Bedford residents seek refuge from the heat and enjoy a dip in Paper Mill Lake on Thursday evening.

The record breaking temperatures that Nova Scotians have enjoyed this past week are about to come to an end.

Hurricane Earl is passing through, and the storm will leave behind cooler seasonal temperatures.

As of 10:46 a.m. Environment Canada has issued wind, tropical storm and rainfall warnings. Also added for the Halifax area is a hurricane watch.

“Strong winds with gusts between 90 and a 110 km/h are possible with Earl. This is a warning that potentially damaging winds are expected.”

“A tropical storm warning means that sustained gales…Winds of 63 km/h or more…Are expected in the specified areas within 24 hours.”

Rainfall is expected to exceed 50 millimetres.

As for the hurricane watch, Environment Canada explains that “at 9 a.m. ADT the centre of hurricane Earl was located about 205 kilometres east northeast of Cape Hatteras North Carolina and is moving north northeast at 37 km/h. On its current track Earl is forecast to make landfall in the vicinity of Western Nova Scotia or the Fundy coast of New Brunswick Saturday morning.

It is likely that portions of Southwestern Nova Scotia will have wind gusts reaching or exceeding 100 km/h….Possibly reaching 130 km/h. Wind gusts reaching 90 km/h or higher are possible elsewhere.”

For more information on Hurricane Earl, and how to prepare for major storms,  visit www.weatheroffice.gc.ca and The Canadian Hurricane Centre.

Ecole secondaire du Sommet, the new French high school, opened its doors to students this morning. The school is located at 500 Larry Uteck Blvd. For more information visit www.sommet.ednet.ns.ca.

]]> http://www.bedfordbeacon.com/l%e2%80%99ecole-secondaire-du-sommet-est-prete/feed 0 http://www.bedfordbeacon.com/rcmp-urge-safety-as-hurricane-earl-approaches http://www.bedfordbeacon.com/rcmp-urge-safety-as-hurricane-earl-approaches#comments Thu, 02 Sep 2010 15:21:56 +0000 Bedford Beacon Editor http://www.bedfordbeacon.com/?p=4102 With Hurricane Earl continuing to track toward our province, the RCMP urge citizens to be mindful of the dangers that the storm may present.

As the storm approaches, it is important to remember that extreme weather will result in hazardous conditions, decreased visibility and possible hydro-planing on our roads and highways.

Drivers may also encounter wind-blown debris on the road and sudden flooding which can be dangerous for motorists and detrimental to highway conditions.

The RCMP encourage the public to keep the roads clear for emergency vehicles and refrain from unnecessary travel until after the storm has passed and clean-up efforts are complete.

If you must travel, allow for additional travel time, let someone know your destination, slow down, watch for pooling water and use your hazard signals if you must stop along the way.

The RCMP encourage the public to maintain a safe viewing distance along beaches and shorelines, well away from the water’s edge and stay completely off rocks, breakwaters, and piers where waves are breaking.

Storm driven waves and tides can cause unpredictable and deadly conditions, as anyone close to the coast could be swept into the ocean.

For further information on emergency preparedness, visit the Nova Scotia Emergency Management Office Web site at www.emo.gov.ns.ca/.

As a result the RCMP would like to remind all drivers of their responsibilities, especially when driving in school zones.

To keep our school children safe, please use caution when approaching intersections or crosswalks.

Parked or stopped vehicles may block your view of a pedestrian. Watch for the school safety patrol in their orange vests and stop as directed as patrollers play a vital role in directing children safely across the street.

In Nova Scotia, the speed limit in a school zone is 50 km/hour when children are present.

Please adhere to school and playground posted zone speed limits and slow down when school is in.

Inspector McCarthy of the RCMP Nova Scotia Traffic Services reminds the motoring public that a child may react differently than an adult to danger.

“The approach of a car may cause a child to hesitate and then run across the street. As well lack of attention caused by the back to school excitement may cause them to have poor judgement when it comes to traffic safety”.

The RCMP urge you to do your part to keep our children safe, slow down, allow yourself extra driving time and remain vigilant of all pedestrian traffic.

The RCMP and you, making our roadways safer.

This is the first home opener actually played in Bedford in quite a few years since most of the games are played on artificial fields.

For more information on the C.P. Allen Cheetahs Football schedules, stats, etc. check out their website at http://cheetahsfootball.ca.

Surfers enjoy the waves brought on by Hurricane Danielle at Lawrencetown Beach. Photo by Chris Helland.

After Hurricane Juan hit Nova Scotia just after midnight on September 29, 2003, some Nova Scotians are worried about the impact of Hurricane Earl on the province.

Surfers love the swells brought on by these big storms, and since Saturday surfers from near and far have been taking advantage of the waves carried in by Hurricane Danielle.

Danielle did not make landfall; Earl may.

It is still too early to be concerned, but Environment Canada advices the public “to stay tuned for updated forecasts.”

The Weather Network explains that “on its current track, Earl is forecast to charge up the US eastern seaboard and eventually move into Canadian waters. Just how much of an impact the storm will have on the Maritimes and Newfoundland is still to be determined.”

Hurricane Earl is now a Category 4 hurricane, but as it moves up the coast it is expected to weaken.

The storm, in some form or another, is expected to reach Nova Scotia by the weekend.

$1,000 shopping spree – just in time for Back To School

It’s time to put your thinking caps on – with a great prize to make it worth the effort.

Just pick up your ballot from Customer Service. Your ballot will have 3 trivia questions that can be answered at various retailers throughout the mall.

Find the answers and drop your ballot off at Customer Service.

Only 2 more days to have your chance to win!! Contest ends on Saturday, August 28th.

101.9 FX and Denyse Sybley will be there on Friday at lunch time and Saturday afternoon for a live remote and to do our draw LIVE on the air! You don’t have to be here to win, but you can be here for the fun!

See you this weekend at Bedford Place Mall!

In addition to its physical activity and environmental benefits, a recent study from the University at Buffalo has found walking to school helps reduce stress for students (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, August 2010 issue).

This is good news, but how can we both encourage students to hoof it to school and make it safe and convenient?

“There is no one person or entity we can point to and say ‘You can make it happen if you do X, Y or Z,’” says Janet Barlow, Active & Safe Routes to School Coordinator of the Ecology Action Centre (EAC). “Ultimately, families, motorists, schools and the Province have roles to play in ensuring students who are within a reasonable distance are interested in walking to school and able to do so safely.”

Families can save on gas by allowing their kids to walk or cycle to school.

If you’re concerned about Johnny or Jane walking alone, consider arranging a Walking School Bus (an adult-led walking group) with neighbours.

“Ask you school’s Parent-Teacher Association or School Advisory Council to help get parents involved in setting up Walking School Buses. They’re fun and practical,” says Barlow.

Motorists can slow down and pay attention on our streets so students can arrive safely.

Commit to this cause by becoming a Pace Car driver where you pledge to drive the limit and display “mobile speedbump” and “pace car” decals on your car. Entire communities can adopt the program (learn how at www.pacecar.ca).

Schools (and school boards) can make it easier and safer for students to walk or wheel to school by looking at it from a planning perspective.

A dozen schools throughout Nova Scotia are doing just that through the School Travel Plan project.

“School Travel Plans,” explains Barlow, “are essentially active transportation plans involving the school, parents, municipality and police in solving traffic and access problems.”

“The Province can play a role making sure policy is in place to enable safe walking or cycling to school,” Barlow says.

This includes revisiting where we close and build schools, reducing speeds in school zones and making pedestrian and cycling training, such as Active & Safe Routes to School’s Making Tracks initiative, mandatory curriculum in our schools.

Active & Safe Routes to School (www.saferoutesns.ca) is coordinated by the EAC in partnership with the Nova Scotia Department of Health Promotion and Protection as part of the Active Kids Healthy Kids Initiative.

“We keep hearing reports and studies that walking to school is beneficial on so many levels,” says Barlow. “The evidence is there, so now we all have to do our part to ensure it actually happens.”

Families and small groups can register their activities in advance and qualify to win prizes.

Organizations can register and promote their events and access lots of ideas and resources.

Take Me Outside Week, from September 20 to 26, supports families, groups and organizations in Nova Scotia in a growing “back to nature” movement, inviting more children and youth into the great outdoors.

Register your activities and events to help track the “movement” and to win prizes!

Bring us a drawing, photo, poem, anything that shows what Bedford means to you.

See your idea on display – you might even see it on your friends.

No idea is too wild, and all entries will be considered.

Show us what you’ve got and you just might see your design all over the city.

For further details please call Mark: 220-5386.

Good luck!

Entry form to be attached to artwork: https://docs.google.com. Entry forms can also be picked up at the Bedford Library, your school, or at Bedford Place Mall (customer service).

Design Requirements:

-Maximum of three colours.
-All types of artistic mediums encouraged.
-Should incorporate elements of the community, skate park, or both.
-Approximate size of 10″x10″ design is preferred, but not necessary.
-Be of suitable subject matter for all ages.
-All artwork must be submitted to:

Bedford Place Mall – Customer Service or King’s View Academy, 6199 Chebucto Road, Halifax.

Contest deadline is October 21.
Entries will be judged on October 23 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
All Saints Anglican Church Hall, 1408 Bedford Highway.