Armed Forces touch down in North Bay for emergency training this weekend
This weekend, the Canadian Armed Forces will be conducting an emergency response training exercise with local government and partner agencies in Mattawa and North Bay.
‘Trillium Venture’ is being held across Ontario. It’s led by Joint Task Force Central, headquartered in Toronto, and includes members of the armed forces from the Canadian Army, Royal Canadian Air Force and the Royal Canadian Navy.
Friday morning, a Hercules CC-130 jet landed at the North Bay Jack Garland Airport. Crew members scrambled into action, unloading critical supplies from the Canadian Force Base in Kingston and putting the cargo into trucks for delivery. (Photo from video)
Friday morning, a Hercules CC-130 jet landed at the North Bay Jack Garland Airport. Crew members scrambled into action, unloading critical supplies from the Canadian Force Base in Kingston and putting the cargo into trucks for delivery.
“The aircraft landed on time and then we saw the green trucks rolling up,” said 22 Wing/Canadian Forces Base Lieutenant Col. Ken Bedley.
“So it's a true indication of that -- that joint coordinated planning effort between the army and the air force.”
Around 200 soldiers from the Canadian Army’s 33 Canadian Brigade Group will form 33 Territorial Battalion Group, including soldiers from the region deploying to the North Bay and Mattawa areas in a realistic emergency response scenario.
Military members and assets will respond to a simulated flooding emergency that devastated the town’s infrastructure and citizens.
The crew will prepare a unified response with local, regional and other partners in the community.
Brig.-Gen. Joshua Major, commander of 4th Division and Joint Task Force, is overseeing the operation. He actually grew up in Mattawa.
“When the call comes for us to participate in a situation, we have to be ready to step up immediately,” Major told reporters.
“The leadership was keen on having us present. So we chose that community because of some of those factors. We're doing this exercise approximately about across seven or eight communities across Ontario.”
The exercise will include various RCAF aircraft landing, including CH-147 Chinook helicopters that will deliver cargo in the heart of Mattawa on Saturday afternoon, and then conduct troop transports around the area.
Waterborne assets, including those from the Naval Reserve, will also participate in the joint exercise.
Activities will also include the participation of other government departments and first responders including police and fire services, Emergency Management Ontario, local governments and others.
The arena complex will serve as a headquarters and will house nearly 150 soldiers during the exercise. The Mike Rodden Arena, located at 450 Hurdman St. in Mattawa, will be inaccessible during the exercise.
Mattawa Mayor Raymond Belanger recalled the 2019 floods in the community and said the town and its citizens can use this opportunity as a chance to learn.
“We suffered a lot of infrastructure damage. We are trying to get better in case, you know, that we have to meet another flood of that of that size,” Belanger said.
Mattawa will host a Meet-a-Soldier event on Saturday from 1-4 p.m. Military, police, fire and other first responders will attend with vehicles and displays for all ages. The event will take place at the Mattawa Museum parking lot, 285 First St.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
$500K-worth of elvers seized at Toronto airport
Fishery and border service officers seized more than 100 kilograms of unauthorized elvers at the Toronto Pearson International Airport on Wednesday.
Banking mogul suing government after intelligence leaks leave him shut out of Canadian economy
Chinese Canadian banking mogul Shenglin Xian has launched a $300 million lawsuit against the federal government. It’s a means to find the source of intelligence leaks which Xian says has cost him his livelihood.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
His SUV was stolen on Montreal's South Shore. Then he got a $156 parking ticket
A couple is frustrated after their SUV was stolen from Montreal's South Shore in March and they received a parking ticket for the same vehicle last week.
Fort McMurray evacuees welcomed home Saturday as crews make progress on wildfire
Residents of Fort of McMurray who were displaced over wildfire concerns were told to return home Saturday.
Member of Israel's War Cabinet says he'll quit June 8 unless there's new war plan
Benny Gantz, a centrist member of Israel’s three-member War Cabinet, threatened on Saturday to resign from the government if it doesn't adopt a new plan in three weeks' time for the war in Gaza.
To plant or not to plant? Gardening tips for May long weekend
May long weekend is finally here, and with the extra time off you may be getting the itch to head out to your garden and plant. However, the old debate whether you should plant now, or wait, is still ever-present.
Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Scottie Scheffler, from the course to jail and back: What to know about his PGA Championship arrest
Two-time Masters champion Scottie Scheffler was arrested after police say he dragged an officer while trying to get around the scene of a fatal accident Friday ahead of the second round of the PGA Championship.