-Kent shrunk the evacuation zone around the blast but work continues to plug gas wells discovered in the area of the explosion. By its most recent count, 37 households remain displaced, 21 businesses are still closed and the investigation into the cause of the blast has never been concluded.
The Municipality of Chatham-Kent said right now there is no timeline for the town centre to reopen.
"Building officials will confer with businesses in the affected area once work has been completed on capping wells and related site work," said the municipality through an email.
This leaves many questioning their future in and around the town centre.
We checked in with community members and business owners most affected by the blast to see how they are coping one year on.
A year ago, Barry Broadbent negotiated with fire crews to try and save his stock of frozen chicken inside his restaurant, Car Barn, just metres away from the blast site. Today he is left uncertain about the future of his business inside the town centre.
"I think it's going to be really tough to convince the consumer or the residents or the business people in Wheatley ... that it's safe to come back," he told the CBC.
"It happened years ago and it's now happened again so obviously, we're dealing with something that isn't 100 per cent guaranteed."
Broadbent said the 15 staff members that worked at his restaurant have moved on and if they were able to reopen, there are many unknowns including inflation and other costs that have risen since he was forced to close. He also doesn't know the extent of the structural damage to his building.
"There's just so many things that could adversely affect you," he said.
He has been getting by running a catering business out of a trailer, as well as making use of a business interruption insurance policy but that expires after a year which is now up.
"After this Friday, I'm on my own, I'm still not in my building so all the expenses are going to have to be incurred by myself," he said.
A man has been found guilty of second-degree murder in the shooting death of a Toronto mother outside a supervised consumption site in Leslieville.
Russian olive trees — sometimes known as silver berry or oleaster — are small, ornamental plants with silvery leaves and black bark, and small yellow flowers and silver fruit that look like miniature olives. They’re pretty, but they’re a problem.
The Yukon Legislative Assembly’s fall sitting ended on Thursday after the territorial government introduced and passed a supplementary budget.
A Canadian military counter-intelligence operative, who stands accused of passing sensitive information to Ukraine, was involved in an investigation into allegations that a leading Canadian defence journalist was a longtime Russian asset.
An Alberta panel aimed at finding ways the province can strengthen its autonomy has offered up seven recommendations, including options for referendum topics.
People won't be able to travel along B.C.'s Highway 3 without significant delays and detours over the holiday season, says the Ministry of Transportation.
Photos of a wooden box, allegedly used for student "time outs" at an elementary school in Akwesasne, drew shock and anger from parents this week and have prompted an investigation by the school district.
A 26-year-old man from Toronto has been arrested on terrorism charges, police announced on Friday, as well as charges for two attempted kidnappings in the Greater Toronto Area.
St. Jude’s Anglican Church in Iqaluit has fallen on tough financial times.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced a large shuffle of deputy ministers and senior public servants in a shake-up at the top of the public service that has long been expected around Ottawa.
Alberta's declining COVID-19 vaccination rate is sparking more concern as it becomes clear how uptake in the province compares to other parts of the country.
Drivers faced treacherous road conditions Friday morning as tempuratures started to drop below freezing following a night of rain.
A cold front is sweeping through the Greater Toronto Area Friday morning, according to a special weather statement by Environment Canada.