NS Gov't Wants Auditor General Reviewing Bluenose II

The Nova Scotia government wants the auditor general to review ballooning costs related to the Bluenose II rebuild in Lunenburg. Premier Stephen McNeil states there are too many questions surrounding the project. The AG's review will shed some light on why the project is so over budget.. Earlier this week, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation revealed through a freedom of information request that some supplies for the schooner were purchased at a 43 percent mark-up price. It's believed the cost of the project has soared over its $16 million price-tag.

Martin, Whalen Among Nominees For Athletics Nova Scotia Awards

A number of South Shore athletes have been nominated for awards from Athletics Nova Scotia. Bridgewater's Rachael McIntosh and Jenna Martin along with Liverpool's Chelsea Whalen are up for top senior female. Lunenburg's Jesse Drennan and Conquerall Mills' Mattias Wolter are up for top senior male. Tobias Wolter, also of Conquerall Mills, is nominated for youth male athlete of the year. Bluenose Athletics coach Tanya Daniels is in the running to win the High Performance Coach Excellence award. The awards will be handed out March 1.

Ready! Set! Zoom! Gas Prices Expected To Rise Again!

Gas prices at South Shore pumps will likely rise again overnight tonight when the provincial utility and review board sets prices for the coming week. In New Brunswick today, regular self serve there is up two cents a litre. Diesel is up 5 cents. The Nova Scotia Utility & Review Board will set our prices at midnight and the increases are expected to be similar to those in New Brunswick. Diesel may remain unchanged here though after this week's increase of 6 cents a litre.

Queens-Shelburne Tories To Hear From Leader Baillie

Provincial Progressive Conservatives in Queens-Shelburne will meet tonight. Leader Jamie Baillie will be the keynote speaker at their annual general meeting. He will outline how the party's new role as official opposition will work.



Queens-Shelburne was a seat the Progressive Conservatives narrowly lost in the October election. NDP MLA Sterling Belliveau held on to the seat by 363 votes over the PC's Bruce Inglis - who finished second.

Tonight's AGM begins at 7:30 at the Liverpool Lions Hall.

Ice Creating Challenge For LaHave Ferry Resumption

The Department of Transportation remains optimistic that the LaHave River Ferry will be back in service by the end of the week. Spokeswoman Pam Menchenton says there is a considerable amount of ice in the river. She says crews on site are hoping for wind and good tides to shift the ice that would allow the ferry to be hooked back up to the cable. The ferry has been out of service since January 3 after it broke free from its cable during a strong wind and snowstorm.

Flag Signing Held For Alex Duckworth

Lunenburg County's newest Olympian is about to get an extra push from local residents. The Municipality of Lunenburg and town of Bridgewater are giving people a chance to sign flags that will be given to Alex Duckworth before she competes in the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The flag signing will begin Friday night at the Lunenburg County Lifestyle Centre. One of the mayors, Don Downe, feels the support will mean a lot to Duckworth.



Both councils have also agreed to contribute $1,000 to help support Duckworth and her training. Flags will be available to sign until February 6 before Duckworth's parents take them to Sochi. Duckworth competes in the women's half-pipe snowboarding event on February 12. Below are the the dates when the flags will be available to sign at the Lunenburg County Lifestyle Centre.

Flag signing dates and times

January 31 - 6pm to 9pm
February 1 - 10am to 6pm
February 2 - 10am to 5pm
February 3 - 3:30pm to 5pm
February 4 - 3:30pm to 8pm
February 5 - 3:30pm to 8pm
February 6 - 3:30pm to 5pm

Less Than Ideal Driving Conditions

A reminder of road conditions this morning (Thursday) along the South Shore. Most have been ploughed overnight but most are still snow covered and ice underneath. The 103 is snow packed this morning so drive carefully, especially along the stretch from Bridgewater to Upper Tantallon. By the way, the back road closure plan is in effect for Lunenburg & Queens school buses.

Power Out In Eastern Section of South Shore

There's a power outage this morning in the eastern portion of the South Shore! Some 1200 homes are without power in the St. Margarets Bay area including areas along Highway 333 from Upper Tantallon to McGraths Cove including Tantallon, Glen Haven, French Village, Seabright, Glen Margaret, Hacketts Cove, Indian Harbour, Peggy's Cove, Middle Village, East and West Dover. Also without electricity, Upper Tantallon to Ingramport including Allen Heights, Head of St. Margarets Bay, Masons Point and Boutiliers Point. NSP hopes to have the power back on to everyone around 8am.

South Shore Curlers Ready For Scotties

A pair of South Shore curlers are about to begin their quest to bring a national women's curling title back to Nova Scotia for the first time since 2004. Jill Brothers of Liverpool and Blisse Joyce of Lunenburg will represent the province as part of Team Smith when the Scotties Tournament of Hearts kicks off on Saturday in Montreal. Joyce is competing in her third Scotties. For Brothers, it's only her second time competing at the national event after playing in 2007. She says she's better prepared for this year's event.



Nova Scotia opens up play Saturday afternoon against Newfoundland and Labrador.

Bridgewater: Councillor Concerned About Missing Civic Numbers

A town councillor is concerned about the status of civic numbering in Bridgewater. Wayne Thorburne says improvements have been made but there are still too many issues. He says some numbers aren't visible, others have contrasting colors and many are missing. Thorburne says that's a problem for emergency services, who have difficulty finding homes in the area.



Thorburne is looking for a by-law to be created to help fix the issue. More discussion is expected between council, the public and emergency officials.

Interim NDP Leader Making South Shore Tour

The interim leader of the NDP is making a swing through the South Shore. Maureen MacDonald says she will be meeting with some residents over the next few days to hear their concerns and gather feedback in advance of the spring session of the legislature. MacDonald says the party is moving on from a disappointing October election where they were left with just seven seats.



MacDonald says she will join MLA Sterling Belliveau for community consultations in the riding of Queens-Shelburne. There's no date for a leadership election for the NDP, who are seeking a new leader after Darrell Dexter stepped down following the last election.

Former Lunenburg MLA Eyes Federal Politics

A former MLA in Lunenburg is throwing her hat into the federal ring. Pam Birdsall has announced her intention to run for the NDP in the South Shore - St. Margaret's constituency in the next federal election. Birdsall spent four years in provincial politics before she was ousted from office by Liberal member Suzanne Lohnes-Croft in last October's election. Birdsall feels she's ready for a new chapter in her life.



Birdsall is the first person to announce their intention, and she expects to be challenged by others. She feels it's time to reign out the Conservatives.



The next federal election is planned for the fall of 2015 or sooner.

Halifax Wins Bid To Host World Men's Curling Event

Halifax will host the best men's curling teams in the world in 2015. The city has won hosting rights for the Ford World Men's Curling Championship. It will be played at the Metro Centre from March 28 to April 5 next year. It's the first time the world men's championship has been played in Nova Scotia. Halifax has hosted several major curling events in the past, including three Tim Hortons Brier events and the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. They've also hosted the Tim Hortons Roar of the Rings Canadian Curling Trials in 2005.

Snow In Forecast Closes Schools

Schools are closed all along on the South Shore. No classes for students under the South Shore or Tri County Regional School Board. The French School in Cookville and Waldorf School in Blockhouse is also closed today. Schools in the Annapolis Valley are also closed. Park View Education Centre in Bridgewater says in a tweet, exams will be written tomorrow instead. Environment Canada is predicting 10 to 15 centimeters of snow for the region.

Italy Cross: Couple Arrested, Face Murder Charges In Ontario

Two people were arrested Tuesday morning in Italy Cross in connection with a pair of deaths in Ontario. Sgt. Al LeBlanc says their major crimes unit assisted Peel Regional Police in helping carry out the arrests. Peel Regional Police Inspector George Koekkoek confirms 33-year-old Melissa Merritt and 36-year-old Christopher Fattore were arrested around 10am. They face first degree murder charges in the deaths of Caleb Harrison and his 63-year-old mother Bridget. Harrison was found dead in his Mississauga home last summer. His mother had died in the same home several years earlier. Her death had been considered suspicious. Koekkoek says it brings closure to the case for the families.



Both accused will make a court appearance in Halifax Wednesday morning. They're expected to return to Ontario on Friday.

Updated: Man In Serious Condition Following Barrington Fire

RCMP are investigating after a fire Tuesday afternoon in Barrington Passage. Police say a blaze broke out around 12:50pm in a mobile home that was under construction along Highway 3. A 69-year-old man from Barrington Passage sustained serious burn injuries and was airlifted by LifeFlight to the QEII Hospital in Halifax for further treatment. Fire officials were called to the scene along with police and EHS.

LaHave River Ferry Close To Return

The return of service for the LaHave River Ferry depends on the weather. An official with Department of Transportation, Pam Menchenton, says the ferry has to be moved to its original berth and it has to be attached to the cable. She says testing will follow, before the ferry can start crossing again. Menchenton says they're proceeding with caution.



She says they want to get it up and running as soon as possible to help local residents. The ferry broke free from its cable during a January 3rd snowstorm. It travels daily from East LaHave to LaHave.

Local Mayors, Wardens Push For Highway Twinning

The province is sticking to its plan when it comes to twinning Highway 103. Eight mayors and wardens from across the South Shore wrote letters to the minister of transportation and infrastructure renewal, urging him to consider a larger scale of the project. However, the minister says twinning the highway depends on cost-sharing opportunities with the federal government. Chester Warden Allen Webber says he understands the province's stance, but would like to see more being done.



The province is expected to start construction on phase one this year on a new interchange and connector road in Ingramport, which is included in their five-year highway improvement plan. Other phases are planned between Tantallon and Hubbards. They are currently in the planning and design work stages.

New Doctors Favour Quality Of Life, Shorter Patient Lists

A group representing doctors in Nova Scotia says they know many people in rural areas need a family physician. Kevin Chapman of Doctors Nova Scotia says shortages are creating pressure on the health care system across the province. He says 55 doctors have left their practice over the past five years. Chapman says it doesn't sound like a large number, but it's subtracting numbers from an already weak equation.



Meanwhile, Champman says new doctors are putting more weight into quality of life and balance when deciding where to open their practice. He says it's part of the reason patient lists are shorter than they were 10 or 20 years ago.

School Board Looks To Control Spending

Cost saving measures are being introduced within the South Shore Regional School Board in order to avoid a deficit. The belt tightening will hit substitutes in certain positions the hardest. However, Director of Finance Wade Tattrie says the cutbacks won't have any impact inside the classroom. He says if they kept the status quo, the board would be looking at a deficit of more than $360,000.



As of Monday - administrative, guidance and library staff will not be replaced if they can't be at work. Meanwhile, custodians will not be replaced on their first day off work. Tattrie says the board is confident they'll be able to save enough money to balance the books. The cost saving measures will be in effect until March 31.