Canadian province on red alert against rats

October 6th, 2009 Ohio man gets 2 years in case of baby bit by ratsWAVERLY, Ohio — An 18-year-old Ohio man has been sentenced to two years in prison for his role in an infant's loss of two toes to rat bites inside a filthy mobile home. Todd Trent pleaded guilty Monday to child endangering and was sentenced by Pike County Common Pleas Judge Randy Deering.

October 1st, 2009 LONDON - A Bangladeshi farmer is said to have killed 83,450 rats over nine months in Gazipur, near the capital, Dhaka, and has now launched a nationwide campaign to kill millions more. Mokhairul Islam, 40, who collected the rats' tails as proof, was awarded a television by the government for his efforts in protecting crops, and reducing the need for food imports.

September 30th, 2009 Bangladesh awards farmer who killed 83,000 ratsDHAKA, Bangladesh — Bangladesh on Wednesday awarded a farmer who killed more than 83,000 rats and launched a monthlong campaign nationwide to kill millions more, to protect crops and reduce the need for food imports. Mokhairul Islam, 40, won a first prize of a color television for killing some 83,450 rats in the past nine months in Gazipur district near the South Asian country's capital, Dhaka.

July 22nd, 2009 3 accused of letting rats chew toes off Ohio babyWAVERLY, Ohio — Three people have been accused of letting rats bite a 6-week-old girl and chew off her toes at their cluttered Ohio mobile home. Pike County prosecutor Rob Junk says the baby's toes on one foot were gone when sheriff's deputies went to the home Sunday after receiving an anonymous tip.

June 13th, 2009 Oh rats! Rodent-free Alaska island needs new nameANCHORAGE, Alaska — The rats appear to be gone from Alaska's Rat Island, more than 200 years after they scurried off a rodent-infested Japanese ship. Helicopters dropped rat poison on the island last year in hopes of returning many bird species to the uninhabited island in the Aleutian Chain.

June 12th, 2009 TORONTO - A Canadian parliamentarian has urged the prime minister to apologise to the Indian Canadian community for the 1914 Komagata Maru episode that saw a ship carrying Indians being turned away and 20 passengers being killed on reaching Indian shores. Komagata Maru was a Japanese ship which brought 376 Indians to Vancouver in British Columbia province in May 1914.

June 3rd, 2009 KUALA LUMPUR - Pesticides were once believed to be the best defence against pests, but now an advocate of safe substitutes has come up with safer ways of getting rid of them. Stephen L. Tvedten from US believes that it is better to use intelligence against pests, and he has come up with more than 2,800 safe and effective alternatives to pesticides.

May 28th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Although rodents have a free run of the city, they develop a fierce sense of loyalty to the neighbourhoods where they spend the rest of their lives. Rats typically stay close to home.

May 27th, 2009 VANCOUVER - Wally Oppal, a top Indian Canadian politician and British Columbia provincial attorney general, was defeated in the assembly election Tuesday after a recount of votes. In the May 12 assembly elections in British Columbia province, Oppal was declared winner by just two votes in his home constituency of Delta South on the outskirts of Vancouver.

May 1st, 2009 TORONTO - With 15 news cases of swine flu taking the nation's total to 34, Canadian authorities have said they will start an awareness campaign Friday to stem the spread of the virus. Of the 15 new cases reported Thursday, five were in British Columbia province, four each in Alberta and Nova Scotia provinces and one each in Ontario and Quebec provinces.

April 16th, 2009 TORONTO - The Canadian dollar reached its highest level against the greenback in four months Wednesday, touching 83.24 cents US as markets continued their rally. The energy-rich Canadian markets have gained about 20 percent since the second week of March as oil prices have made a marginal recovery.

March 21st, 2009 TORONTO - Four Canadian soldiers have been killed and eight injured in attacks by the Taliban near Kandahar in Afghanistan. The soldiers were killed in two separate attacks triggered by improvised explosive devices (IEDs) planted by the insurgents Friday, reports said.

January 13th, 2009 TORONTO - New treatments are being developed that heal broken hearts or muscle loss by prompting the the body to repair damaged tissues. Canadian researchers, for the first time, have developed an organic substance (scaffold) that attracts and supports cells necessary for tissue repair and can be directly injected into problem areas.

December 27th, 2008 TORONTO - Two more Canadian soldiers have been killed in a roadside explosion in Afghanistan, making December a deadly month for its six-year-old Afghan mission. The Canadian defence ministry said the soldiers, as well as a member of the Afghan National Police and one Afghan interpreter, were killed Saturday when an explosive device detonated in their vicinity in the Panjway district of Kandahar province.

December 26th, 2008 TORONTO - December is proving to be one of the deadliest months for the six-year-old Canadian mission in Afghanistan. Yet another Canadian soldier was killed Friday by an improvised explosive device (IED) in Afghanistan's Kandahar province.