Axl Rose promises new Guns N' Roses album /16
TUESDAY, MAY 9, 2006

Aussie miners freed /15

Muscles need work /25

Bonnie Fuller dishes dirt on herself in new book/28

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Spirit Bears out on display
by BERNICE TRICK Citizen staff Seven Spirit Bears came out of hibernation Monday to find new homes in Prince George. The bears, which are modeled after the rare Kermode bear in the Nass and Skeena valleys, were unveiled at the Civic Plaza and then moved to their respective locations. Among the most unusual was White Reminder, by artist Phil Morrison, who cut letters into his piece to reveal the legend of the Spirit Bear. The tale begins with a silent, snow-white world, which becomes one of growth and abundance. That's when the raven conjures up the white spirit bear as a memorial to the frozen, peaceful past. It will be located at Two Rivers Gallery. The youngest artist in B.C. to work on a bear is 15-yearold Tatiana Wimmer, a Grade 10 student at College Heights secondary school. Tatiana painted her bear, sponsored by SpeeDee Printers, to represent the northern lights. Aurora "Bearealis" features the northern lights swirling in between bubbling blue waters and a landscape of greens and browns. "I didn't think I'd ever get to do something as rewarding as this," said Tatiana, who won the honour by completing a homework assignment judged by SpeeDee Printers. -- See VARIOUS on page 3

Council rescinds ruling on RVs
by MARK NIELSEN Citizen staff City council backed away Monday night from a previous decision to ticket retailers who allow recreational vehicle owners to camp out overnight on their parking lots. Council members voted unanimously to rescind the motion, made two weeks ago, after getting a flurry of emails from RV owners who threatened to boycott Prince George if they followed through on the plan to clamp down on so-called boondockers. And they voted 8-1 to ask staff for advice on time limits for layovers before RVers would either have to use designated RV parks or move on, as well as consideration of changes to the bylaw governing where RVs are allowed to camp. Mayor Colin Kinsley had suggested 12 hours as a time limit, but also admitted the time is something of a sawoff between the zero and 24 suggested in the comments he's received. Coun. Don Zurowski, meanwhile, made it clear he's a strong advocate for 24 hours. Not only would 24 hours be reasonable to monitor but would be more friendly to families from outlying areas who are in Prince George to shop, he contended. "The individual with their family from Terrace and pulls in a eight o'clock at night may boondock and shop the next day," he said. "Wouldn't it be a shame to have them arrive at eight o'clock at night and have them move along by eight o'clock in the morning before they spend some serious money." -- See KEEP on page 3

Citizen photos by Dave Milne

Tatiana Wimmer, 15, poses with the Spirit Bear she painted, above. Mayor Colin Kinsley, left, takes a closer look at the Spirit Bear completed by Phil Morrison.

Fine handed down over logging truck fatality
by GORDON HOEKSTRA Citizen staff WorkSafe B.C. has imposed a penalty of $32,450.02 against Babine Forest Products over a logging truck fatality near Burns Lake more than three years ago. The fine was imposed last week, which the company, an operation of West Fraser Timber, has 90 days to appeal, WorkSafe spokesperson Donna Freeman said Monday. One logging sector representative characterized the penalty as "not much of a deterrent," but Freeman said the penalty is based on a formula that takes into account the size of the company's payroll and the seriousness of the incident. "The difficulty with penalties is, first of all, the dollar amount never represents the loss involved," said Freeman. "There's no way to do that." West Fraser Timber officials could not be reached for comment Monday. The case has been locked up in a lengthy appeal process, which Babine Forest Products lost in a decision issued last January by WorkSafe, formerly the Workers' Compensation Board. Burns Lake log trucker Craig Payne was killed in a head-on collision on Feb. 8, 2003 on a onelane logging road, called the North Road. A WCB investigation report -- obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request by The Citizen -- concluded in March 2004 that one of the causes of the accident was the unsafe practice of hauling logs in both directions on an extremely narrow road that was never designed to accommodate two loaded logging trucks travelling in opposite directions. The WCB made a number of recommendations, including that the company conduct a survey of the entire North Road and ensure it was constructed to the appropriate standard in the road permit. The WCB called on the forest district office in the Burns Lake area to ensure this was done. The WorkSafe B.C. order for an administrative penalty lists several reasons for imposing the penalty The reasons include that the firm was found to have committed a violation that resulted in a high risk of serious injury or death, and the firm failed to exercise due diligence to prevent the violations. The order said the penalty is also necessary to motivate both the penalized employer and other employers to comply with provincial laws and regulations governing the workplace. Central Interior Logging Association manager Roy Nagel said the penalty seemed small and unlikely to be a deterrent. "It is a long time to get this thing finally put to bed," said Nagel, who raised Payne's death as a serious issue three years ago. "And the amount of money that's been assessed here is relatively insignificant when you look at West Fraser's overall profits, even just in that division," he added. West Fraser has extensive operations in northern B.C., including in Terrace, Smithers, Fraser Lake, Houston, Chetwynd, Quesnel and Williams Lake. When Babine Forest Products lost its appeal in January, WCB regional manager Bruce Clarke had said the logging road had been inspected and that the case officers felt the company had met the requirements of what was expected. That included putting up signs, clearing timber at corners and putting in procedures for two-way hauling on the narrow road, Clarke said at the time. -- See LOGGING on page 3

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RELAY FOR LIFE

Memories motivate teen
by FRANK PEEBLES Citizen staff The teen who became the first person to walk the entire 24-Hour Relay For Life in Prince George was driven by the thought of loved ones lost and those still battling cancer. "My grandma had it twice, she is a two-time survivor now; my great-aunt died from it two weeks ago; one of my mom's friends is fighting it right now," Darcy Caston said Monday. Organizers of the cancer society's relay said no one had ever walked the entire 24 hours before Caston set the mark this weekend, stopping only for bathroom breaks. The 19-year-old CNC student had it in his mind to do a major portion of the relay. He and a few friends were going to divide it into portions, but about two weeks ago the others had to drop out of the event. Instead of quitting, Caston decided to go it alone. "Mostly I wanted to challenge myself," he said. "It was kind of trying, but fun, exciting. Probably the 12th hour was the toughest. That's when I started to feel the pain in my legs, but after that it got better. I don't know why. I talked to my dad a bit (at that time) and he encouraged me, so that got me going again." Caston's friends brought him a pizza, a sandwich, cookies, muffins and other goodies to keep him going. "I never really felt all that sleepy, probably because of all the coffee people kept bringing me." At one point he had a tray around his neck fashioned out of cardboard and duct tape, so he could eat and walk at the same time. He said he slept for about six hours right after the relay ended on Sunday morning, then slept another 12 hours into Monday afternoon. A little soreness in the legs and a couple of blisters are the only negative effects. "I'll definitely be there (at the relay) next year, but I don't know if I'll do the whole thing by myself," he said. "I might do it. We'll see. I'll see how I feel about it next spring." He is considering it, though, with the money in mind. He raised more than $200 this year, and with this accomplishment, he believes he could attract even more funds next year. -- See photos on page 13
Citizen photo by Brent Braaten

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INDEX
Annie's Mailbox . . . . . . . . . 28 Bridge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Business . . . . . . . . . . . .22-24 City, B.C. . . . . . . . . . . 3,5,6,13 Classifi ed . . . . . . . . . . . 18-21 Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Crossword . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Entertainment . . . . . . . . . . 16 Horoscope . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Nation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6,7 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-12 World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14,16

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Darcy Caston eats a slice of pizza from a tray made of duct tape and cardboard during the 24-hour Relay For Life, which he completed by himself.

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