Latest news with #Fraser
Vancouver Sun
2 hours ago
- Vancouver Sun
‘Nothing we can do': Air-traffic staffing crisis hits Vancouver airport hard during Canada Day long weekend
Long waits, missed connections and widespread frustration disrupted the Canada Day long weekend at Vancouver International Airport, where more than 200 flights were delayed due to an ongoing shortage of air traffic controllers at Nav Canada, the private company responsible for managing the country's airspace. 'Nav Canada let us know at about 1:30 p.m. on Saturday that this was about to happen at 3 p.m.,' said Stephen Smart, a spokesperson for YVR. The staffing shortfall at Nav Canada reduced the number of flights that could be handled in the area around YVR and cutting flight volumes to maintain safety. Between Saturday and Sunday, the airport experienced 219 flight delays and 23 cancellations. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. While flight operations at YVR were mostly back to normal by Monday, both the airport and airline officials say the weekend's disruptions exposed a chronic staffing problem that has worsened significantly since April, with no end in sight. 'It's been during peak travel periods that (YVR) has seen these staffing disruptions hit the hardest,' explained Smart. To help ease the delays, U.S. and Canadian customs agents agreed to extend their operations until 2 a.m. Sunday to process passengers. Food and beverage outlets stayed open late, and additional YVR staff were deployed to assist travellers. 'Anytime you are asking employees to stay longer or businesses to stay open later, there are lots of costs associated with that,' Smart said. 'It goes beyond hotel rooms for impacted passengers or crew that weren't able to make it back for their next flight.' The staffing shortage has more significant impacts on regional airports, said Smart, as they typically receive the lowest priority for available airspace. On Sunday, flights within B.C. accounted for 49 per cent of all delays at YVR, with a route to Calgary among the most affected. As summer travel ramps up, both the airport and airlines are speaking out about growing flight disruptions affecting passengers and flight crews across the province. Teara Fraser, CEO of Indigenous-owned Iskwew Air, says the ongoing shortage of air traffic controllers is threatening the survival of her small, local carriers. 'It's not a new problem, but it's the worst I've ever seen it,' said Fraser, whose airline operates short flights between Vancouver International Airport and Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island. 'Because of a lack of awareness about the situation, airlines often get blamed for everything that goes wrong. But there's nothing we can do.' Fraser said delays of 30 minutes to two hours are now a regular occurrence for her airline. The Canada Day long weekend was no different. 'Nav Canada has warned me to expect delays like these through this summer.' The CEO explained that since their pilots are bound by strict flight duty times, delays that exceed those limits require a new crew, creating further costs for both the company and its passengers. 'Because our flights are so short, the impact of these delays is substantial,' said Fraser. 'They've led to cancellations, which are stressful for passengers who are counting on a seamless connecting flight.' Tim Perry, president of the Air Line Pilots Association International Canada, said the shortage of air traffic controllers is a systemic issue the union has raised concerns about in recent years. 'Unfortunately, we've been commenting about this issue long before COVID,' said Perry. 'Nav Canada laid off every single trainee during the pandemic, and now we're seeing the consequences.' Perry said there is little that can be done to alleviate the shortage this summer, and the operational fallout is affecting not only passengers but pilots as well. 'If there's a delay for a passenger, there's a delay for a pilot. Days get longer, and cancellations can start to cascade,' he said. While Nav Canada acknowledged the issue, it warned that training and recruitment take time. The company says it is actively hiring and has brought on over 450 new staff since September 2023, including 230 air traffic controllers, with more than 500 trainees currently in the system. The company apologized in a statement over the weekend for the delays and said safety remains the top priority. 'Staffing progress is being made across the Canadian system, and we're seeing encouraging signs in many areas,' the company said. 'However, the path to full qualification is extensive, typically requiring 24 to 36 months of classroom instruction, simulation and on-the-job training.' Larger airlines are also feeling the pressure. In a statement Friday, WestJet called the situation 'unacceptable,' citing the essential nature of air travel for Canadians. 'These air traffic control staffing challenges frequently become the primary reason for delays throughout the WestJet network … and are being felt by guests across the country, even if they do not fly through Vancouver or British Columbia,' the airline said in a statement. Since April, more than 300,000 WestJet passengers have experienced delays related to Nav Canada's staffing issues. The airline said these disruptions have added 'considerable costs to airlines as their operations need to recover' and caused big headaches for travellers. Because these delays are outside airlines' control, WestJet says passengers aren't eligible for payouts under Canada's Air Passenger Protection Regulations. WestJet said it supports long-term hiring and training efforts at Nav Canada, but warned that the staffing issue remains unresolved heading into peak season. Consumer advocates, however, say airlines aren't doing enough to be upfront with travellers about the scale of the problem. Gabor Lukacs, a Vancouver-based aviation and consumer rights lawyer, believes Canadian airlines are aware of the frequent shortages, but continue to sell tickets without properly warning passengers. 'If you know that things are going wrong, airlines cannot sell those tickets in good faith,' he said. 'It's like sticking your head in the sand.' He called it 'deceptive' and 'dishonest' for airlines to issue vague advisories while continuing to book flights, as if Nav Canada wasn't chronically short-staffed. Lukacs urged passengers to know their rights. If a flight is delayed more than three hours and the airline is responsible, he said travellers may be eligible for $400 or more in compensation. 'You can file a claim with the airline. If they say no, you can take it to the B.C. Civil Resolution Tribunal,' said Lukacs. 'There's no way to prevent this from happening as a passenger, but you can still hold airlines accountable.' sgrochowski@
STV News
8 hours ago
- Health
- STV News
Families left 'scrambling' as secure ward to close within weeks
A secure hospital ward for people with complex learning disabilities in North Ayrshire is set to close within weeks, leaving vulnerable patients and their families scrambling to make alternative arrangements. The local health and social care partnership (HSCP) has decided to permanently close Ward 7A at Woodland View hospital from July 14 after the care within the ward 'fell far short of standards and expectations'. The 206-bedroom mental health facility and community hospital near Irvine was built in 2016, and Ward 7A is an eight-bed unit that provides assessment and treatment for patients who have complex learning disabilities and complex mental health needs, often associated with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. The ward has experienced 'significant challenges' for several years, according to partnership director Caroline Cameron. 'These challenges are mainly due to delays in discharge for patients to move to more appropriate community settings, an increasingly unsuitable physical environment for our patients, recruitment and retention of staff, and incidences of violence and aggression in the ward,' Ms Cameron said. 'Despite the commitment of our dedicated staff group and clinical team, the care within Ward 7A, Woodland View, has fallen far short of our standards and expectations. 'The challenges in Ward 7A have not improved and it is no longer suitable for patients to remain there.' The decision, announced to families and carers just one month before the ward's date of closure, has left families scrambling to find appropriate alternative accommodation. Fraser Malcolm, who has been in the hospital for four years, is one of the Ward 7A patients who will be impacted. Fraser, now 21, has limited speech and a rare chromosomal condition that affects one out of 85,000 to 100,000 males. STV News Andrew and Karen Malcolm Before he was sectioned, Karen Malcolm, Fraser's mum, described him as a 'very sociable wee person' who was active in the sailing community, well-known at the local horse stables, and 'the heart and soul of the party' on family occasions. The problems started during the Covid lockdowns when 17-year-old Fraser couldn't see family or loved ones and didn't get to do the things he enjoyed. 'We'd reached out to social work quite a few times to ask for help, and their solution was to phone the police,' Karen said. 'Fraser was taken away from home on March 9 by police to Woodland View hospital. We were told he was there for a six-to-12-week assessment. He is still there to this day.' Andrew and Karen have been fighting to get their son out of Woodland View for the past four years. They have a litany of complaints and concerns about the facility and how they've treated Fraser since he was sectioned. Andrew Malcolm, Fraser's dad, said they have raised multiple concerns and asked 'awkward questions' about his treatment in the facility over the years, but said they have been 'shut out'. They say they have only been able to see their son from a window for a year. 'We haven't been in Fraser's room for a year now,' Andrew said. 'We used to hold the NHS in high regard, but I have to say our experience of the HSCP is absolutely shocking. 'You go to hospitals to make people better, but Fraser is considerably worse.' Andrew said the hospital has 'taken away Fraser's basic human rights'. 'He's profoundly deaf; he wears hearing aids, but in Woodland View, he doesn't. They took his hearing aids off of him because on one occasion he put his hearing aids in his mouth. 'He's doing it because there's nothing else to do. His room has nothing in it. He has no TV, no nothing. 'They've put film up on his window so he can't see out. He's in a prison cell. 'He's in there, doesn't know what's happening, can't hear, can't talk, and he comes to his own conclusions about what's happening and what's not happening. He's a very angry, confused young man who needs his family there, and his family's been excluded. 'The whole thing is just staggering. It's going back to the dark ages of institutions. Woodland View is an institution in a modern building. Fraser, along with six other individuals, is stuck in there.' Andrew and Karen said they were finally making progress towards getting Fraser out of Woodland View and into his own house when they received a letter from the partnership, on June 13, warning them that the ward would be closing in four weeks. They had assembled a care team and put together a 'robust 12-week discharge plan' to help Fraser transition. They said that it has all been taken away with the abrupt closure of the facility. 'We now have to compress a 12-week discharge plan into eight days,' Andrew said. The letter said Woodland View would work with families and patients to find 'an alternative placement or another hospital facility where they can receive care as close to home as possible'. While Fraser's family is 'ecstatic' that he's finally leaving the facility, they are extremely concerned about the short timeframe and a lack of transition. 'We want to get Fraser out and keep him out. And that can be done, but not in what is now eight days,' Andrew said. 'The whole thing disgusts me. It makes me really, really angry that we're in this situation. 'I don't think we've slept since we heard the news. We're so concerned about how he's going to react to this. 'I'm hoping something [registers] with him that 'this is better'. We're clinging to the idea that anything is better than where he is now. 'We're elated he's coming out of hospital, we're ecstatic. But he has to stay out of hospital. Without the transition, there's a high risk he may not.' In a follow-up response to the Malcolms, the partnership recognised that the 'situation and timescales are not ideal to support a perfect discharge from hospital, but on a balance of risk, there is no option for Ward 7A to remain open beyond July 14'. Ms Cameron added that the patients in Ward 7A are 'all delayed discharges whose medical input and treatment has ended.' 'These patients are not being cared for in the most appropriate place to meet their health and care needs,' she said. She said the partnership is 'committed to ensuring that people are only in hospital for as long as they require assessment and treatment'. 'Discussions are ongoing with patients, their guardians, staff, and other healthcare professionals, including other NHS Boards and local authorities, to make sure robust discharge plans are in place and implemented.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Daily Record
a day ago
- Health
- Daily Record
Parents furious at council decision to remove school transport from vulnerable Ayrshire kids
A petition was launched by one of the parents after East Ayrshire Council removed school transport for vulnerable children with ASN. A heartbroken father has launched a petition after East Ayrshire Council removed school transport from children with additional support needs (ASN) for the rest of their school lives. The decision affects pupils attending specialist schools such as Willowbank Primary in Kilmarnock, which caters for children with complex physical and learning support needs, as well as their families. Fraser Jardine, 36, started a petition after receiving EAC's refusal letter which was sent out on Monday, June 23. The letter stated that his daughter, Gracie, would no longer receive transportation to and from school for the remainder of her school life. Nine-year-old Gracie has level five cerebral palsy due to a birth injury. She is non-verbal, unable to suck or swallow due to bulbar palsy and has epilepsy with regular seizures. Gracie is entirely dependent on tube feeding and receives 20 individual medication doses per day administered via syringe into jejunostomy. She has increased muscle tone with poor circulation and temperature control, cortical vision impairment, bowel irregularity due to her brain damage and weak lungs requiring daily attention. Gracie also recently had hip surgery in April this year to carefully manage her hip displacement, scoliosis and curvature of the spine which needs to be carefully managed and can cause her pain when exposed to the cold. Fraser, from Knockentiber, said: "In Gracie's situation, due to reports we had, her life expectancy is projected to be in her thirties, if she has the right therapies and physical, medical and environmental conditions in place. Gracie will be ten this year and to help her achieve this life expectancy and beyond she needs the best-case scenario in every situation through life giving her an optimum chance of reaching this goal which we are determined to see her get to. "Gracie is fragile and her health can go downhill very quickly. She is at the forefront of our family in everything we do and she is our motivation and driving force in getting through life and succeeding as a family." Gracie is currently getting a school bus every day with supervision. Fraser and his wife Amanda are deeply concerned and worried about the safety of getting Gracie and their other two children into school starting from August. Fraser says he now faces having to push a wheelchair and carry a suction machine while potentially exposing Gracie to harsh weather conditions every day to drop off her and her siblings. Moreover, Gracie's mum, a permanent makeup artist, will potentially have to change her available client booking for certain times which is a "roadblock for any parent". Fraser said: "Gracie already has very weak lungs and requires multiple daily chest physio, daily PEP mask administration, daily inhaler administration and this is with very little exposure to cold, harsh weather as we are selective as to when we take her out to ultimately protect her health. My main concern is risk of seizures while Gracie is unattended which could have unimaginable consequences." Fraser continued: "I think they are opening a huge can of worms here without proper thought. "It's a sickening blow to who needs help the most. I am shocked, appalled and insulted at the decision and encourage them to see the bigger picture with common sense. "In East Ayrshire Council strategic plan 2022-2027 one of the six strategic themes is to have a focus on 'improving community wellbeing and supporting children and young people' which is absolutely not the case and council have most certainly lost focus and failed miserably here." Fraser's petition to reinstate school transport for vulnerable ASN children already received over 2,000 signatures. Another Willowbank parent Sarah Fox, 34, from Lugton, joined the petition as she was "shocked" to see a refusal letter in her email inbox. Sarah's 11-year-old son Corey has 2two rare genetic conditions that affect his mobility, speech and learning. He uses a wheelchair full-time, is non-verbal and requires constant supervision. Sarah said: "It never occurred to me that the council would actually refuse children transport to school. Especially vulnerable children with additional needs. I felt a lot of things that day, sadness, anger and anxiety to name a few. "I would like to add that this refusal hasn't been applied to children in mainstream schools. Why? Are ASN children less deserving of transport to school? They are the ones that need it the most. "Just shows how much EAC thinks of the ASN community." Corey enjoys his bus journey to and from school every day and has great relationships with his bus guide and driver. When the school goes back in August, Sarah and her husband will struggle with a lack of transport. She explained: "My husband and I start work before the school day starts and finish after it ends. Both of us are unavailable to take him to school and pick him up again. "If I was able to cut my hours, and financially I'm not in a position to do so, I will need to drive 25 minutes each morning to school, since Willowbank is our closest ASN school, and then an extra 25 minutes to get to work from the school. "I would need to drive nearly 2 hours each day. With arthritis in my knee and lipedema in my legs, this is going to be physically challenging for me. Corrie-Beth Jeffrey, 29, from Crookedholm, is also concerned about her son Oliver who is only six-years-old. Corrie-Beth said: "Oliver is non-verbal autistic. Non-verbal meaning he can't speak at all apart from repeating some words back to us, he has difficulty communicating his emotions so he has meltdowns. "Our lives have to revolve around Oliver's routine, things can become very overwhelming for him so if we are out and he starts to become worked up we have to leave. Oliver also doesn't sleep at night. He has a prescription of melatonin but this only puts him to sleep at night and he will still wake up around 3/4am and be full of energy, this can also impact our day because I need to be up with him to make sure he is safe. "I also have an older son at nine-years-old so I am juggling my time between the two of them so my oldest can live as normal as possible life." Oliver had a taxi to and from school for two years now. His mum said it is a part of his routine in the morning which he loves. Corrie-Beth claims she received a letter from the council explaining that her son won't qualify for a taxi anymore as they live within a three-mile walking distance. She said: "The way they worded the refusal surprised me, they told me walking routes from our house to Oliver's school was safe for him to walk either accompanied or unaccompanied. My son can't speak, he has no understanding of road safety and lives in his own little world but can walk to school by himself apparently. They have no idea how challenging the world can be for our children. I think this is why we are all so ready for a change to happen. "I do not drive yet so I would have no other way of getting him to school apart from a bus and public transport is not something he feels safe in due to it being overcrowded."This decision will impact our lives so much. Most mornings Oliver can become very overwhelmed causing a meltdown, Oliver's meltdowns include hitting into his own head and biting into his hands, he flings himself to the ground and will uncontrollably cry. Corrie-Beth continued: "I am hoping EAC will look at our argument and see how much their decision is going to affect our children's life. The best outcome is that they work out a solution so that our children can be kept safe and protected on their journey to school. "I personally feel transport should be put back in place for the children of Willowbank School and any child living with complex needs." A spokesperson for East Ayrshire Council said: "On March 12, 2025, Cabinet agreed an Alternative School Transport policy for academic year 2025/ 26. "This decision was necessitated by the fact that as of September 30, 2024, 601 children and young people were approved for home to school journeys at a total daily cost of £22,800, which equated to a projected overspend of £2,414,133 for alternative school transport for 2024/25. "The new Alternative School Transport policy will protect the sustainability of alternative transportation where there is an essential need. "As agreed by Cabinet, a full audit has been undertaken by the Transport Review Panel and letters issued to parents and carers advising of the outcome of the audit. A second letter has since been issued to parents and carers to clarify the process. "The council asks that if parents and carers believe that there are circumstances that have not been considered and which may affect the decisions taken, they have the right to request a review. "Parents and carers should submit a written request to ASNAdmin@ within 10 days of receipt of their first letter and must include relevant additional information or evidence. "Through this review process, which will continue over the summer, the council will look to identify common issues, particularly those related to schools and centres with later start times, as there may be actions at a school level that can be taken to mitigate any potential impact on working parents and carers. "To conclude, the council can confirm that the review process has not been completed therefore no parent or carer is in receipt of a final decision. Any further family circumstances provided to the council will be fully considered." The petition started by Fraser can be found here.
CBS News
a day ago
- CBS News
Michigan family of murdered teen worry convicted killer will be set free 36 years later
The family of Steven Abbey said they are terrified about the possibility that his killer, Richard Pruett, could be released from prison. Pruett was convicted and sentenced in April 1989 for Abbey's murder at the Tireman shop on Groesbeck and 13 Mile Road in Fraser, Michigan. "It's very hard, I live with it every day, and no one should have to go through this," said Mark Abbey Mark Abbey said he remembers the day his brother was murdered like it was yesterday. He said he answered the door when police came to notify the family. "Three detectives had shown up to the home. I had answered the door. I am the unlucky one who did, and they had asked if my parents were home, so I said, 'Yes, let me get them.' The police said they were terribly sorry, and we knew what that meant," Mark Abbey said. Mark Abbey said he remembered his mother being hysterical after learning that Steven had been killed. "My mother didn't understand and was just in a rage. She attacked the police officer. Not to beat him up, but it was just the rage she was in; she didn't understand what was happening," he said. At the time, Mark Abbey said Fraser police told the family that Steven recognized Pruett robbing the Tireman shop. Pruett once worked at the tire shop, and Steven was a cashier. Pruett also had prior criminal offenses that included breaking into a home in Cadillac. After a week-long murder trial, Pruett was convicted and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. His conviction and sentencing had provided Mark and his family with some sense of closure until recently. "So we felt the closure was that he was in prison, he is going to serve his time for taking someone who is in a grave and who can never come out of a grave, we all felt that if my brother can come out of a grave then we can release him but there is no chance of that ever happening," Mark Abbey said. However, there is a chance that Pruett could be released on Wednesday. He has a re-sentencing hearing in front of Macomb County Judge Richard L. Caretti. The family has been notified that it is due to the Miller hearing, which allows minors who were sentenced to have a special hearing to determine if they can be sentenced to life without parole. This Miller hearing was widely publicized during the Oxford High School shooting case. Because the shooter was only 15 years old at the time he shot and killed four people and injured seven others, a special hearing was held to determine if he was competent and able to be sentenced to life without parole. A judge ultimately decided he could, and the shooter was convicted and sentenced to life in prison. On Wednesday, Pruett will have a special hearing and a chance to be resentenced more than 30 years after his initial conviction. Mark Abbey hopes he will spend the rest of his life behind bars. "We are just hoping that we go there tomorrow and the system holds us to where it was, a conviction from his own peers, and it stands, and we hope Judge Caretti does the right thing, and this is over. A chapter we don't have to relive again," he said.
Hamilton Spectator
2 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Alberta man extradited to United States in connection with mail fraud awaiting trial
EDMONTON - The U.S. Justice Department says an Alberta man is awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy and mail fraud after he allegedly operated a mail scam with other people that targeted vulnerable American seniors. The department says in an online statement that Patrick Fraser, 44, was arrested by Canadian authorities in June 2023 and has now been extradited to the United States in connection with a fraudulent mail scheme. He was ordered to remain detained during a hearing in a federal Las Vegas courtroom last week and awaits trial in the nine-count indictment. The department alleges in the statement that Frasher mailed notifications to American recipients and those in other countries stating they had won a large cash prize, but the victims could only receive it after paying a fee. The cash prize was typically $1 million and many victims were elderly and vulnerable people. The statement says Fraser faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison if convicted. Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate of the Justice Department's civil division thanked Canada in the statement for assisting in Fraser's extradition so he could face charges in the United States 'The Justice Department and U.S. law enforcement partners will continue to work closely with law enforcement partners across the globe to bring to justice criminals who attempt to defraud U.S. victims from outside the United States,' he said. U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Eric Shen also said in the statement that mail service providers protect the vulnerable. 'If you use fake prize offers to scam others, we'll find you — and you will be held accountable,' Shen said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 30, 2025. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
