The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

6 - PORT PERRY "WEEKEND STAR FRIDAY, JANUARY 7, 2000 Pe PUBLISHER................ J. Peter Hvidsten GENERAL MGRH.......... Don Macleod MANAGING EDITOR.. Jeft Mitchell : Aoma OFFICE MANAGER... Gayle Stapley REPORTER................. Chris Hall Freelance Writers- Heather McCrae, John B. McClelland PHONE (905) 985-7383 FAX (905) 985-3708 E-MAIL: port.perry.star@ sympatico.ca EDITORIAL POLICY: Opinions per geal Weekend Star x Newspaper Assoc. Published every Friday by the Port Perry Star Company Limited, 188 Mary Street - Port Perry, Ontario - L9L 1B7 Distributed free in the following communities: Port Perry - Uxbridge - Sunderland - Little Britain - RR Lindsay Janetville Oakwood - Manilla - Seagrave - Greenbank - Brooklin - Ashbum - Columbus - RR Oshawa Caesarea - Blackstock - Raglan - Nestieton - Yelverton - Prince Albert by columnists, contributors and letter writers are not necessarily those of The Port Perry Star. Letters must be signed and the telephone number (which will not be published) included. Requests that a name be withheld will be honoured only # there is a compeling reason © do so. Errors will be corrected i brought to the editor's attention. We reserve the right 10 edt o refuse publication of any material submitted. ADVERTISING POLICY: The publisher is not liable for slight changes or typographical errors that do not lessen the value of an advertisement. The publisher is not able for other emors or omissions in connection with any advertisement in any subsequent issue or the refund of any monies paid for the advertisement. All daims of error in publication must be made by Wednesday, neon, prior to the next week's publicatiof, and, if not made, will not be considered. No claim will be allowed for more than one insertion. BUSINESS OFFICE: Judy Ashby, Kathy Dudley, Janet Rankin, Lesley West ADVERTISING: Ginni Todd, Cindy Jobin, Gail Morse, Heather Mack, Linda Clarke, Janet Archer, Malcolm Lennox PRODUCTION: Trudy Empringham, Pam Hickey, Daryle Wright, Arlene Cheel, Robert Taylor, Richard Drew, Scott Ashby OPINION The emergency crunch The reports we've received from the Greater Toronto Area and here at home about hospital emergency room overcrowding illus- trate the pressure under which the medicare system is operating these days. While they're not turning patients away, the Lakeridge Health Corp. hospitals in Port Perry and Uxbridge have warned that ER delays encountered over the holidays may still be experienced now. And elsewhere throughout the GTA, the situation is also trou- bling: Long waits for patients with complaints that are not dire, and ambulances being redirected from hospitals that are overflow- ing. A convergence of factors including a nasty flu season, staffing "and funding considerations and, yes, enforced closures and cut- backs, have brought about the scenario. But it's not one we haven't seen before in recent times. It would seem at times that the health care system, which has been revamped and examined relentlessly in search of savings by government, is being tested to the limit. And those elements that have been taken from the system will surely never be seen again, covered by publicly-funded medicare. Here in north Durham we have been spared the loss of community hospitals, but we are learning that the institutions and the people who staff them are resources that must be used carefully. Here's hoping Lakeridge Health can seize the opportunity for ER staff ~ | funding being offered by the province. Even a little more money could go a long way. Proto Or THE WEEK HOME TEAM By Walt Radda [50S our OI COTPUTER) Nobody can say 10-month-old Gregory Hoogers isn't a bubbly little guy, especially in the bath. If you have an interesting picture we could use for Photo of the Week, please drop it by The Star office, or give us a call at 985-7383. ? LY2)K COMPLIANT? \( OH YEAH, NO PROBLEM! JUST FINE! . ast. ale NN SAIN 04s, T'S WORKING THE PROBLEM \T SEEMSISTATI'M NOT Y2K COMPL)ANT! Coa Con Icy, dangerous Shirley Rd. a sign of negligence by region To the Editor: I am writing to inform you | am disgusted with the road conditions here in Scugog Township, in particular, Durham Road 19, also known as Shirley Road. Last night (Jan. 3) | entered Shirley Road at 9:15 p.m, east bound off of Durham Road 2. I was shocked to see there was no salt or sand on the road when all day long there was talk on the radio (and on the T.V. the night before), of a freezing rain warning for Monday afternoon. . I work in northwest Markham, almost Richmond Hill. I left work at 8 p.m. last night and | travel all back roads north of highway 7 home. Every road | was on last night had been salted or sanded except Shirley Road. It took everything I could do to stay out of the ditch. | managed to get to the Cartwright Quarter Line, where | turned south onto the gravel portion of the road. The hill one must drive down and back up at Cartwright Quarter Line was absolutely black, and just a skating rink. Once I got down, there was no way | could actually drive up the other side, so | decided to turn south as I knew that road was gravel and there would be some grit to the road. I followed that road south, then east over to Old Scugog Road, which had been salt- ed. This is my eleventh winter driving the roads out here, and already this winter Shirley Road has been treacherous on numerous occasions. | feel very strongly the condition of Shirley Road on Monday evening, after warnings of freezing rain all day, was completely negligent. | am con- sidering putting my home up for sale. | would ask for an explanation from someone responsible for road mainte- nance, but they obviously don't care. Brian Tyndall Blackstock Ld