Around the North

Northern Ontario aviation pioneer Stan Deluce died in London, Ont., Jan. 27. Published reports said 86-year-old Deluce underwent hip surgery a month ago at Victoria Hospital in London and quickly deteriorated soon afterward.

MetalCorp has announced it is starting a first stage of deep drill program on its Hemlo East Gold property in northwestern Ontario.

Thunder Bay architect Ahsanul Habib has received the 2009 Recognition Award from the Ontario Heritage Trust, an agency of the Ontario government. He is principal of Habib Architects Inc. and Habib Enterprises.

V.B. Cook Company, a prominent Thunder Bay engineering firm, has been acquired by Genivar Income Fund. Genivar, one of Canada's leading consulting engineering firms, has made previous acquisitions in Timmins, Sudbury and Sault Ste. Marie.

Algoma University has named Dr. Pedro Antunes as its research chair of invasive species. He will be tasked with developing a stable of researchers through the Sault Ste.

Vic Fedeli had no intention of being North Bay's mayor-for-life. He has made good on one of his first promises when elected mayor of the Gateway City in 2003, that he was a two-term guy. After seven years in office, Fedeli announced Feb.

On the lower slopes of Mauna Kea, an inactive Hawaiian volcano, some Sudbury technology firms are in the process of testing equipment and rovers for possible missions on extraterrestrial surfaces such as the Moon.

Production at Apollo Gold's Black Fox Mine 75 kilometres east of Timmins reached 15,820 ounces of gold in the fourth quarter of 2009, having achieved the 2,000-tonne-per-day target ahead of the year-end schedule.

Northern College has teamed up with the province to deliver more than $300,000 in projects and support for first-generation learners, the first of a family to attend post-secondary or train to become an apprentice.

The month of February will find inspectors from the Ministry of Labour scouring the province with an eye for safety on forklifts and lifting devices.