HiT & RUN North Vancouver cyclist fumes over sentencing of driver in accident. NEWS photo Tarry Peters TWO ENORMOUS explosions alarmed North Shore residents Sunday afternoon when a “controlied implosion” was staged at Vancouver Wharves Ltd. A contractor demolished a deteriorating concrete structure, previously used for storing sulphur. Vancouver Wharves apologizes for shed implosions hired to destroy the structure, which had been used to store sulphur but had deteriorated until VANCOUVER WHARVES Ltd. wants to apologize to anyone scared by its “controlled implosions” on Sunday afternoon. By Kate Zimmerman News Reporter The wo blasts. at 12:30 and 2 pom.. alarmed Neighbors and sent patrons running out of near- by stores to look for whatever disaster might have caused then. “Tt sounded fike two freight cars had collid- ed outside my frant window.” said one Pemberton Heights resident, who fives several blocks above Marine Drive. (Vancouver Wharves is favated at the foot of Capitaine Road.) [hassumed there'd been some type of prepane-Lype t apt on Vancouver %y Poave Alsop said the 66 [t sounded like two freight cars had collided outside my front window. 99 —~ Pemberton Heights resident. North Vancouver company had been warned hy the police and firefighters not to make pub- Treats plas fo demolish a remforced conerete structure, for fear that spectators on hand or water might ather aad possibly be injured, Atsop said a blasting contractor had been REACHING EVERY DOOR ON THE NORTH SHORE SINCE 1969 its condition was deemed unsafe. H took two explosions to complete the demolition. “Ttowas all prearranged, all permitted and extensively discussed with firefighters, police and the harbors board,” said Alsop. Though Vancouver Wharves didn’t receive many phone calls fram people wondering what had happened, local police anc fire depart- ments did. The North Shore News also fielded a num- ber of calls on Sunday from concerned site zens. Said Alsop, “Everything's fine, Technically, if Was a success. The structure was demolished, with minimum property damage to our site and to other surrounding busimesses, Phere was some window danmiaue. which is being handled by the blasting contrictor he added saa hes eee BaD STREET NOISE Solutions sought for traffic concerns in Lower Lonsdale area. SAC pushes staffing inquiry THE NATIONAL pre dent of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) is calling on the federal Transport Min- ister to immediately launch a public inquiry into tighthouse destaffing. By Kate Zimmerman News Reporter The PSAC’s Daryl Bean held a media conference at West Vancouver’s Point Atkinson Lighthouse on Monday, “ne day after the building had been officially NEWS photo Mike Wakefield POINT ATKINSON light- keeper Donald Graham. designated a National Historic Monument. Bean pointed out the “absur- dity” of the coast guard’s claim that automated lighthouses have a 99.9% rate of infallitritity. He said figures recently dis- closed under the Access to Information Act revealed that in 1993 at three automated north- ern B.C. stations alone, the equipment failed 259 times, for a total of 755 hours, or one month out of 12. As Point Atkinson light- keeper Don Graham pointed out, the statistics include only those equipment failures which have been formally reported through a Notice to Shipping. But Rick Bryant, regional manager of Marine Navigation Services for the coast guard, told the News the figures were being misinterpreted, ce Figures page § Soe REDS EER NE ae