OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, August 26, 2009 · 6 OPINION & LETTERS The Oakville Beaver 467 Speers Rd., Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 (905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5571 Classified Advertising: 632-4440 Circulation: 845-9742 Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. THE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR: NEIL OLIVER Vice President and Group Publisher of Metroland West The Oakville Beaver is a division of Media Group Ltd. DAVID HARVEY Regional General Manager JILL DAVIS Editor in Chief ROD JERRED Managing Editor DANIEL BAIRD Advertising Director RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director SANDY PARE Business Manager MARK DILLS Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager CHARLENE HALL Director of Distribution SARAH MCSWEENEY Circ. Manager Extreme weather can hit anywhere In comparison to the level of damage Mother Nature inflicted on some areas of southern Ontario last Thursday, Oakville got off easy. It was an F-2 tornado that created winds reaching speeds between 180-240 km/h that took the life of an 11-year-old boy visiting a conservation area in Durham, Ont., southwest of Owen Sound. In Vaughan, an estimated 600 homes were damaged and more than three dozen will have to be demolished and rebuilt. Some 120 homes in Woodbridge and Maple were evacuated because of gas leaks and water damage. Witnesses to nature's path of destruction reported watching cars spin through the air and seeing homes destroyed. We were lucky. But that might not be the case next time. With that in mind, the Canadian Red Cross and St. John Ambulance offer the following tips to be ready: · If you are outside when a tornado hits, seek shelter in a sturdy structure immediately; if no shelter is available, lay flat in a ditch, raving or other low-lying area and protect your head with your arms. · If you are in your home, move to the basement. If you do not have a basement, move to the ground floor and settle in a centralized room with no windows (i.e. a closet or a bathroom). In a high-rise, move to the lower floors and seek shelter in a centralized area or the stairwell. Avoid the elevators. · If you're in a car, seek shelter immediately. If you are not near a stable structure, find a ditch or low-lying area where you can protect yourself and make sure there is no risk of the car rolling over you. · Prepare an emergency kit. A checklist of items should include flashlights and batteries, radio and batteries, first aid kit, extra car keys and cash, important papers such as ID and personal documents, toilet paper and personal supplies, medications, a whistle, changes of clothing, canned food and bottled water. (For a full list, visit www.emergencymanagementontario.ca) · First aid training should be a part of every household's safety plan. Visit www.sja.ca or call the local Red Cross at 905-689-0732 for details on courses. · Create an emergency plan and make sure your family knows what to do if an emergency occurs. Red Cross volunteers mobilized immediately after the tornado touched down in Vaughan, setting up emergency shelters and working with local officials and community partners to ensure the basic immediate needs of evacuees are met. To make a donation to the Red Cross to assist in its disaster response efforts call 1-800-418-1111. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline. Letter to the editor Pilot's death stunned schoolmate I was reduced to tears when I read that Frank Toews Jr. had been killed in a fatal plane crash in Nairobi on Aug. 1 (Oakville pilot died helping others, Oakville Beaver, Aug. 20). You see, "Frankie", had been a longtime schoolmate of mine at E.A. ORR, Brookdale and Blakelock High School. H a v i n g Frank Toews Jr. known him that many years, I can attest that he was a quiet,courteous, fun-loving, and compassionate human being, whose spirit was unquenchable. It warmed my heart to read that these core values still remained with him well into his adult life. And because of his compassionate nature, it didn't surprise me that he dedicated his life to helping those less fortunate albeit in a very dangerous part of the world. I know that his family must be going thorough a devastating time trying to comprehend his senseless death, however, I hope they find some comfort knowing that he was a decent and well-respected individual who will remain a hero to those families he assisted in Nairobi. Sometimes, a story like Frank's, enables us to reflect on our priorities in life, and be appreciative of the many selfless individuals, who are willing to put themselves in harm's way in order to better the lives of those in dire straits. God bless you and your family, Frankie. HELEN MARKOVIC Letters to the editor The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4, or via e-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. Residents must compromise Hydro's mistake Re: Relocated hydro transformer an unpleasant surprise for vacationing homeowner, Oakville Beaver, Aug. 21. I read David Lea's article about a transformer re-location to Mira Bystrin's yard and have the following comments. Ontario municipal utilities in general and Oakville Hydro specifically are some of the most conscientious utilities in the world. I know this because my business sells high voltage electrical equipment to electric utilities around the world. My observation is that Oakville Hydro does an excellent job of balancing infrastructure esthetics, cost and service reliability. In a space-constrained community, such as Oakville, it is a challenge to get services such as electricity, water, sewage, cable and phone to all residents. To accomplish this everyone needs to accept, as we have, equipment such as hydro poles, transformers, phone junction boxes or cable junction boxes on their property. STEVE MUELLER Re: Relocated hydro transformer an unpleasant surprise for vacationing homeowner, Oakville Beaver, Aug. 21. Many people put in countless hours to improve their properties and pundits extoll the virtues of enhancing our built environment. Why, therefore, nearly 10 years into the 21st century do our public utilities continue to "make ugly" with pole borne transformers in our older neighbourhoods -- not to mention huge loops of cabling, apparently waiting for more attention sometime later Our Hydro CEO states that we must be ready to pay more for transformer stations near Hwy. 407 -- perhaps Hydro could also direct a little money south of the QEW, so that people don't return from vacation to find their properties devalued without any consultation. I am sure that many south end residents feel that this situation could well happen to them. Give this couple a break, Hydro, and reap the PR benefits. CHRIS SAUNDERS