Owen Sound Sun Times

The Ontario Fire Marshal’s office is investigating after a woman was pronounced dead following a house fire in Owen Sound. Acting Sgt. Bill Ringel of the Owen Sound Police Service said firefighters contained the blaze and the unconscious woman was found inside the house during a search by firefighters. Grey County paramedics performed CPR, but […]

A city police officer was able to quickly extinguish an apartment fire at an eight-storey building Saturday morning, preventing a potentially tragic outcome, according to the Owen Sound Police Service. Emergency crews were called to Parkway Apartments at 305 14th St. W. at about 5:45 a.m. in response to a fire. The officer went to […]

Municipal officials in Owen Sound and other communities are warning residents that “wipes clog pipes.” As a result of the COVID-19 situation – which has led to instances of hoarding and panic buying – multiple stores have run out of toilet paper and some areas are experiencing shortages. That has resulted in municipalities seeing “a […]

With COVID-19 causing widespread disruptions, two Owen Sound siblings have turned their minds to helping the less fortunate in the community. Teena Ritchie, 18, and her 13-year-old brother Jayden Weiss recently purchased non-perishable food items and other supplies – from diapers to toothpaste – and have put them on shelves at the end of their […]

City officials are asking people to only use Owen Sound’s public transit system for essential travel while the current COVID-19 pandemic continues. The city has seen ridership increase significantly since Thursday morning when the service became free to use, Dennis Kefalas, director of public works and engineering, said. “Our intention was to keep providing transit […]

The 8th annual Wiarton & District Job Fair has been rescheduled to Tuesday, April 21 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Wiarton Community Centre, event organizers said in a news release. Information about full-time, part-time and summer jobs and apprenticeship opportunities will be available. Local employers will have booths there with staff to […]

A 32-year-old Brockton resident has been charged with assault with a weapon and assaulting a peace officer after South Bruce OPP were dispatched to the scene of a disturbance in Mildmay Thursday morning. At 10:03 a.m. officers arrived at the scene on Pinkerton Street and determined an assault had taken place. The accused refused to cooperate […]

Despite originally planning to forge ahead in the face of union unrest and fears over the COVID-19 virus, the organizers of the 2020 Bluewater Regional Science and Technology Fairs have cancelled the events. The 2020 Senior Regional Science Fair scheduled for April 1 and the 2020 Junior Regional Science Fair scheduled for April 8 at […]

The owners of Saugeen Springs RV Park have opened their property early to provide sites for RV snowbirds who have had to return to Ontario earlier than planned because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Catherine Serez, who owns and operates the seasonal campground near Hanover with her children, said there are many people who live full-time […]

Owen Sound is postponing until further notice the launch of its planned twice-daily transit service between the city’s bus terminal and Guelph. City officials announced Friday that Guelph Owen Sound Transportation (GOST) will not be starting up on April 1 as scheduled due to the COVID-19 situation. Dennis Kefalas, director of public works and engineering, […]

Peter Suke loaded his groceries then jumped in his car as quickly as he could to escape a downpour Friday morning in Owen Sound. Cold and dripping wet, he reached for a disinfectant wipe in a plastic zip bag on the passenger seat and worked the soggy napkin between his fingers and all over his […]

MPP Bill Walker said Thursday he thinks the region’s healthcare system is in good shape as local, provincial and federal governments continue to enact measures to slow community transmission of the COVID-19 virus while dealing with a destabilized economy. As of Friday morning, there were three confirmed cases of the COVID-19 virus in Grey-Bruce. Three […]

An Owen Sound-area man left the city’s COVID-19 assessment centre Thursday feeling he’d “wasted” his time because his sick son wasn’t tested. He said if people knew how strict the testing criteria are, there would be a lot fewer people showing up seeking a test for the virus which is sweeping the world, which has […]

Grey-Bruce residents listened to five of the region’s top healthcare professionals in a telephone town hall hosted by Bruce Power Thursday night, and dotted often among the important and prudent advice was something Dr. Ian Arra’s grandmother told him when he was five years old. Wash your hands. Don’t touch your face. “I sound like […]

Police in Grey-Bruce are working closely with the medical officer of health to contend with COVID-19 challenges now, while planning for the worst in case this pandemic virus continues to spread into the community as expected. They’re taking steps to minimize face-to-face contact with people who report incidents, on a case-by-case basis, by encouraging online […]

The United Way of Bruce Grey has launched a new website aimed at connecting volunteers remotely with people in isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Executive director Francesca Dobbyn said the mobile-friendly “The Do” site – which can be found at thedo.ca – officially launched Thursday. “It’s to connect isolated people and create a sense of […]

The Municipality of Meaford and Town of Blue Mountains are working to continue essential services after the cancellation and closures of most municipal facilities and public meetings to help slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus. In Meaford, the town hall, Meaford Hall, museum, public library and community centre have all been closed to the […]

With extra precautions in place, work is continuing on Owen Sound’s 10th Street bridge replacement project amid the ongoing COVID-19 situation. Dennis Kefalas, director of public works and engineering, said the contractor’s plan is to keep the project going unless an order comes down from the province to cease all construction in Ontario. “They’ve got […]

South Bruce OPP are looking for the public’s help in identifying a suspicious vehicle and driver after a youth was approached in Kincardine Tuesday. A dark blue or black car stopped on St. Albert Street near Park Street and the driver called out to the young person. The youth ignored the driver and ran home. […]

West Grey’s fourth Polar Plunge for Special Olympics drew a large and energetic crowd Friday. “There’s overall more support this year,” said Const. Mitch Roulston. “It’s through the Special Olympics, and every service usually has a couple of officers or members that take on a role with assisting with Special Olympics and the support from […]

Two more COVID-19 assessment centres are opening in Grey-Bruce Thursday. One at Hanover & District Hospital in Hanover will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., seven days a week. The other is at South Bruce Grey Health Centre’s Kincardine hospital, which will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., seven days a week. Owen […]

The big news here is that I made it home. There might have been a minute or two when I wasn’t sure, when I thought I might be living in Ireland for a while. I didn’t hate the idea, particularly since friends offered us the use of a cottage by the seaand since we elbowed […]

For Bob and Marie Knapp, all’s well that ends well, even if it ended with a precautionary 14-day self-quarantine. The Georgian Bluffs couple cut short their winter getaway to Ecuador’s mountainside town of Banos de Agua Santa and arrived home in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. They grew increasingly concerned about COVID-19, which when […]

All playground structures in Owen Sound are closed for the next four weeks. The city will also be providing, as of Thursday, free public transit service and will pick up garbage bags on scheduled routes even if they don’t have a tag on them. It’s suspending downtown parking enforcement until further notice and will not […]

The Ontario Hockey League announced it will forgo the 56 remaining games on its regular-season schedule Wednesday as it continues to pause and monitor developments in accordance with the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The league said that following a meeting with the OHL Board of Governors and consultation with medical professionals, it was determined […]

South Bruce Peninsula Mayor Janice Jackson is imploring snowbirds to self isolate inside their home for 14 days immediately upon their return to the area in an effort slow the spread COVID-19. “They need to understand that they have to drive straight home. They can’t stop at the grocery store. They need to go straight […]

This extraordinary COVID-19 situation has led to an unprecedented partnership between two Owen Sound organizations, which both provide help to the community’s most vulnerable. Safe ‘n Sound and the Owen Sound Hunger and Relief Effort (OSHaRE) will be working together during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic to ensure the people they serve continue receiving the lunches […]

A 61-year-old man who public health says acquired COVID-19 while travelling internationally is Grey-Bruce’s third confirmed case of the virus. The Grey Bruce Health Unit confirmed Wednesday afternoon that it has received laboratory confirmation of the positive case, which was first posted on the Ontario Ministry of Health & Long-term Care’s 2019 novel coronavirus webpage. […]

The Owen Sound Fire Department helped paramedics perform a rope and rescue basket operation on a steep and rocky slope opposite the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre Monday night. Fire Chief Doug Barfoot said firefighters responded to a person laying at the base of a 15-foot rock face on the slope at 3rd Avenue East […]

An early-morning car fire at the 500 block of 8th Street West in Owen Sound has been deemed arson according to city police who are seeking information from the public. At 2 a.m Wednesday morning, a vehicle was seen engulfed in flames. The Owen Sound Fire Department was called to the scene and put down […]

An early morning car fire at the 500 block of 8th Street West in Owen Sound has been deemed arson according to city police, who are seeking information from the public. At 2 a.m Wednesday, a vehicle was seen engulfed in flames. The Owen Sound Fire Department was called and put down the fire but […]

Owen Sound’s temporary COVID-19 assessment centre will open at noon Wednesday in a parking lot near the hospital’s emergency department. People are encouraged to call a new Grey Bruce Health Services call centre, at 519-378-1466, which will field calls Wednesday from noon until 4 p.m., then Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. […]

Grey Bruce Health Services is suspending non-essential services and restricting access of most visitors due to the COVID-19 ongoing emergency. “We’re closing our doors to visitors unless under compassionate circumstances,” said Gary Sims, the president and CEO of the hospital corporation. “The vast majority are encouraged not to come to the hospital at this time.” […]

St. Patrick’s Day is always the busiest night of the year at Shorty’s Grill in Owen Sound. For Tuesday’s event, owner Stan Dimakos had booked the party band Strange Potatoes to perform for another year. Staff was urging people last week to make reservations as spots were filling up fast. But the evolving COVID-19 pandemic […]

The Owen Sound Sports Hall of Fame announced Tuesday it has cancelled its May 8 induction ceremony and dinner in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The decision came the same day the provincial government, under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, was to prohibit all organized public gatherings of 50 people or more, including […]

Owen Sound city hall is closed to the public and all council and committee meetings have been cancelled until further notice, while next month’s Home & Cottage Expo has been axed. Meanwhile, Bruce County has closed all of its office buildings to the public, while Grey County’s administration building will be open to assist those […]

OSHaRE, Safe ‘n Sound and the Owen Sound Salvation Army are making changes to their operations to limit person-to-person contact during the COVID-19 pandemic, while ensuring the people they serve continue to receive food. Colleen Trask Seaman, executive director of Owen Sound Hunger and Relief Effort (OSHaRE), said the organization is closing its dining hall […]

Situations like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affect people living in poverty, says the executive director of the United Way of Bruce Grey. “We have seen this through fires, we saw this with the tornado in Goderich – any time there’s a significant shock to a system, which is how we term these things, it […]

The Ontario Hockey Federation and its seven member partners – including the Ontario Minor Hockey Association – issued a statement Monday announcing that all 2020-21 spring hockey tryouts have been cancelled. The OHF and its members will communicate a plan for tryouts and the upstart of the 2020-21 season when Hockey Canada sanctioned activities are […]

Ontario law court restrictions effective Monday advise anyone with criminal, family or Provincial Offences Act matters not to attend the Ontario Court of Justice unless for an in-custody or urgent criminal or urgent family matter. But even then, people are asked not to attend a courthouse in person if they’ve been advised to self-isolate by […]

The offices of Postmedia newspapers in Grey Bruce – The Sun Times in Owen Sound, The Shoreline Beacon in Port Elgin, The Post in Hanover, The Kincardine News, The Lucknow Sentinel, The Wiarton Echo and Grey Bruce This Week – are temporarily closed to the public as a measure to protect the health and well-being […]

Para-swimmer Meghan Calhoun shaved almost a full two seconds off her personal best time to set a new national record in the women’s 100-metre butterfly at the 2020 Winter Ontario Swimming Championships earlier this month. Calhoun swam a time of 1:09.14 to win the gold medal and set the new Canadian para-swimming record in the […]

A couple in their 50s who likely acquired COVID-19 from contact aboard a cruise ship are Grey-Bruce’s first two confirmed cases of the virus. The Grey Bruce Health Unit announced in a news release early Sunday afternoon that it had received laboratory confirmation of the two cases. The cases are a related couple, a 58-year-old […]

As Canada’s number of COVID-19 cases continued to climb on the weekend, restrictions were tightened at facilities in Grey-Bruce to help prevent a widespread outbreak of the virus. Ontario’s chief medical officer Dr. David Williams deemed that only “essential” visitors be allowed in long-term-care, retirement and supportive housing as part of the province’s efforts to […]

While COVID-19 was clearly on people’s minds in Owen Sound Saturday, they were finding a silver lining at local gas stations. The price of fuel dropped to under 84 cents a litre at some stations in Owen Sound, and motorists were taking advantage of the lowest prices for fuel in recent memory. Lance Hill of […]

A member of the Beaver Valley Ski Club has tested positive for COVID-19. The club, located in the Municipality of Grey Highlands, posted a statement on its website, announcing that it was made aware a member had tested positive for the coronavirus. The club was closed effective immediately, it said Saturday. The club prepared a […]

Owen Sound Attack general manager Dale DeGray said Friday that most of the team’s players are home or headed there while the league awaits word of a possible return. Except for the team’s import and international players who have been asked to stick around the Scenic City. “They’re asked to stay because they might fly […]

As the number of local closures, cancellations and other impacts of COVID-19 preparation efforts continue to rise, officials at local agencies say they’re worried about how the evolving situation could impact vulnerable residents, including those living in poverty. “I’m concerned about the people that the charitable sector and the not-for-profit sector serve in our community,” […]

Kids may enjoy an extended March Break due to provincial COVID-19 precautionary closures but what are schools doing to ensure students don’t fall behind? And what will working parents do with their younger kids for March Break and two weeks after that, now that schools and any attached childcare centres are officially closed until April […]

While there were still no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Grey-Bruce reported Friday, measures continued to be implemented across the two counties in an effort to prevent a widespread outbreak. The Grey Bruce Health Unit confirmed Friday afternoon that no cases of the coronavirus had been detected in the two counties. As of Friday at […]