More than 200 flee forest fire in northern Saskatchewan

STONY RAPIDS, Sask. — A fast-moving forest fire fuelled by hot, dry winds was bearing down on two remote communities in northern Saskatchewan, forcing more than 200 people to flee their homes.

RCMP Sgt. Carole Raymond said as of Sunday evening, the fire was less than three kilometres from Stony Rapids and Stony Lake, which are fly-in communities near the boundary with the Northwest Territories.

It’s the second time this month that people in the area had to leave their homes due to a forest fire.

Prisoners from the local RCMP detachment and most of the elderly and those with health problems were flown out, and some residents drove to Black Lake, about 90 minutes southeast, Raymond said.

China’s restrictions mean shortages for Canadian fireworks distributors

China’s failure to ship fireworks has sent some of this country’s companies scrambling to meet demand in anticipation of Canada Day celebrations – the biggest day for pyrotechnic displays.

“In Canada, I haven’t heard of shows being cancelled like there have been in the U.S.,” said Fred Wade, president of the Canadian Pyrotechnic Council, “but there are shortages of various types of product.”

Fireworks distributors in Canada say in some instances they have had to import fireworks from Spain and Italy as orders from China failed to arrive.

Others say they were able to dip into their large inventories to make up for the shortage.

The problem can be traced to an explosion at a Chinese fireworks warehouse in February that led to a ban on fireworks shipments at the southern port of Sanshui, Guangdong province.

Rhapsody to challenge iTunes by embracing the iPod

By Yinka Adegoke

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Digital music seller Rhapsody is launching a $50 million marketing assault on Apple’s iTunes, offering songs online and via partners including Yahoo Inc and Verizon Wireless, Rhapsody said on Monday.

The songs will be sold in MP3 format, which means users of the Rhapsody service will be able to play them on iPods.

Before now Rhapsody, jointly owned by Real Networks Inc and Viacom Inc’s MTV Networks, had focused on a subscription service, allowing unlimited song streaming for $13 to $15 a month, rather than selling downloads.

But Rhapsody Vice President Neil Smith said the fact the service has not been compatible with Apple Inc’s top-selling iPod digital player has limited Rhapsody’s reach.

Blizzard finally announces Diablo III

THE third instalment of the popular Diablo game series has been announced by video game development studio Blizzard Entertainment.

11,000 passionate fans watched the first demonstration of Diablo III at Blizzard’s two day Worldwide Invitational event in Paris.

The studio, part of Vivendi Games, is well known for its game World of Warcraft, which now has over 10 million subscribers to its online world. Blizzard is also behind Starcraft – one of the most popular videogames for competitive play, even ten years after its original release.

Diablo III comes almost eight years after Diablo II was released in 2000. The new role-playing game (RPG) will see players cut a swathe of bloody destruction across a dark fantasy world teeming with evil.

Whether playing alone or with friends, the game promises plenty of replay value thanks to a heavy emphasis on randomly generated content, and a choice of five distinct character archetypes.

PAGASA tosses blame to Sulpicio Lines

The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) tossed back the blame for the sinking of MV Princess of the Stars to its owner, Sulpicio Lines Inc..

In an interview with abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak Saturday, Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Undersecretary Graciano Yumul Jr. said PAGASA’s mandate is simply to inform the general public on forecasts that may help prevent natural calamities.

“Our mandate is only as a warning agency. When there is a change in direction of a typhoon, it’s our duty to inform the general public,” Yumul said. “How others use our forecast, we cannot control.”

The PAGASA is an agency under the DOST.

Yumul was reacting to Sulpicio Lines officials’ testimony Friday before a Philippine Coast Guard board of marine inquiry that the sinking of the ferry was due to PAGASA’s wrong forecast of typhoon Frank.

“We were not wrong in our forecast….When the typhoon changed track, we informed the public,” he said. “So it’s not PAGASA that is erratic; it’s the typhoon which was erratic.”

In Friday’s investigation, Sulpicio Lines port captain Nestor Ponteres quoted the MV Princess of the Stars Capt. Florencio Marimon as having said, “Crazy PAGASA, what happened to their forecast?”

Ponteres also told the board of marine inquiry Marimon decided to leave Manila for Cebu Friday since PAGASA’s weather forecast showed that the ship’s path would not enter an area that would be under the strong typhoon signal number 3. Ships are not allowed to sail under signal number 2 and 3.

“Capt. Marimon said that he will evade the typhoon because the typhoon’s path, based on the forecast of PAGASA, was far from the voyage plan of the ship,” Ponteres said.

Business website address choice expanded

Businesses will be free to choose any suffix they please for their internet addresses after a decision yesterday to expand the choices beyond current staples such as “.com”, “.co” and “.org”.

The decision by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (Icann) to liberalise the online naming system – allowing the creation of customised domain names – follows a three-year project.

“What we are now considering is a global equivalent of people moving to liberalised telecommunication markets or electricity markets,” Paul Twomey, Icann’s chief executive, said at the organisation’s meeting in Paris.

Icann, a non-profit body that co-ordinates the naming system, plans to accept the first round of applications for new domain names in April or May next year. It expects the cost of registering a new suffix to be at least $100,000 (€64,00, £50,000) – far higher than the current price of a “.com” name, which is as little as $14.

Grey Cup champs Roughriders beat Eskimos 34-13 in season opener

REGINA, Sask. — Marcus Crandell’s 73-yard touchdown pass to Adrius Bowman in the fourth quarter put the final nail in the Eskimos’ coffin as the Saskatchewan Roughriders kicked off the season with a 34-13 win over Edmonton.

The defending Grey Cup champion Riders broke open a close game with 18 unanswered points in the fourth quarter in front of a sold out Mosaic Stadium.

“They think a big guy can’t move – I can move when I need to,” said Bowman, a rookie from Oklahoma State, who is six-foot-four, 219 lbs. “I’m high in the sky right now. I’m just excited that these guys got a win.”

Crandell said his scoring pass to Bowman, which made it 27-13, was a turning point in the game.

“That’s how we thrived all last year – on big plays – and we just waited for that moment.”

Crandell passed for 278 yards and two touchdowns while Wes Cates rushed for 86 yards and two touchdowns, including a 12-yarder with under three minutes to play.

Parvez ‘bitterly disappointed’

BRAMPTON — A 27-year-old Missisauga man charged in what investigators are alleging is the “honour killing” of his sister was remanded into custody during a brief court appearance yesterday.

A handcuffed Waqas Parvez stood in the prisoner’s box wearing the same brown T-shirt and blue jeans he was wearing when Peel Regional Police arrested him Thursday.

Police allege he had a part to play in the strangulation slaying of his 16-year-old sister, Aqsa Parvez, last Dec. 10.

Their father, Mohammed Parvez, 57, was initially charged with second-degree murder but had those charges upgraded to first-degree last week.

It is believed there was a family dispute of Aqsa’s refusal to wear a hijab, a traditional Muslim headscarf, and her rebelling against other strict rules in the home.

How To Setup And Use Zen Cart

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All parties support peace talks: FM: Manmohan likely to visit Pakistan

NEW DELHI, June 27: Foreign ministers of Pakistan and India on Friday announced a fifth round of their Composite Dialogue from July 21, sanguine that the opposition parties in both countries backed the peace process.

�Whether it is the Congress-led coalition in Delhi or it is the PPP-led coalition in Pakistan, major players whether it is the BJP, the Opposition here, or major opposition parties in Pakistan, there is a virtual consensus on movement and normalisation,� Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi said.

The minister had to cut down his three-day trip and return to Pakistani late on Friday following the death of his mother-in-law.

The minister, who addressed a joint press conference with Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee, said: �We must seize this opportunity, we have the right environment.�