Cape Breton sees large crowds celebrating Canada Day
Nothing shows normalcy in the community of Westmount, N.S., like a sea of red and white on Canada Day at Petersfield Provincial Park.
"Anywhere between three and five thousand people today," said Cape Breton Regional Municipality councillor Steve Gillespie, one of the organizers of the annual Canada Day celebration at the park.
That’s a stark contrast from this time last year, when outdoor gatherings in the prvince were limited to 25 people.
This Canada Day, the fiddle played and people relaxed in the shade on a day when the weather delivered sunny skies and warm temperatures.
"We can tell you its number one in CBRM," Gillespie said of the Petersfield party, which was cancelled the past few years due to COVID-19. "I think it would definitely rival anything else in Atlantic Canada."
Just down the road in Coxheath, N.S., Bev and Gary Maroun have been decking out their property in red and white on July 1st for 30 years.
They admit the last two weren't quite the same, so there was new appreciation for welcoming guests in perfect weather.
"We're just going to enjoy the day," Gary Maroun said. "The more people the better."
Back at Petersfield, a teen girl's softball team spent the day volunteering at the event, but at the last party pre-pandemic, they were wide-eyed elementary school students.
"I've been coming here since I was young, and I've been volunteering here the past couple years," said Summer Pentecost. "So I'm excited to get back and just see everyone out having some fun."
That's exactly what people did. There were few - if any - masks among the big crowd, but no one seemed to mind.
Meanwhile, Friday was the first time in four years the community’s Canada Day celebration was held at Petersfield.
Canada Day 2019 brought heavy rain, so the event was moved indoors.
"We were hoping and praying for this day, so we were really glad that this ended up coming our way with this kind of weather," Gillespie said. "Thanks to [CTV Atlantic meteorologist] Kalin [Mitchell] for making this day special."
The Sydney area is the host to another big Canada Day party Friday evening with a concert under the lights at Open Hearth Park - headlined by Canadian rock band Crash Test Dummies.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.