Hamilton cyclist community disappointed after two riders struck hours apart

Cyclists throughout Hamilton are not happy about a pair of collisions that injured two cyclists on Friday night, including an 11-year-old boy, because they say there are many occasions where bicycle lanes are not respected by motorists.

The boy in question was hit in the Queenston Place parking lot at around 7:30 p.m. The boy was rushed to McMaster Children’s Hospital for critical injuries but has been upgraded to stable condition. Police won’t say who’s at fault but only that no charges will be laid.

Around three hours after the boy was hit another cyclist was struck, this time near the intersection of Fennell Avenue East and Upper Gage Avenue. The cyclist was a man in his twenties and the driver reportedly fled from the scene.

The extent of the man’s injuries remain unknown. But the cyclists that CHCH spoke with say incidents like those happen often.

“I find a lot of the drivers, because of the one way streets, don’t look,” one cyclist said.

“It is scary because it could happen to anyone,” added another.

Some riders did say bike lanes are helpful but that they’re not always available because some motorists fail to share the road.

On the flip side, sharing the road is a two-way street and cyclists are mandated to take certain precautions for their safety.

People who ride their bikes are required by law to have a red light on the back of their bike and a white light on the front in addition to having a bike bell and for riders under the age of 18 to wear a helmet.

Hamilton youth get boost toward healthy lifestyle with help from NFL and former Ti-Cat

A familiar face was in Hamilton with the NFL today to help guide youth toward a healthy and active lifestyle with the help of the NFL’s Play 60.

Former Hamilton Ti-Cat cornerback Delvin Breaux said he was excited to be back in Hamilton because he calls it his second home.

Breaux now plays for the New Orleans Saints and was joined by some Big Easy teammates and other NFL’ers who are advocating for the health and wellness of youth by playing for at least 60 minutes a day.

The former CFL All-Star played two seasons in Hamilton before signing with the Saints in 2015.

Police say drowning death of boy 4, was a tragic accident →

A Hamilton family is grieving the loss of their 4-year-old boy who drowned in the backyard pool last night. Hamilton Police said they believe it was an accident and want to remind parents to keep a close eye on little ones.

“At this point it’s hard to say exactly how long he was in the pool,” said Detective Sergeant Steve Bereziuk. “It may have been upwards of an hour. As it’s believed, mom fell asleep for a short period of time and lost track of the child.”

Hamilton Police said the mother, who worked shift work in the health care system, was watching the 4-year-old inside the house when she dozed off. It’s believed that’s when the child made his way into the backyard and climbed into the above ground pool.

Police added that the father was working on home renovations in the front yard when the drowning took place. Neighbours said he was making a lot of noise.

“Pretty sure they were using a jack hammer out there,” a neighbour remembered. “It was pretty loud. And then there was a slight lull and it got quiet, then I heard a scream and another scream and I heard a splash.”

Neighbours said the mother preformed CPR on the boy until paramedics arrived. He was pronounced dead in hospital.

Neighbours also claimed the couple were good parents who loved their son with all their hearts.

“All three of them were always together,” a neighbour said. “They’re always happy… That child was never left unattended.”

Police want to remind parents to keep a close eye on their children because tragedy can happen in seconds.

“Know where your family members are at all times so that tragedy like this can be avoided.”

Police want to stress that there is no suspicion of criminal activity.

Last year Hamilton City Councilors voted against adopting stricter by-laws about pool enclosures. It was proposed that four sided fences be installed surrounding new residential pools to help prevent tragic accidents like this one. The current by-laws require a fence around properties with backyard.

Vehicle plows through pedestrians leaving London mosque →

Police in London have confirmed that a vehicle drove into a group of worshippers leaving a local mosque in north London.

Metropolitan Police say the “major incident” happened on Seven Sisters Road shortly after 12 a.m. local time.

Police reported a number of injuries at the scene but it’s not clear if anyone was killed. Police have yet to provide any other update but reports have surfaced that 10 people are seriously injured.

One man has been arrested and has been described by witnesses as a white man.

The Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain said the man intentionally ran over the group of worshippers.

The Muslim Council of Britain posted a tweet saying that the van drove into a crowd of people on their way home from Ramadan night prayers at a mosque near Finsbury Park.

Portugal’s Prime Minister calls forest fire “the biggest tragedy of human life in years”

Raging forest fires in the central region of Portugal have killed at least 61 people and the death toll could climb. Today, Prime Minister António Costa has called it “the biggest tragedy of human life in years.”

Nearly 60 others are injured, including four firefighters. Prime Minister Costa said police and coroners were working to identify the victims after the tragedy and also declared three days of national mourning.

A lightning strike is believed to have sparked the blaze after investigators found a tree that was hit during a dry thunderstorm.

Dry thunderstorms are frequent when falling water evaporates before reaching the ground because of high temperatures.

The government said most of the victims died in their cars as they tried to flee the area while doing everything they could to avoid the blaze.

Dozens of burned out cars still line the roadside.

blue jays donaldson’s “vikings” episode debuts next week →

Remember the wicked Viking-like mohawk Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson rocked all season?

Well there was a reason behind the infamous hair and Donaldson and his mohawk will finally come together on the historical drama series “Vikings”.

History TV Canada tweeted behind the scenes access of Donaldson rehearsing, joking with co-stars and hooking them up with custom Jays gear. At the end of filming the crew fittingly gifted Donaldson with a viking version of a bat and ball called a “hurl” and “sliotar”.

The episode airs on Jan. 18 at 9 p.m. on the History Channel.

layla sabry’s grandfather reaches out, “allana… we want you home” →

Allana Haist’s father, Layla Sabry’s grandfather, pleaded to his daughter Allana to come out of hiding so she can proceed with her three-year-long custody battle. Haist has a hearing in a Welland courtroom on Monday at 2 p.m.

Haist and Sabry have not been seen since Dec.1. and an Amber Alert was issued on Dec. 2 when Haist failed to appear in court that day. The mother is wanted by police for child abduction, which allegedly took place in Egypt last year according to Sabry’s father Mohamed Abdel-Motaleb.

In the statement, Haist’s father Allan said that their lawyer Natalie Portier has been negotiating  with Abdel-Motaleb’s family for a deal to bring Allana Haist out of hiding.

His statement also said that during the custody battle Allana was ordered to surrender her daughter’s passport and birth certificate in the week before she went into hiding which increased her fear that he could take their daughter out of the country.

As part of the new agreement between both parties, Haist said to his daughter “be assured now that no one can take Layla out of Canada until the case is completed.”

Haist also said in his statement that Abdel-Motaleb agreed that:

• Allana could have more time to deal with the case and its motions,
• Abdel-Motaleb would not see his daughter until a court order has been made and an agreement created between him and Allana, and
• Abdel-Motaleb would withdraw a libel notice against Allana, her family and her lawyer

Haist said his daughter has until 2 p.m. on Monday to take the offer, otherwise Abdel-Motaleb’s agreement would be null. Haist added that his daughter needs to bring Layla at the deadline to Family and Children Services Niagara, before her court hearing.

“Allana, we know that you feel betrayed by this system and the rush to judgement,” Haist pleaded. “We know that you feel you were not treated fairly. But please be assured that you and Layla have many supporters and everyone is committed to ensuring that everyone focuses on what is best for Layla.”

Haist also said that his daughter should reach out to a criminal lawyer for advice on coming out of hiding safely.

Note: this story was updated to include that Allana Haist was ordered to surrender her daughter’s passport and birth certificate in the week before she went into hiding.