Fact check: Prehistoric worms discovered in Siberia were revived after thousands of years, study said

Miriam Fauzia, USA TODAY 4 hrs ago

The claim: Russian scientists revived prehistoric worms

THIS CLAIM HAS CIRCULATED IN THE PRESS SINCE THE 1960'S

SOMETIMES IT WAS FROZEN MAMMOTHS OR LIZARDS ETC

© Provided by USA TODAY Your garden needs worms thumb

Scientists may not yet have the technology to bring back the dead, but one post circulating on social media claims worms frozen for more than a millennium came back to life after a simple thaw.

"Russian scientists defrosted several prehistoric worms, which were frozen in Arctic permafrost for around 40,000 years," reads a graphic shared in a Nov. 2 Facebook post.

The graphic claims two of the worms collected "began moving and eating" after being left out to thaw. One worm was reportedly around 32,000 years old, while the other was around 41,700 years old.

The graphic also includes a picture of an animal that looks like a worm but with a monstrous gaping mouth and many sharp teeth.

The Facebook post received more than 1,900 interactions on the platform within four days, according to CrowdTangle, a social media analytics tool.

While resurrecting prehistoric worms may sound like the plot of a science-fiction movie, a study says it did happen back in 2015. The accompanying picture, however, has nothing to do with the worms.

USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user for comment.
Worms discovered in Siberia

The worms mentioned in the Facebook post were discovered in 2015 in a region of northeastern Siberia called Yakutia. Other ancient, preserved animals have been found in the area, including the frozen remains of a 50,000-year-old, extinct cave lion cub.

In collaboration with Princeton University, Russian scientists isolated the worms after analyzing over 300 soil samples collected from the Arctic permafrost, Live Science reported in 2018.

The two worms – both female – came from two known species called Panagrolaimus detritophagus and Plectus parvus.

Scientists estimated one specimen was around 32,000 years old and the other was around 41,700 years old. These estimates were based on radiocarbon dating of the sites where the worms were recovered, according to a 2017 paper by the Russian research group.

After spending several weeks thawing in a petri dish at 68 degrees, the resurrected worms reportedly moved around, ate food and even cloned new family members, Gizmodo reported.

Worms, known scientifically as nematodes, and their close relative the tardigrade have been known to weather severe environmental conditions. Some have previously been revived after being dormant for 30 to 39 years, Science Alert reported.

But there have been no records of these worms surviving over several millennia. This has had some scientists concerned over whether the creatures are actually tens of thousands of years old, or if there had been potential contamination with contemporary samples.

"Okay so: I was understandably incredulous to read this; 41,000 years is unheard of in terms of organisms surviving deep freeze, by orders of magnitude," tweeted Jacquelyn Gill, a paleoecologist at the University of Maine, in 2019.

Gill noted that while 32,000-year-old plant seeds have successfully bloomed into flowers, it was trickier to confirm the nematodes originated that long ago. She pointed out that the Russian scientists had dated the permafrost samples – not the nematodes themselves – and that the samples weren't sieved for eggs or adult worms.

"They took 1-2 grams of frozen soil, added liquid nematode food, and heated (it) to room temperature for several weeks," Gill said. "This is crucial, because from what I can tell reading this paper, we have no supporting evidence that the nematodes originated in the sediment and aren't modern contamination."

Tatiana Vishnivetskaya, a microbiologist at the University of Tennessee who co-authored the 2018 study, said contamination was unlikely because the samples came from a type of permafrost that is syncryogenic – when freezing and sediment accumulation happen at the same time.

"By definition, it was assumed that nematodes were frozen along with sediment deposition, so we used the sediments to obtain radiocarbon age," Vishnivetskaya said in an email to VICE in 2019.

"Our team is very cautious about sterility and aseptic techniques especially when we collect samples for microbiology and molecular biology studies," she added. "We are pretty sure no contamination with upper soil happens during sampling."
3D model created in 2016

The image of a monstrous-looking, worm-like creature with sharp teeth that accompanies the Facebook post implies a connection with the revived worms. But they're not related.

The image can be traced back to a 3D sculpture created by an illustrator based in Poland, who describes the terrifying sight as an attempt at creating "scary/ugly characters for games" using digital sculpting programs.

It was shared to ArtStation, an online platform used by artists to showcase their work, in 2016, a year before the Russian research group published their paper on the prehistoric worms.

 
Our rating: Missing context

Based on our research, we rate MISSING CONTEXT the claim Russian scientists revived prehistoric worms. In 2015, Russian scientists did uncover two worms that were estimated to be around 32,000 years old and 41,700 years old based on dating of the soil samples they were found in. Both worms were revived after being thawed at warm temperatures for several weeks. But the image accompanying the post predates the finding and is a 3D sculpture created by a Poland-based illustrator.
Our fact-check sources:
Smithsonian Magazine, Nov. 10, 2017, Russian Local Discovers Frozen Remains of Extinct Cave Lion Cub
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, accessed Nov. 4, Land - Permafrost
Live Science, July 27, 2018, Worms Frozen for 42,000 Years in Siberian Permafrost Wriggle to Life
Doklady Biological Sciences, Dec. 18, 2017, Viable Nematodes from Late Pleistocene Permafrost of the Kolyma River Lowland
Gizmodo, July 27, 2018, Russian Scientists Claim to Have Resurrected 40,000-Year-Old Worms Buried in Ice
Science Alert, July 27, 2018, A Tiny Worm Frozen in Siberian Permafrost for 42,000 Years Was Just Brought Back to Life
Jacquelyn Gill, July 9, 2019, Twitter thread
VICE, July 16, 2019, Scientist Is Pretty Sure Revived Nematodes Are Actually 41,000-Years Old
ArtStation, accessed Nov. 4, Ugly Worm - 3D sculpt

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here.

Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.






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People gather during a stocktaking plenary session at the COP26 U.N. Climate Summit in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Nov. 13, 2021.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: Prehistoric worms discovered in Siberia were revived after thousands of years, study said

CANADA IS A SOCIAL DEMOCRACY
COMMENTARY: What O’Toole calls ‘radical’ is Canadian democracy at work

WHICH THE TORIES HATE
globalnewsdigital

© THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick 

Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole holds a press conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021.

Though most of his attention is likely focused on keeping his own restive caucus united, federal Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole did manage to direct some of his mental energy last week to scaremongering about the unholy alliance he claims is taking shape in Ottawa: a “radical Liberal-NDP coalition.”

The first order of business of the re-elected Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, O’Toole warned Canadians in ominous tones, “is to let his new Liberal members of Parliament know that they will have to accept a radical Liberal-NDP coalition agreement. This coalition will mean billions of dollars of new spending to buy Jagmeet Singh’s silence.”

The so-called “Liberal-NDP government,” O’Toole added, would “cause devastating financial impacts for workers and communities from coast to coast to coast.”

Read more: O’Toole under fire as Tory senator launches petition seeking leadership review

To be clear, there is no coalition being formed. And there’s nothing radical about the re-elected Liberal government, as it plans its legislative agenda in a minority Parliament, comparing notes with the NDP — a party that holds the balance of power in the House (that’s just math) and which everyone knows shares a number of key policy planks with Trudeau’s left-leaning cabinet and caucus.

Paid sick leave. Affordable housing. Serious climate change commitments. Child care. Pharmacare. A vaccination-driven, science-based escape route from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Liberal and NDP policies in these areas differ in some details. Timelines for implementation aren’t perfectly aligned. The degree of determination to press ahead with certain changes isn’t exactly the same.

But these two parties — as well as the Greens and most Bloc Québécois MPs — are definitely in the same ballpark when it comes to such issues, all milling about in centre-left field as they get ready for the parliamentary return to play next week, on Monday, Nov. 22.

Still, we shouldn’t expect O’Toole to adjust his rhetorical strategy in the face of such basic facts or the will of Canadian voters who — broadly speaking — gave solid majority support in the Sept. 20 election to the country’s political progressives, as well as clear marching orders (all party leaders seemed to admit) to simply work together to get things done.

Even the Conservatives, if we are to believe what the moderate-sounding O’Toole was saying on the campaign trail just two months ago, are standing not so far away from the other parties on most of these issues — perhaps in straightaway centre (though some stubborn members of his team remain huddled in right field, angrily kicking dirt about the two-jab ground rules for the upcoming season).

Nevertheless, the official leader of the Opposition is duty-bound to oppose. And the messaging we can expect from O’Toole — and which he delivered on cue last week — had been telegraphed as early as August, in the opening days of the election campaign, when he bemoaned the left-wing “coalition” cabal that had been governing Canada since 2019, and might well be again after the Sept. 20 vote.

At a Conservative campaign rally on Aug. 17, O’Toole said: “Friends, 12 years ago, the Liberals, the NDP and the Bloc Québécois signed a pact to govern Canada as a coalition. Today, with the addition of the Green Party, that’s precisely what we have. There isn’t a choice between the Liberals, the NDP, and the Greens. They’re all the same.”

Read more: NDP MP Charlie Angus says no deal reached with Liberals after initial meeting

The term “coalition” in the Conservative lexicon is a synonym for “corruption.” It has been ever since 2008, when then-prime minister Stephen Harper faced the possibility of losing power to an alliance of opposition leaders that briefly flirted with pooling their seats to gain control of the House of Commons, as Canada’s parliamentary system certainly allows but the politics of that time ultimately did not.

So that’s why O’Toole has unconvincingly characterized the prospect of Liberal-NDP co-operation to pass legislation in the coming Parliament as nothing more than a dirty scheme by Trudeau’s Liberals to “buy Jagmeet Singh’s silence,” as if something criminal were transpiring here.

Singh, in fact, has explicitly ruled out joining a “formal coalition” with the Liberals. “That is a firm no from me,” the NDP leader told reporters during a press conference last week. “There is not going to be any coalition at all.”

Video: O’Toole announces shadow cabinet, moves Rempel Garner to natural resources, Poilievre back to finance

Instead, Singh not-so-scarily signalled, “like we did in the minority government previously during the pandemic, we use our position to fight for help for people. And we push the Liberal government to deliver more help to people.”

Gasp!

But Canadians should be braced for this: Even mere issue-by-issue collaboration between the Liberals and NDP (and possibly the Greens and Bloc) to pursue common legislative goals will be consistently tarred by O’Toole as illegitimate, the actions of a de facto undemocratic “coalition” bent on implementing policies that will always be “a disaster for the Canadian economy,” as he put it last week.

Yet Canadian political history offers several examples of constructive, collaborative governing arrangements negotiated by Liberal and NDP leaders of the past, with those progressive-minded minority governments recording major achievements: Lester B. Pearson and Tommy Douglas in the mid-1960s (Medicare, the Canadian flag); Pierre Trudeau and David Lewis from 1972 to 1974 (Petro-Canada, a new national program for affordable housing); and Paul Martin and Jack Layton in 2005, when the Liberal government shifted $4.6 billion in planned corporate tax cuts to spending on a series of NDP-backed programs, including education and training investments, affordable housing and increased foreign aid.

Read more: 100 day clock already ticking on Liberals’ promises to introduce host of bills

“We had the opportunity to put some of our ideas into practice for a change instead of just talking about them,” Layton said of the deal struck with Martin in his 2006 memoir Speaking Out Louder.

O’Toole and other Conservatives might see that kind of collaboration between a Liberal government and an NDP party with balance-of-power leverage as a form of social-democratic gunboat diplomacy. Progressives will see it as the fruits of a democratic election that compels constructive compromises between two broadly compatible parties.

But it’s hardly radical, coalition or not. And it’s what Canadians voted for.

Randy Boswell is a Carleton University journalism professor and former national reporter.

Monumental storm will loosen severe grip on B.C., cleanup to follow

Digital Writers 2 hrs ago

This 'pineapple express' that hit B.C. over the last few days surely came loaded with juice, unleashing widespread rainfall amounts of 100-200 mm for southern areas, resulting in floods and mudslides that closed roads and prompted evacuation alerts and orders for many communities Monday. Finally, the province will see a break from the rain Tuesday, with some potent winds lingering into the morning, but the cleanup and impacts will be far from over. At the height of the storm Monday evening, more than 100,000 customers were without power, according to BC Hydro.

 For a look at impacts, and what's left to come, see below.

TUESDAY: RAINS SUBSIDE, BLUSTERY WINDS LINGER, ICY ROADS FROM TEMPERATURE DROP

After a relentless atmospheric river targeted B.C. multiple days with excessive rainfall, enhanced by tropical Pacific moisture, the province will finally catch a break from the precipitation Tuesdy after winding down Monday afternoon

The prolonged event has been especially impactful, with some areas receiving more than 200 mm through Monday. Parts of Metro Vancouver picked up 160 mm, and even Victoria, often sheltered by Vancouver Island's rain shadow, has picked up around 117 mm, which is on the higher end for the city in terms of events

.

© Provided by The Weather Network

But that doesn't mean Tuesday will be a quiet day for B.C.

The winds will continue to be intense through Monday overnight, though not as destructive as during the day, lingering into Tuesday morning before subsiding. Gusts of 40-60 km/h will continue for the South Coast, 50-70+ km/h through the southern Interior.

As for the mountains, low freezing levels will bring icy conditions to all highway passes, especially the Coquihalla, through Monday overnight. Snow will quickly accumulate overnight Monday with up to 25 cm possible in some of the passes by midday Tuesday. Strong and gusty southwesterly winds may also reduce visibility due to blowing snow

.

© Provided by The Weather Network

Another issue will be slick and slippery roads as temperatures will drop considerably by Tuesday morning. Daytime highs Tuesday afternoon will plummet into the single digits for the coastal and Interior regions. Motorists will need to be cautious when heading out on the roads.
IMPACTS: MUDSLIDES, FLOODING, EVACUATIONS

This was a large amount of rain even under normal circumstances, but the heaviest amounts fell at elevations where some snowfall has already accumulated. Local runoff, then, was boosted by melting snow.

One of the worst results of that is increased mud and rockslide risk, and indeed, many have been reported across the province. Highway 1 is closed in multiple directions, as are numerous other roads. Travel is not recommended if you can avoid it.

Meanwhile, rescue efforts by helicopter were underway Monday after two mudslides trapped hundreds of people on a southern B.C. highway, CBC reported. As many as 275 people, among them 50 children, have been trapped on the stretch of highway since Sunday evening, the City of Vancouver and Canada Task Force 1, the locally based urban search and rescue team, said in a joint release.

© Provided by The Weather Network

On Thursday night, a mudslide near Agassiz was reported to have stranded several motorists, with ongoing efforts to extricate them.

That runoff made its way into local streams, and flood warnings were issued for several parts of the Interior.

On Monday, evacuation orders – meaning residents in the affected areas must leave at once – were in effect for parts of the Fraser Valley and Okanagan–Similkameen regional districts. An evacuation alert – meaning residents must prepare to evacuate if asked – was issued for parts of Princeton and Abbotsford.

In Merrit, the evacuation became citywide after flooding caused the complete failure of the municipality's wastewater treatment plant and what city officials are calling an "immediate danger to public health and safety."

Officials also said residents with friends or family outside of the community should make plans to stay with them and evacuate to that location.

Meanwhile, power outages continue to escalate, with BC Hydro reporting more than 100,000 customers are in the dark as of Monday evening

Thumbnail courtesy of John Soos/Twitter.

Check back for updates as we continue to monitor the situation. This article contains files from CBC News.

Canada: floods prompt evacuations in region hit by summer wildfires

80-100 Vehicles Are Trapped Between 2 Landslides In BC & Here's The Rescue Plan

Daniel Milligan 8 hrs ago

Search and rescue teams in B.C. are trying to reach people trapped in their cars between two landslides.

© Provided by Narcity

Multiple road closures are in place as intense rainfall contributed to several landslides across some of the province's busiest highways.

Two of the landslides, on Highway 7 near Agassiz, trapped between 80-100 vehicles overnight.

In a press conference on Monday morning, Mike Farnworth, B.C.'s minister of public safety, said that they are "looking at the possibility of air rescue" but added that high winds may "challenge these efforts."

Minister Farnworth added, "[The search and rescue teams] are the experts who will be able to determine what the best way is to reach the people who are stranded in their vehicles.

"It is very difficult weather so they will be determining the best way — the safest way — to extricate people who are trapped between those slides. They will be doing it as quickly and as safely as they can."

Terrifying images show another mudslide, which swept across the Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Merritt.

The city of Merritt is among the hardest hit locations in this storm, with some residents told to evacuate their homes and the entire community warned not to use the water due to issues at the wastewater treatment facility.

Helicopters start rescue efforts after landslide traps hundreds on B.C. highway

CBC/Radio-Canada 13 hrs ago

Rescue efforts by helicopter are underway after two mudslides trapped hundreds of people on a southern B.C. highway while an assessment has started to determine if others may have ended up in the flow of debris.

The landslides, which occurred on Sunday on Highway 7 near Agassiz, B.C., about 125 kilometres east of Vancouver, came as communities in southern parts of the province dealt with heavy rainfall.

As many as 275 people, among them 50 children, have been trapped on the stretch of highway since Sunday evening, the City of Vancouver and Canada Task Force 1, the locally based urban search and rescue team, said in a joint release.

It says they were joined by Chilliwack Search and Rescue and a geotechnical engineer to survey the area for anyone who may be trapped in the debris.

Canadian Forces Cormorant helicopters started the first of multiple rescue flights on Monday, transporting evacuees between the slide area and a reception centre in nearby Agassiz.

David Boone, the team director of the Heavy Urban Search and Rescue Task Force team in B.C. and an assistant chief at the Vancouver Fire Department, said early Monday that his team hasn't yet had a full view of the scope of the landslides and debris flow.

Boone said his team arrived to support members of the fire department in Agassiz, who had already rescued at least 12 people trapped in vehicles from the debris flow. Two others were rescued on the east side, by either a search and rescue team or workers from the fire department in Hope, he told CBC News Network.

"What complicates this situation is we have two slides on Highway 7 and we have people that were trapped in the debris … and some have been rescued," Boone told CBC's Heather Hiscox, noting that officials are not yet sure if there are other vehicles missing and other people who are not accounted for.

He said officials believe there are approximately 50 vehicles trapped on Highway 7 in between the two debris fields, with approximately two to three people in each vehicle.

B.C. Minister of Public Safety Mike Farnworth said search and rescue crews were mobilized early in the morning, but the conditions have been difficult.

"One of the challenges they have been facing, obviously, is the weather and the ability to get into the area safely," Farnworth said at a news conference on Monday.

"That's currently being assessed. And, they will be doing everything they can to ensure that they reach people who are trapped in their vehicles between those slides as quickly as possible, but also as safely as possible."

Boone said he spoke to a nurse who was travelling in one of the vehicles who was doing assessments. The nurse found those they had seen were "safe and secure at this time." People trapped between the slides have been urged to stay in their vehicles for now, he said.

'It's very scary'

Martina Martinkova, who is trapped in her vehicle with her daughter on Highway 7, said she is "very stressed."

"We don't have any information," she said in an interview with Heather Hiscox Monday morning. She said she's been trying for hours to find out what will happen with rescue efforts.

People were starting to share their food and water, she said, noting that she saw at least one family on the highway with a baby.

She said she's been in touch with her loved ones, who know she and her daughter are safe.

"You see this in the movies, honestly, and you thought it will never touch you," she said. "It's very scary."

Adam Wuisman and his fiancé were travelling back to their home in Richmond, B.C., on Highway 7, following a weekend trip in Nelson, when he said a landslide came down behind them.

"We were going westbound and there were huge lines of traffic ... and all of a sudden, I noticed there's no vehicles behind us, which was odd," he told CBC's The Early Edition on Monday morning.

"We must have just missed the first [landslide] and now somehow we're between both of them."

The pair have been stuck on that stretch of Highway 7 since 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Wuisman said.

"It's a very eerie feeling here," he described.

"When we got here, everybody had their headlights on and then slowly, as the hours passed, headlights went off and everything became pitch-black."

Emergency officials said they don't yet have a complete picture of how many people are trapped. Wuisman, however, said he thinks there are far more than 50 vehicles stuck — estimating around 200 to 300 vehicles stranded on that patch of highway.

"I definitely heard people screaming for help," he said.

"It's kind of helpless to feel like you're between a very vulnerable mountainside side and the Fraser River on the other side. And there's really nothing you can do about it, but hope nothing comes down on top of you."
Officials hope to survey from air

Boone, who noted that officials are "still a bit blind" on the full scope of the issue, said the stability of the ground and issues around hydro wires are complicating the rescue efforts.

He said it's too dangerous to get close right now, noting that further assessments will come at daybreak.

"We're assessing as to the best access points for us to make entry into the area," he said, noting that rescue workers will co-ordinate with CP Rail as the best way in may be along a rail line.

"We won't put our rescuers into the area until we determine it's safe to do so," he said, noting that they hope to be able to survey from the air later in the day.

Communities affected by extreme heat and wildfires are forced to flee their homes again after record downpour

A view of the Coquihalla Highway following mudslides and flooding in British Columbia, Canada, on Sunday. Photograph: British Columbia Transportation/Reuters

Leyland Cecco in Toronto
Mon 15 Nov 2021

Communities in western Canada who were forced to flee their homes this summer by wildfires and extreme heat are once again under evacuation orders after overwhelming floods across the region.

Helicopters were dispatched on Monday to Highway 7, more than 100 kilometres (62 miles) east of Vancouver, to rescue about 275 people, including 50 children, who had been stranded on the road since it was blocked by a mudslide late on Sunday.

“I definitely heard people screaming for help,” Adam Wuisman, who was driving the section of the highway when a landslide hit, told CBC News. “It’s kind of helpless to feel like you’re between a very vulnerable mountainside on one side and the Fraser River on the other side. And there’s really nothing you can do about it, but hope nothing comes down on top of you.”

Images of surging rivers, mudslides, flooded cities and destroyed highways circulated on social media as officials scrambled to assess the full extent of the damage, warning residents the situation could deteriorate further as winds picked up throughout the day.

According to Environment Canada, 225 millimetres of rain fell on the community of Hope since the storm began Saturday and 180 millimetres had fallen around Agassiz and Chilliwack in the eastern part of the Fraser Valley.

After two bridges and its water treatment facility were overwhelmed by flood waters, the city of Merritt issued an evacuation order to all residents, warning that “continued habitation of the community without sanitary services presents risk of mass sewage back-up and personal health risk”.

Here in British Columbia, we have spent the summer running from cruel wildfires
Mary Stockdale

Merritt last issued evacuation orders this summer after the wildfire that destroyed the village of Lytton came dangerously close to the city.+

Since June, the province has experienced a record-setting “heat dome”, huge wildfires that destroyed two communities and choked the air for weeks, that experts say was worsened by the climate crisis. Last week, Vancouver, British Columbia’s largest city, was briefly placed under tornado watch, a rare event for the region.

Heavy rains force evacuations, trap motorists in Canada

Issued on: 15/11/2021 - 

A view of a road near Popkum following mudslides and flooding in British Columbia, Canada, on Sunday. Photograph: British Columbia Transportation/Reuters

Ottawa (AFP) – Relentless rain battered Canada's Pacific coast on Monday, forcing a town's evacuation and trapping motorists as mudslides, rocks and debris were washed across major highways.

"Heavy rains and subsequent mudslides/flooding have impacted various highways in the BC interior," British Columbia's transportation ministry said on Twitter.

Rescuers were deployed to free people trapped for hours in 80-100 cars and trucks between two mudslides near the town of Agassiz, the province's safety minister, Mike Farnworth, told a news conference.

"We are looking at the possibility of air rescues, if needed," he said, adding that "high winds may challenge these efforts."

Farnworth said there had been "multiple rain-induced incidents" in the southwest and central regions of the province, describing the situation as "dynamic."

In the city of Abbotsford, outside Vancouver, authorities ordered more than 100 homes evacuated in several neighborhoods threatened by flooding and mudslides.

The town of Merritt, 290 kilometres (180 miles) east of the coastal city, also ordered all 7,000 of its residents to leave after their wastewater treatment plant was compromised and two bridges were washed out, according to a statement.

Emergency centers were set up for displaced residents of both communities.

Environment Canada said up to 250 millimetres (almost 10 inches) of rain was expected by the afternoon in and around Vancouver, which was also hit last week by a rare tornado.

"A significant atmospheric river event continues to (bring) copious amounts of rain to the BC south coast today," it said.

"Heavy rain will continue this morning and ease this afternoon as the system moves inland."

Environment Canada meteorologist Armel Castellan said strong winds gusting up to 90 kilometers per hour (55 miles per hour) could cause widespread power outages.

The extreme weather comes after British Columbia suffered record-high temperatures over the summer that killed more than 500 people, as well as wildfires that destroyed a town.

© 2021 AFP

Entire city of Merritt, B.C. forced to evacuate

due to flooding

Merritt, British Columbia has a population of around 7,000 people. Severe flooding forced the evacuation of the entire city when the municipal wastewater treatment plant shut down due to the floods. Source - Brislian, CC SA 4.0.

The entire City of Merritt, population 7,000, is under an evacuation order after flooding caused the complete failure of the municipality’s wastewater treatment plant in what city officials are calling an “immediate danger to public health and safety.”

“The wastewater treatment plant is inundated and non-operational and will be for an indefinite period of time,” reads the order, which was issued at 10:05 a.m. PT Monday, reports The Weather Network.

“Continued habitation of the community without sanitary services presents the risk of mass sewage back-up and personal health risk.”

BC Transportation

The heavy rains that began over the weekend have led to severe flooding, along with roads being washed out and bridges being inundated. Rescue efforts have been initiated after 80 to 100 vehicles were stuck on numerous roads due to mudslides, rock debris, and flooding.

Some residents of the city were awakened Sunday night and ordered to evacuate. Merritt resident Brodie McDonald said he received a knock on the door around 12:30 a.m. and only had a little time to pack as the water was rising quickly.

McDonald said, “Some of the road in front of my house is washed out. The pavement is actually ripped up and there is a truck falling into a sinkhole in the water.”

BC Hydro

At around 7:30 a.m. Monday, officials issued another evacuation order covering the Collettville neighborhood, warning that residents might have to be rescued by helicopter if they didn’t flee quickly.

“Merritt is and will remain strong,” Mayor Linda Brown said in a statement, per CTV News Canada. “Please, offer help to your friends, families, and neighbors, drive safely, and take care of yourselves. We will meet each other again, in our homes, where we belong.”

And according to Reuters, Canada’s Trans Mountain oil pipeline has been shut down temporarily because of rainstorms pounding parts of the province of British Columbia, the operating company said in a statement on Monday.

Do not cross rivers or flowing streams, Don’t walk or drive across flooded roads, and Follow all directions from local officials. Environment Canada.

“As a precaution, Trans Mountain has shut down the Trans Mountain Pipeline due to widespread flooding and debris flows in the area around Hope, BC,” a company spokeswoman said in an email.

Monday at about 1:30 a.m., the City of Merritt issued an evacuation order for several addresses in the 200-year flood plain of the Coldwater River, south of Nicola Avenue.

“If you are within the 200-year flood plain of the Coldwater River, South of Nicola Avenue you must evacuate immediately,” the city’s notice said. “The city will update this evacuation order as soon as possible with specific property addresses.”

OF COURSE HE DOES ITS THE POLITICS OF WHINING

Alberta premier snipes at Trudeau as province signs on to $10-day child-care deal

EDMONTON — Alberta has signed on to Ottawa’s $10-a-day child-care program, but not before Premier Jason Kenney dismissed the federal contribution as recycled provincial money and accused Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of playing favourites.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

“This agreement means bringing 3.8 billion tax dollars paid by Albertans to Ottawa back to Albertans to address a key priority for so many families,” Kenney, with Trudeau at his side, said Monday during an event at a downtown YMCA.

The United Conservative premier accused Trudeau of playing favourites by giving Quebec a child-care deal with more flexibility, while Alberta had to fight to get what it considered a fair bargain for its mix of care providers. More than half of current care spaces in Alberta are in privately run businesses.

“It’s not the only time where we see what appears to be a two-tier federation,” said Kenney.

“The basic aspiration of Albertans is to be treated equally, to have the same powers that Quebec exercises and the same treatment from the federal government, which includes unconditional funding when there are national policy goals.”

That comment prompted Trudeau to take to the podium to stress that Quebec was not getting sweetheart treatment.

He said Quebec’s plan already met the goals of the federal program and, in fact, exceeded them with $8.50-a-day child care.

“It made no sense for us to impose conditions (on Quebec) that they’ve already surpassed,” said Trudeau. “It’s not about treating one province differently.

“If Alberta already had child care at $8 a day across the province, we would have had an approach similar to Quebec, so let’s not create constitutional conventions out of this.”

Kenney has often criticized the Liberal federal government for treating Alberta unfairly in Confederation. He has said that Albertans contribute generously to the rest of Canada through equalization yet are stymied at times by federal policies that restrict development of the province's oil and gas industry.

The bilateral deal is to provide $3.8 billion in federal funding over the next five years. Child-care fees are to be halved starting next year and reduced to an average of $10 a day by 2026

The deal also calls for the creation of 42,500 new regulated early-learning and child-care spaces.

"Within five years, $10-a-day child care will be a reality right across the province,” said Trudeau.

"This will make a huge difference in the lives of all families but also in our economic recovery.”

Choice of child care had been a sticking point in negotiations between Ottawa and Alberta.

PRIVATE DAY HOMES & BABA CARE

Kenney said the Alberta agreement will make the subsidies eligible for all types of licensed facilities for child care up to age six.

"The province has secured a deal to allow Alberta parents to have the type of child care that works best for them, which has been a key element of any deal this government would sign,” he said.

The agreement is to fund services and grow the workforce for early childhood teachers.

The money is also to support child care for children with disabilities or special needs as well as a plan to work with Indigenous organizations to develop child-care programs best suited to their needs.

The federal government has completed bilateral $10-a-day care deals with nine provinces and territories. Ontario, New Brunswick, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories have yet to sign on.

Trudeau’s government announced the $30-billion, five-year plan in the spring as a cornerstone in an initiative to help families and get the economy moving.

Rakhi Pancholi, the Alberta Opposition's children’s services critic, said the deal is similar to what the NDP caucus proposed in July.

The deal should have been done much earlier to get benefits flowing faster, she said. It was only persistent demands from the public that broke the deadlock, she added.

“Ultimately, Albertans told the UCP that this affordable child-care program was important to them,” said Pancholi. “The UCP were never on board, they dragged their heels, but Albertans made their voice loud and clear to get us where we are today.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 15, 2021.

Dean Bennett, The Canadian Press

Alberta, Ottawa ink $3.8-billion childcare deal to lower cost to average of $10-a-day, create 40,000 new spaces

Author of the article:

Ashley Joannou
Publishing date: Nov 15, 2021 • 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Alberta Premier Jason Kenney announced a childcare deal for the province on Monday. 

PHOTO BY SEAN KILPATRICK/THE CANADIAN PRESS; IAN KUCERAK/POSTMEDIA
Article content

Alberta and the federal government have reached a five-year $3.8 billion childcare agreement using the federal funding to create more than 40,000 new childcare and early learning spaces and bring the average cost for children under six down to $10-a-day.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Deputy Minister Chrystia Freeland announced the deal Monday, alongside Premier Jason Kenney and Families, Children and Social Development Minister Karina Gould.

“Now, I think people know that the provinces and the federal government don’t always get along on everything. And there’s always going to be points of disagreement. But I am really, really pleased to be here today with Premier Kenney and the Government of Alberta to demonstrate that on the things that matter most to citizen, on the things that matter to the people that we serve, we can get big things done,” Trudeau said.

“That’s exactly what we’ve been able to do here today with Alberta on moving forward with a historic agreement on childcare.”

Alberta is the ninth jurisdiction to sign a childcare deal with Ottawa. Freeland estimated 60% of Canada’s children are now covered under a deal.

Kenney had previously said that Trudeau’s deal was “only for a kind of cookie-cutter, nine-to-five, urban, government and union-run institutional daycare options” and that the choices of parents need to be recognized.

On Monday, he called the announcement “a good day for Alberta families.”

He said Alberta’s deal will mean more jobs and access to childcare for families.

“All types of licensed childcare for kids aged up to kindergarten like preschools, daycare and licensed family day homes will now be supported through this deal with the federal government,” he said.

“And to ensure that every child has the care that works for them, there’s funding for specific needs, such as linguistic, cultural and special learning supports.”

The 2021 federal budget said Ottawa would authorize the transfer of 2021-22 funding as soon as bilateral agreements are reached.

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