Ottawa surpasses 300 cm of snow and $109 flights to Las Vegas: Top five stories this week

Ottawa city crews say it could take days to remove all of the snow that fell in last weekend's storm. Residents who were out shovelling Monday say they're running out of places to put all the snow. (Jackie Perez/CTV News Ottawa)

Ottawa surpasses 300 cm of snow for the winter, a Gatineau, Que. mansion built too close to the road can remain standing and taking off for the weekend to Las Vegas.

CTVNewsOttawa.ca looks at the top five stories on our website this week.

Woman, 67, dead in Sandy Hill apartment fire

Friends and neighbours remember an Ottawa woman who died in a Sandy Hill apartment fire this week as a "good person", who loved her dog and spent time with neighbours.

Shirley Bennett died in a fire early Tuesday morning in her apartment on Wiggins Private, in the south end of Sandy Hill.

Fire officials said the call came in from an alarm monitoring company just after 10:10 p.m.

Firefighters traced the fire to the bedroom and quickly put it out, officials said.

"An occupant was located and rescued out of the apartment by firefighters," Ottawa Fire Services said in a news release. "Firefighters brought the occupant outside and assessed and treated the occupant prior to Ottawa Paramedics arriving on scene."

Neighbours said Bennett recently moved into the apartment.

"All the people in the neighbourhood knew her as a good person, we celebrated her birthday five months ago," said Raymond Lafleur.

The Office of the Fire Marshal and the Ottawa police arson unit are investigating the fire.

Crews remove a wheelchair at the scene of a fire in an apartment building in Sandy Hill that claimed the life of a 67-year-old woman. March 7, 2023. (Leah Larocque/CTV News Ottawa)

Cleaning up latest snowstorm to take days, city says

City crews spent the week cleaning up as a winter storm last weekend pushed Ottawa's snowfall total above 300 cm for the winter.

All the snow has Ottawa residents looking for help from the city to clear the snowbanks from roads and sidewalks, saying it's creating hazardous conditions.

Snowbanks have made Rachelle Fontaine's walks with her dog, 5-year-old Fitzgerald, treacherous.

"The snowbanks have been huge and hard to get by," she says. "They're taller than me, and I'm pretty tall."

City crews say it could take until next week before they're finished clearing all of the streets, sidewalks and snowbanks.

A total of 308.5 cm of snow has fallen in Ottawa this winter, the second-highest snowfall total over the past 20 years.

All the snow has the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority warning of the potential of flooding along waterways in the Rideau Valley Watershed.

"Based solely on the fact we have above-average snow water content and above-normal water levels in some upper watershed lakes, there is potential for above-average flooding this spring across the Rideau Valley watershed, especially in low-lying areas which have flooded in the past," the conservation authority said in a statement.

"Precipitation and temperature are two other key factors influencing actual flood conditions as we move through March and into April, which staff will monitor closely."

A worker clears snow from the National War Memorial in Ottawa on Saturday, March 4, 2023. (Josh Pringle/CTV News Ottawa)

SIU investigating police-involved shooting at home on Walkley Road in Ottawa

The Special Investigations Unit is looking into two police-involved shootings in Ottawa this week, including one on Walkley Road where an officer fired his gun at a man wielding a sword.

Police responded to a 911 call Wednesday afternoon from a woman reporting a disturbance at a home in the 1800 block of Walkley Road, near Heron Road, just after 2 p.m.

The SIU says officers encountered a 44-year-old man outside the home, who was in possession of a sword.

"An interaction ensued, and two officers discharged their conducted energy weapons at the man, and another officer discharged his firearm at the man," the SIU said.

"The man was not struck as a result of the firearm discharge."

On Sunday, the SIU announced it was investigating after Ottawa police officers shot a man during an "exchange of gunfire" at a home on Garden Glen Private in Nepean.

Officers responded to a call Saturday night from someone expressing concern about another individual who had a gun.

A 28-year-old was treated for injuries.

Ottawa police say an operation is underway on Walkley Road near Heron Road on Wednesday. (Jeremie Charron/CTV News Ottawa)

Gatineau, Que. mansion built too close to road can remain standing, court rules

A multimillion-dollar home built too close to the street in Gatineau, Que. will be allowed to remain standing, Quebec's highest court has ruled.

Nearly two years after a Quebec Superior Court judge ordered the home in the Aylmer sector demolished, the Quebec Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the city of Gatineau's appeal to allow the home to remain standing.

The saga began in 2013 when the city of Gatineau granted the homeowner, Patrick Molla, permission to build the house at 79 chemin Fraser even through it violated zoning bylaws.  Neighbours complained the nearly $3-million home did not fit with the rest of the neighbourhood.

The house was built seven metres from the street, instead of the minimum 15.67 metres. The city later found the plans were approved due to 'human error', since the planning official who granted them didn't know the relevant bylaw.

To fix that mistake, city council granted a minor exemption in 2014 to allow the home to be closer to the street.

You can soon fly from Ottawa to Vegas for $109 round-trip

Flying to Las Vegas from Ottawa is about to get a lot easier … and cheaper.

Flair Airlines will launch a direct Ottawa-Vegas flight starting in October.

The flights will run twice-weekly on Mondays and Fridays starting Oct. 13. Round-trip fares will be as low as $109, the airline's website shows.

The tail section of a Flair Airlines plane is seen in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Flair Airlines