'It is heartbreaking': Maritime Syrian and Turkish communities react to earthquake and devastation
Thousands are dead and tens of thousands injured following the earthquake that has devastated Syria and Turkey.
“They are living in the street, laying down," said Omar Antebi, a Syrian Canadian. "There are no tents and there is nothing.”
Antebi left Syria ten years ago. Family members stayed behind.
“Four uncles and their wives and their children and my grandma and grandpa," said Antebi.
Antebi said, the cruel irony is, many fled the war in Syria to live safely in Turkey.
“They are escaping people’s bombing, and now they are experiencing God’s disaster.”
Rafat Harb, owner of the Syriana Market in Halifax, has spent many hours watching the horrifying images on TV.
“We have family there, it was not easy,” said Harb. “It is very hard when we see all the buildings come down and there is a lot of children under the building, and they couldn’t find them."
Ilker Dalgic volunteers with the Turkish Society of Nova Scotia and has experience when it comes to surviving earthquakes.
“Once I saw the magnitude as 7.8 I understood how it could be devastating and terrible because 24 years ago I also experienced one at 7.4 magnitude," said Dalgic. “It is heartbreaking.”
The scope of this tragedy has hit home with the entire Turkish community, including the owners of the Turkish restaurant Efes who are donating $2 per order for one full week to assist with earthquake aid.
“All of us knows someone who lost relatives. I have a friend who lost his in-laws," said Dalgic.
The Turkish society wants the government of Canada to act quickly and provide money, manpower and resources to aid those devastated by the earthquakes.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Donald Trump indicted; 1st ex-president charged with crime
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, prosecutors and defense lawyers said Thursday, making him the first former U.S. president to face a criminal charge and jolting his bid to retake the White House next year.
BREAKING
BREAKING | Ottawa gives final approval for Rogers $26B purchase of Shaw
Rogers Communications Inc's $26-billion takeover of Shaw Communications Inc. cleared the last regulatory hurdle Friday, more than two years after the deal was first announced.
Police find 6 bodies, including 1 child, in St. Lawrence River
The bodies of six people, including one child, were found in the St. Lawrence River Thursday afternoon after an air search involving the Canadian Coast Guard, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police said.
BREAKING
BREAKING | Oscar Pistorius denied parole as Reeva Steenkamp's parents oppose his early release
Disgraced South African Paralympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius has been denied parole, the lawyer for Reeva Steenkamp's parents said after the parole hearing.
House abandoned by couple who 'disappeared' years ago nightmare for neighbour on upscale street
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
Former Conservative leader Erin O'Toole not seeking re-election, leaving this spring
Former Conservative leader Erin O'Toole says he will not seek re-election and plans to resign his seat this spring. The Ontario MP led the Conservatives and served as official Opposition leader from August 2020 until February 2022, when a majority of his caucus voted to remove him from the post.
Trump's indictment in New York: Here's what to know
The vote of a Manhattan grand jury to indict the Republican former president on charges related to hush money payments made on his behalf during his 2016 presidential campaign catapults the now-candidate Donald Trump into a new era of legal risk and complicates his attempts to return to the White House.
Lack of data on transit violence amounts to 'blanket of ignorance': Researcher
Canada needs standardized data on violence on transit systems to help tackle issues ranging from a lack of mental health supports to eroding public trust, say researchers, citing the recent stabbing death of a 16-year-old boy at a Toronto station as the latest example of random attacks on commuters.
'Nova Scotians' sense of safety was rocked': RCMP failures dominate inquiry's final report into 2020 mass shooting
A long list of failures by Nova Scotia RCMP leadership and policing systems dominate the final report into Nova Scotia's April 2020 mass shooting.
Toronto
-
10-year-old boy dead after chain-reaction crash on QEW
A 10-year-old boy is dead following a chain-reaction crash on the QEW.
-
Ontario minimum wage to increase to $16.55 per hour on Oct. 1
Ontario's minimum wage is set to rise to $16.55 an hour on Oct. 1.
-
Ontario parents drive over 5 hours to find baby formula for 8-month-old twins
An Ontario couple has had to drive more than five hours to find baby formula for their eight-month-old twins.
Calgary
-
'Into the air': One victim of Calgary house explosion likely in hospital for 6 months
A member of Calgary's South Sudanese community says 10 victims of a home explosion were blown into the air before falling into a fiery basement below.
-
Police investigation closes Highway 552 northeast of Okotoks, Alta.
RCMP blocked off a highway southeast of Calgary on Thursday night as part of an investigation.
-
BREAKING
BREAKING | Ottawa gives final approval for Rogers $26B purchase of Shaw
Rogers Communications Inc's $26-billion takeover of Shaw Communications Inc. cleared the last regulatory hurdle Friday, more than two years after the deal was first announced.
Montreal
-
Police find 6 bodies, including 1 child, in St. Lawrence River
The bodies of six people, including one child, were found in the St. Lawrence River Thursday afternoon after an air search involving the Canadian Coast Guard, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police said.
-
Hydro-Quebec: rates increase on Saturday, capped at 3%
Hydro-Québec annual indexation of its electricity rates will take effect this Saturday, capped at 3 per cent. The Crown corporation says that for residential customers, the monthly impact of the 3 per cent increase would be $2.28 for a five-and-a-half dwelling, $4.27 for a 111-square-metre home, $5.65 for a 158-square-metre home and $6.97 for a 207-square-metre home.
-
Quebec cracks down on Airbnb after deadly fire as some continue to evade rules
The Quebec government's crackdown on Airbnb has upended Montreal's short-term rental market, leading some to welcome the changes and others scurrying to evade the new rules.
Edmonton
-
Lack of data on transit violence amounts to 'blanket of ignorance': Researcher
Canada needs standardized data on violence on transit systems to help tackle issues ranging from a lack of mental health supports to eroding public trust, say researchers, citing the recent stabbing death of a 16-year-old boy at a Toronto station as the latest example of random attacks on commuters.
-
WEATHER
WEATHER | Josh Classen's forecast: Mild start to April; chance of some weekend precipitation
Sunshine and afternoon temperatures in the 6 C range in Edmonton today.
-
UCP candidate, slammed for comments on pornography in schools, quits
A candidate for the United Conservative Party in southern Alberta has resigned after she posted a video claiming children are being exposed to pornography in schools.
Northern Ontario
-
Legal expert weighs in on Sudbury murder trial verdict, next steps
As the dust continues to settle around Wednesday's verdict in the Renee Sweeney murder trial attention is now turning to what's next for the case. CTV News spoke to a legal expert and here is what he had to say.
-
Police find 6 bodies, including 1 child, in St. Lawrence River
The bodies of six people, including one child, were found in the St. Lawrence River Thursday afternoon after an air search involving the Canadian Coast Guard, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police said.
-
House abandoned by couple who 'disappeared' years ago nightmare for neighbour on upscale street
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
London
-
Ontario minimum wage to increase to $16.55 per hour on Oct. 1
Ontario's minimum wage is set to rise to $16.55 an hour on Oct. 1.
-
Victim of Sarnia shooting in 'stable' condition
The victim of a shooting in Sarnia is in stable condition with non-life threatening injuries, according to police.
-
Old North residents say City Hall fix for infrastructure fell flat
Dozens of decades-old trees are at risk due to construction set to get underway in London’s Old North neighbourhood. Residents say not enough was done to keep them informed and seek their input.
Winnipeg
-
4 teens dead after crash involving semi-truck near Gilbert Plains: Manitoba RCMP
Four teenagers are dead, and another is in hospital with serious injuries after a crash near Gilbert Plains, Man. Wednesday night.
-
Donald Trump indicted; 1st ex-president charged with crime
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, prosecutors and defense lawyers said Thursday, making him the first former U.S. president to face a criminal charge and jolting his bid to retake the White House next year.
-
Police investigating arson at Winnipeg home
The Winnipeg Police Service is investigating an arson at a home in the city.
Ottawa
-
Police find 6 bodies, including 1 child, in St. Lawrence River
The bodies of six people, including one child, were found in the St. Lawrence River Thursday afternoon after an air search involving the Canadian Coast Guard, the Akwesasne Mohawk Police said.
-
Ontario minimum wage to increase to $16.55 per hour on Oct. 1
Ontario's minimum wage is set to rise to $16.55 an hour on Oct. 1.
-
NEW THIS MORNING
NEW THIS MORNING | What's happening in Ottawa this weekend: March 31 to April 2
CTVNewsOttawa.ca looks at things to do in Ottawa, eastern Ontario and western Quebec during the first weekend of April.
Saskatoon
-
Some in Saskatoon 'flat out' refusing delivery of city's new green waste bins
Some Saskatoon residents have been refusing to accept the green carts when they’re delivered by the city, but that won’t save them from a monthly fee.
-
Charter challenge filed against Sask. government's disability program
The Regina Anti-Poverty Ministry filed a charter challenge against the provincial government for stipulations in its disability program that require seniors to take their Canada Pension Plan (CPP) money out early.
-
Sask. government hopes physician assistants will help take pressure off health care system
Legislation to license physician assistants has been introduced by the Government of Saskatchewan.
Vancouver
-
'It's really hard. It's a good hard, though': Unique farm program helping people battle addictions
At Academy Farms in Langley, they raise bison and water buffalo, but this is more than a farm. It's a place that's helping people from across the country find their way out of addiction.
-
'It’s ours': Kwikwetlem First Nation on future of Riverview Hospital site
The redevelopment planning process was quietly halted earlier this year, and now the Kwikwetlem First Nation is speaking up about what they’d like to see happen on the land where the Riverview Hospital operated for a century.
-
Dogwalker claims pups were pepper sprayed during altercation on popular North Vancouver trail
The Hyannus trail system on the Nort Shore is known as a pooch paradise but one dogwalker claims a recent altercation with a hiker turned ugly.
Regina
-
Charter challenge filed against Sask. government's disability program
The Regina Anti-Poverty Ministry filed a charter challenge against the provincial government for stipulations in its disability program that require seniors to take their Canada Pension Plan (CPP) money out early.
-
'Embarrassing and hurtful': Sask. woman denied service because of ‘cultural’ facial tattoo
A First Nation woman was denied service at a Prince Albert bar because of her facial tattoo.
-
'It's bullying': TikTok videos show grim reality of addictions crisis in Regina
Videos posted on the social media app TikTok showing individuals in Regina experiencing mental health crises are bringing into question the stigma still attached to addictions.
Vancouver Island
-
Father of man shot twice in head by RCMP in Duncan speaks out
The father of a Vancouver Island man who was shot twice in the head by police during a dramatic incident in Duncan, B.C., on Tuesday evening is questioning why such lethal action had to be taken by police.
-
'It's ridiculous': Langford mayor defends proposed 12% property tax hike
A proposed 12 per cent property tax increase for Langford residents isn’t sitting well with many.
-
Man sentenced to 4 years for fatal beating of homeless man in Campbell River, B.C.
A 32-year-old man from Campbell River, B.C., has been sentenced to four years in prison for the beating death of a 59-year-old homeless man in October 2020.