ARKADY (ARK) TSISSEREV (CITY ELECTRICIAN AND SENIOR ELECTRICAL SAFETY OFFICER) DISMISSED BY THE CITY OF VANCOUVER!

Vancouver - The electrical and life safety communities across Canada are stunned by the news that one of the most recognized leaders in these fields has been summarily dismissed from his job as Vancouver's Chief Electrical Inspector and City Electrician. We pay tribute to Ark and to his dedication in making Vancouver one of the world's safest cities in our latest EDITORIAL.

The Vancouver Mayor's office has been flooded with letters, phone calls and emails expressing both concern and alarm by industry stakeholders, concerned citizens, and various media outlets. So far, the only public response the Mayor has made was to state that he "wasn't involved in staffing issues". Our requests for information surrounding the circumstances of Ark's dismissal have been met with the excuse that "the celebrations surrounding the Olympics have made it impossible for the Mayor to respond at the present time". We expect Vancouver's media relations office to make some formal announcements shortly.

In the interim, Will Johnston has been appointed "City Electrician" (according to our sources within City Hall) which has raised a greater concern that Vancouver's formal agreement under Section 5 of the Safety Standards Act may in fact be compromised in that the city no longer has an official safety manager versed in the electrical discipline. It's also been widely reported that Ark's dismissal may in fact violate the Vancouver City Charter as it came not from City Council, but from the City Manager's office. Stay tuned!!

REMINDER ABOUT MOBILE (CELL) PHONE USE IN BC!

The new law against cell phone use while driving kicked in on January 1st (in British Columbia). The nice people driving the cars with the red and blue lights won't be giving out any more friendly warnings as of February 1. We've all had a month to get used to wearing that Blue Tooth gizmo. And for those of you reading this while driving, that'll add three points to the 167 smackers that the men in blue will collect from you.

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