Seffernsville: Family Wants To Fix Community Spelling

Ruby Seffern says she wants to protect the heritage of her family. The Seffernsville resident is looking to change the name of the community to Seffernville for historical reasons and to reflect the proper spelling. She wants the Municipality of Chester to persuade the Department of Transportation to correct the issue. Seffern says her and her son could be the only people in the area with the last name.



However, the municipality is waiting for a community response before the issue can move ahead. Council would need a majority of the residents to be in favour of changing the community name. Council itself would also have to agree, and supporting evidence would have to support that a change is warranted. The information would then be forwarded to the province for decision.

Liberals Could Introduce February Holiday In 2015

If you didn't pay much attention to the provincial election, maybe this will peak your interest. The Liberal MLA for Clayton Park West, Diana Whalen, has been pushing to introduce a February holiday for nearly a decade. Whalen has introduced a private member's resolution for a new holiday every year since 2005 but it's been turned down every time. The Grits won a majority in Tuesday's election prompting questions as to when the holiday will be implemented. Premier designate Stephen McNeil stopped just shy of promising to make the holiday a reality on Wednesday morning when talking to reporters. However, Whalen says the new Liberal government will have to consult with business leaders to see what kind of impact it will have on their operation. That probably means no new holiday until 2015.

Ottawa Gives Funding For Recreational Fish Conservation

Ottawa will provide up to $112,000 to support recreational fisheries conservation on the South Shore and across the province. Among the projects, the Bluenose Coastal Action Foundation will receive $50,000 for its salmon conservation project on the LaHave River. Executive Director Brooke Nodding says they want to help bring angling back to the river. She says over the next two years the foundation will join its partners to improve fish passage in the North Branch of the river. Work will include bank stabilization and debris removal from culverts.



Meanwhile, $62,000 is being provided for the Nova Scotia Salmon Association's conservation project. A total of six projects in Nova Scotia were approved for funding under the Recreactional Fisheries Conservation Partnerships Program. The announcement was made this morning in Lunenburg by South Shore-St. Margaret's MP Gerald Keddy.

Shelburne Man Arrested In Quebec City

A Shelburne County man charged with abducting his baby two years ago has been arrested on a Canada wide warrant in Quebec City. Corporal Nancy Mason says 45 year-old Collin James Lawrence was taken into custody last Wednesday and transported back to Nova Scotia. The warrant was issued September 30th after he didn't show up to his Supreme Court trial child abduction. Lawrence was arrested in 2011 near the New Brunswick border after allegedly taking his newborn child from its mother. The Supreme Court trial regarding the abduction matter has rescheduled for October 28 in Barrington. He's facing five new charges in relation to his failure to appear, those matters will be dealt with on October 16 in Shelburne Province Court.

Students Get Involved With Municipality Of Chester

Students will act as advisors in the Municipality of Chester. Warden Allen Webber says council has endorsed the student government at Forest Heights Community School to act as an advisory committee. Webber says he met with members of student council to see how the municipality could engage the group. He says the student body will receive agendas ahead of meetings and can provide council with feedback.



Webber feels students deserve to have their voices heard, and this will provide them with that avenue. The warden presented a draft terms of reference to council members that stated the student committee will also provide input in the municipal newsletter and appear at council once a year.

Some Gas Prices May Fall Tonight, Others Rise

Look for another drop in South Shore gasoline prices Friday morning. The price for diesel might increase though. In New Brunswick today, the Energy and Utilities Board has lowered the price for self-serve regular by almost a cent. No such luck for diesel users though. Diesel is up by almost three cents a litre to $1.40.1 and furnace oil has jumped by 1.2 cents to $1.16.7. The price for propane is down half a cent.

Mahone Bay, Berwick Partnering On Wind Project

Mahone Bay is teaming up with an outside municipality to supply their own electricity. Mayor Joe Feeney confirms the town, along with the town of Berwick are proposing to build a 16-megawatt windfarm near Ellershouse in the Windsor area. The municipalities currently buy their electricity from Nova Scotia Power and resell it to their residents. Feeney says the proposed seven wind turbines could be up and running and producing power in 2015. However, he says both towns still need to clear a few hurdles.



Minas Basin Pulp and Power was awarded the contract to develop the project. Feeney estimates the project with cost between 21 and $25-million. He expects the towns of Lunenburg, Antigonish and the community of Riverport to join the partnership.

Burger Recall Extended

A burger recall has been expanded due to possible E.coli contamination. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency recall was first announced last week and involved Compliments brand Super 6 Beef Burgers sold in packages of six in Ontario and Atlantic Canada. The recall now includes the same brand of burger sold in Ontario in Sobeys, Sobeys Urban, Foodland, Freshco and Price Chopper stores. President's Choice Beef Burgers in 4.54-kilogram packages in Loblaws banner stores and Webers Bucket of Burgers sold in 1.02 kilogram packages, also sold nationally, are also being recalled. Food contaminated with E. coli may not look or smell spoiled but may cause serious and potentially life-threatening illnesses. Signs or symptoms of infection, include stomach pain and diarrhea

SiRT: No Charges Against Liverpool Officer Following Pursuit

An RCMP officer from Liverpool is off the hook following an investigation by the province's Serious Incident Response Team. SiRT was looking into a motor vehicle pursuit in June. The incident stemmed from an alleged domestic assault in Lunenburg, before a 37-year-old man started driving on Highway 103 and went off the road in Granite Village, Shelburne County. The officer followed the vehicle and was on scene when the crash occurred and alerted EHS. Director Ron MacDonald feels the officer did his duty.



MacDonald says no charges will be laid against the officer. SiRT is responsible for investigating all serious incidents involving police in Nova Scotia.

Lunenburg: Liberals Win Behind Lohnes-Croft

In the riding of Lunenburg, Suzanne Lohnes-Croft of the Liberals scored an upset of sorts over incumbent NDP MLA Pam Birdsall. She defeated Birdsall by nearly 400 votes in a tight battle which was fought right down to the final few polls. Lohnes-Croft says she plans to work hard as an MLA.



Progressive Conservative candidate Brian Pickings garnered 2,495 votes to finished third. Lohnes-Croft picked up 37 percent of the ballots cast.

Queens-Shelburne: Belliveau Secures Election Victory

In the riding of Queens-Shelburne, the NDP were able to secure an election victory behind Sterling Belliveau. He raked in 3,066 votes to win the riding by 363 over his next closest competitor PC candidate Bruce Inglis. Belliveau says the night was filled with mixed emotions.



Belliveau captured the riding by taking 37 percent of the vote. Liberal Benson Frail finished third and took in 2,286 votes.

Liberal Furey Wins Lunenburg West Riding

The second time was the charm for Liberal Mark Furey in the riding of Lunenburg West. In a tightly contested riding, Furey pulled in 3,931 votes to defeat NDP incumbent Gary Ramey. Ramey had a solid showing with 2.826 votes on the night. Progressive Conservative candidate David Mitchell picked up 2,143 votes to finish third. Rob Pierce of the Green Party had 219 votes. Furey says he's looking forward to representing residents in the riding, but also paid tribute to his team of volunteers.



This is the second time Furey ran for MLA, after finishing third in 2009. He won the riding taking 43 percent of the votes. Voter turnout in Lunenburg West was 59 per cent.

Peterson-Rafuse Reclaims Chester-St. Margaret's Riding

One of the few New Democrats returning to the Legislature will be Denise Peterson-Rafuse. The incumbent for Chester-St. Margaret's held off a hard-charging PC candidate Janet Irwin to win by 148 votes. Peterson-Rafuse says the results have left her feeling surreal.



Overall, 65% of eligible voters in Chester-St. Margaret's cast their ballot in the election. Peterson-Rafuse received roughly 35% of the popular vote in the riding. Final totals are below.

Chester - St. Margaret's

Denise Peterson-Rafuse (NDP) - 3,341 votes

Janet Irwin (PC) - 3,193 votes

Tim Harris (Liberal) - 2,943 votes

Election: Liberals Win Majority/Dexter Loses Seat

A tough night for the NDP turned into a political disaster for Darrell Dexter, who lost his government and his seat in the Nova Scotia legislature. In maybe the biggest upset of the night, Dexter lost his riding of Cole Harbour-Portland Valley by 31 votes to Liberal Tony Ince. Dexter had been a member of the legislature for 15 years. Meanwhile, Premier designate Stephen McNeil and his Liberals claimed a majority government winning 33 seats in the 51-seat legislature. The Grits broke through and nearly swept the seat rich Halifax area - long known as an NDP strong hold. The Progressive Conservatives under Jamie Baillie picked up four seats in the legisature to form the Official Oppostion. They finished with 11 seats in total. The NDP finished the night with seven seats.

Phone Lines Down At Queens General Hospital

The phone system is down at Queens General Hospital. South Shore Health says the hospital is not able to answer incoming calls at this time. The patient line is also out of service. The health authority is asking residents of Queens County to dial 9-1-1 if they have a medical emergency. Technicians are currently working to correct the issue.

Bridgewater: Police Seize 36lbs Of Grass

South Shore police have taken thousands of dollars worth of pot of the streets. Members of the Bridgewater Police Service, Chester RCMP and Street Crime Unit were able to seize 25 pounds of grass after a raid in the Northwest Cove area last Friday. They were able to recover harvested marihuana and mature plants along with production equipment. Police say they seized 36 pounds of grass over a one week period. It has a street value of $54,000. No charges are expected at this time.

Bridgewater: Council Agrees To Draft Noise By-Law

The topic of a noise by-law is back in front of councillors in Bridgewater. Council has agreed to move ahead with drafting the by-law after a lengthy discussion during last night's session. The subject has been floated around the town for a number of years. Mayor David Walker and councillor Michael Graves voted against creating a draft version of the document. Walker feels more needs to be done before anything is written in stone.



Walker says the by-law will come back to council for future decision.

Park View Sweeps NSSAF Provincial Golf Titles

Park View Education Centre proved their medal on the golf course. Members of the high school golf team secured NSSAF provincial titles in both the boys and girls categories. The girls took top spot over Horton and Northumberland while the boys got by Lockview and Cobequid. Individually, Ryan Nowe of Park View won the boys championship after a seven under-par, 65. He won by seven shots.

Advance Polls Show Large Turnout

If advance polls are any indication, there could be a large turnout today at polling stations. Officials at Elections Nova Scotia say more than 100,000 people cast their ballot. Thats about a 66 per cent increase over the number of voters who cast an advance ballot back in the 2009 election. Advance polling was available throughout the campaign and political scientist Agar Adamson says that was an encouraging development in the electoral process.



Offficials at Elections Nova Scotia are hoping overall voter turnout today will at least match the 58 per cent who came out to vote in 2009. Polling stations opened at 8 this morning and will close at 8 o'clock this evening.

Election Results Live Tonight

It's voting day in Nova Scotia and CKBW will have all the results beginning when the polls close at 8 o'clock this evening. We will have live reports from South Shore ridings and a look at close races right across the province. We will focus on the ridings of Lunenburg West, Chester St. Margaret's, Queens-Shelburne and Lunenburg. Our panel will include veteran politicians Vicki Conrad, Al Mosher and Jim Davis. Listen live beginning at 8 o'clock for the latest and most up-to-date election results from the South Shore.