Headlines from this weeks SPEC

August 25, 2002

Heat Wave Persists in Gaspe

Since August 11th, people have been looking for any way possible to beat the crazy heat that we have been having. The temperatures have been ranging from 27 to almost 35 degrees since the start of the heat wave. On some days, the temperature has been close to 10 degrees above the normal temperatures. Thursday, August 15th, was an especially hot day. According to Environment Canada, numerous towns along the Gaspe Coast attained record high temperatures. Gaspe, for example, was 34.6 degrees on Thursday. The old record, which had been around since 1970, was 33.3 degrees. Although Environment Canada did suggest that a cool front would be coming through the region, it was still quite hot as of Monday.

Mobile mammogram unit coming to the region
Charlene Eden

A mobile breast cancer screening unit will spend six weeks in the Gaspé region, starting October 13th. The unit, known as CLARA, will enable approximately 1, 300 women to attain a mammogram, one of the most utilized methods in the country for detecting breast cancer. CLARA’s visit is part of the Quebecois breast cancer screening program, which was launched in 1998. The program works to offer all women aged 50-69 a mammogram every two years.

Although there are five screening centres in the region, they are unable to keep up with the amount of women who require mammograms. According to Dr. Yves Bonnier-Viger of Public Health, approximately 1, 300 women in the region are waiting to have a mammogram. Some of these women have been waiting as long as two years for this test. One participant at the press conference in Paspebiac stressed that women in Ontario usually receive a mammogram within two months.

Fate of Murdochville to be decided Sunday
Charlene Eden

On Sunday, August 25th, the citizens of Murdochville will decide whether or not the town of Murdochville has a future. The referendum, which is on the minds of all citizens, has created a major division in the town.

Citizens will be asked to vote yes or no on the following question: "Do you accept that the Municipal Council of the town of Murdochville make the necessary interventions with the goal of closing the town of Murdochville?" A total of 799 people are eligible to vote in the referendum. Until early last week, 867 people were on the electoral list. A revision was conducted at the beginning of the week to ensure that all those on the list met the requirements to vote in the referendum.

Marc Minville, the town’s mayor, recently spoke with Spec about the town’s current situation. He stated that without stable job creation, there is no point in keeping the town alive. "It takes industries that will create durable investments, that will create lots of jobs. Small investors cannot do that for us. It will take a lot of jobs, 300-400 workers to allow us to continue our quality of life," he said.