Park Street Fire

Kingston Fire and Rescue says a fire last night in the apartment building at 175 Park Street started in the kitchen area of a second floor apartment.  The building was evacuated just before 10 last night.  A dog was rescued from the unit and a tenant in another apartment was taken to hospital by paramedics after suffering an asthma attack.  Damage is estimated at $50,000.

Suspicious Packages

A suspicious package found on a bench around Queen Mary Road and Bath Road turned out to be a drill.  Kingston police rerouted traffic and school buses were delayed yesterday afternoon after the package was discovered.  It was removed by the OPP Explosives Disposal Unit around 5pm.  The gray plastic case contained a pneumatic drill.

Police were being extra cautious after another package that did contain explosive materials was found near the construction site for the K&P Trail extension Monday afternoon.  The packaged was found off of Railway Street, behind Levac Supply.  The OPP Explosives Disposal Unit was called and took it to the Joyceville Road fire training facility where it was blown up.

17 year old – Animal Cruelty

A 17 year old has been charged with killing birds at the Rideau Acres Campground.  The owner of the campground went to check on birds in a small coop around 9pm on Saturday.  He came across the teen holding a dead chicken and pigeon and discovered eight other birds had been killed.

The teen has a date in court to face a criminal code charge for killing the birds.

Queen’s – Funding

Queen’s University has received $63.7 million from the federal government to create a new Canadian Particle Astrophysics Research Centre. The funding was announced yesterday afternoon.

The funding comes following the Nobel Prize in physics for Queen’s professor emeritus Art McDonald last year.   The research centre for dark matter and neutrino experiments will include 41 new posts for researchers, technicians and engineers as well as seven new faculty members.  The centre will be located at Queen’s and will partner with seven other Canadian Universities as well as the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory.

Queen’s Party Time

It turns out Queen’s students took advantage of great weather to party in the streets on Sunday and Monday nights.  Partiers took over University Avenue between William Street and Johnson Street from approximately 10:30 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. both Sunday and Monday.  They blocked traffic and left the street full of broken glass.  No injuries were reported but police say two male Queen’s students…aged 19 and 20…were arrested for public intoxication. 38 tickets were issued, mostly for open alcohol and underage drinking.

Giant Q

Queens University did manage to set the Guinness Record for the most people to form a letter.

3,373 people gathered on Nixon Field yesterday afternoon to form the letter Q.   The previous record of 2,166, was held by Dell Technologies in Texas.

Pedestrian Crosswalks

Kingston is finally getting real pedestrian crosswalks.  The pedestrian crossovers require drivers to stop while pedestrians cross the street and will be activated today.  They’re in front of Rideaucrest on Rideau Street and Kingston General Hospital on King Street.

Mayor Bryan Paterson will activate the crosswalk on Rideau Street at 11 this morning.

The Tragically Hip – Springer Market Square

An engraved stone in Springer Market Square will commemorate The Tragically Hips final concert of the Man, Machine Poem Tour.  City council has approved the idea to mark the night of August 20th when a crowd estimated at over 25,000 filled the square to watch a live broadcast of the concert.  A page in the Kingston Remembers History flipbook will also be dedicated to the concert.

Olympic Medal Celebration – Britt Benn

An Olympic medal winner will be helping the Napanee District Secondary School Football Program raise some money tonight.  Britt Benn of Napanee will be attending a Welcome Home celebration at NDSS starting at 6pm.  Benn was a member of the Canadian Women’s Rugby Team that won bronze at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

The celebration is part of a fundraising barbecue with proceeds going to the high school football team.

Filed under: Animal Cruelty, Art McDonald, Britt Benn, Canadian Particle Astrophysics Research Centre, Funding, Giant Q, Nobel Prize, Olympic Medal Celebration, Park Street Fire, Pedestrian Crosswalks, Queen's Party Time, Queen's University, Springer Market Square, Suspicious Package, Tragically Hip