Military training to increase traffic between Ottawa and North Bay this weekend
Roads and highways between Ottawa and North Bay are expected to be busier than usual this weekend, as Canadian army personnel will be conducting convoy and supply operations training.
Canadian Army Reserve personnel from 33 Service Battalion will be training between April 19 and 21 on multiple Ontario roads and highways, including Highways 417, 11, 17 and others, said the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) in a news release on Wednesday.
“Exercise OWL PERCH will follow pre-planned routes between Ottawa and North Bay, transiting Mattawa, Ont.,” reads the release.
During the training, the CAF soldiers will be conducting planned short stops and longer halts. They will also be stopping for rest, fuel, scheduled maintenance and other training, reads the release.
The CAF notes that the training will not involve the use or the carrying of any weapons or ammunition.
All the necessary measures for any inconvenience along the roads are being taken care of and people are asked to take extra precautions while on the roads during the training, the CAF adds.
“This important training supports year-round preparations for emergencies in Canadian communities, including natural disasters like flooding and wildfires, as our members prepare to deploy in response to Requests for Assistance and to serve alongside community members and other first responders,” reads the release.
Canada is expected to see an intense wildfire season through the spring and summer this year, as a result of widespread drought, warmer weather and minimal snow during the winter.
With files from CTV News National’s Luca Caruso-Moro
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Freeland leaves capital gains tax change out of coming budget implementation bill, here's why
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
Ontario woman surprised after 20-year-old fines suddenly tank credit score
An Ontario woman says that she was shocked when provincial fines from 20 years ago suddenly tanked her credit score last week, but the situation may not be as unusual as it seems, according to at least one debt expert.
Anger can harm your blood vessel function, study shows
Stress and anger can have a negative impact on cardiovascular health, studies have shown. New research points to just how the mechanism may work.
A 98-year-old in Ukraine walked miles to safety from Russians, with slippers and a cane
A 98-year-old woman in Ukraine who escaped Russian-occupied territory by walking almost 10 kilometres (six miles) alone, wearing a pair of slippers and supported by a cane has been reunited with her family days after they were separated while fleeing to safety.
Will an 'out of sight, out of mind' cellphone policy make a difference in Ontario schools?
Ontario’s cellphone ban in schools has been met with mixed reaction, with some teachers concerned about constant policing of kids and experts applauding the change as necessary for student learning.
A Utah couple accidentally shipped their cat with an Amazon return. A week -- and 3 'miracles' -- later, they were on a plane to meet a stranger
The Amazon returns employee wasn't at work the day one of her colleagues at a California warehouse found a small, furry stowaway in a box mailed six days earlier from Utah. But Brandy Hunter got the call anyway.
Dueling protesters clash at UCLA hours after police clear pro-Palestinian demonstration at Columbia
Dueling groups of protesters clashed Wednesday at the University of California, Los Angeles, grappling in fistfights and shoving, kicking and using sticks to beat one another. Hours earlier, police burst into a building at Columbia University that pro-Palestinian protesters took over and broke up a demonstration that had paralyzed the school while inspiring others.
Poilievre kicked out of Commons after calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'wacko'
Testy exchanges between the prime minister and his chief opponent ended with the Opposition leader and one of his MPs being ejected from the House of Commons on Tuesday -- and the rest of Conservative caucus walking out of the chamber in protest.
Avalanche eliminate Winnipeg Jets from playoffs with 6-3 road win
Mikko Rantanen's first two goals of the playoffs propelled the Colorado Avalanche to a 6-3 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday that clinched their opening-round playoff series in five games.