KW in brief: September 2, 2010

New Ward 7 candidate

Melissa Durrell, a news reporter for CTV Southwestern Ontario is taking leave from her job to run as a candidate for Waterloo City Council in this October’s election.

In a statement released last week, Durrell lists “respecting residents’ tax dollars, a vibrant uptown and keeping citizens connected to City Hall” as her top priorities.

Covering municipal affairs for CTV, Durrell is also a part-time professor at Conestoga College and is a Ryerson Journalism School graduate.

Durrell is the fifth candidate for Ward 7. She will run against Erin Epp, Edwin Larvea, Duncan McLean and Peter Woolstencroft in the election on Oct. 25.

Man tames fire with garden hose

When a fire broke out on Misty Cr. in Kitchener at about 2:30 a.m. on Sept. 1, the home-owner doused the fire with a garden hose until the Kitchener Fire Department arrived to extinguish the blaze.

The Waterloo Region Record reported that the cause of the fire has yet to be determined though initial reports claim it was the result of poor wiring under the home’s back deck.

Approximately $120,000 in damage was done to the home’s exterior and attic as the fire spread to the roof before firefighters arrived.

Missing methadone

The owner of seven bottles of the liquid drug methadone has reported the drugs missing on Aug. 31.

The methadone was being carried in a green reusable shopping bag and may have gone missing while the owner was sleeping on a transit bus.

Police are asking the public to report any findings of methadone immediately.

Kitchener resident on Canadian reality TV

Jonathon Arsenault will continue to represent his hometown by competing for top prize in the So You Think You Can Dance Canada competition on Monday.

Paired with Kloé Schultz of North Bay, Ont., the pair will compete on the weekly television series and are currently among the top 18 contestants.

Cyclist killed on University Ave.

A cyclist was thrown into a ditch after being struck by a vehicle just east of Westmount Road on University Ave. on Sept. 1.

The cyclist was pronounced dead on the scene and the driver of the Ford Focus also involved in the collision was taken to hospital suffering from shock. A subsequent investigation shut down the area for a number of hours.

Though this area, near the University of Waterloo, does have a bike lane it has yet to be determined whether the cyclist was utilizing it.

The Waterloo Region Record reported this as the eleventh traffic fatality this year and the third of this summer. This is the same number of fatalities as this time last year.