On the frontlines of the GTA’s pediatric crisis

Plus, Sunwing customers say compensation for travel fiasco is nowhere in sight  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌   ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

First Up   By Ashley Okwuosa   Good morning. If you were one of the 40,000 Torontonians affected by yesterday’s power outage, you might be surprised at the reason behind the blackout. Hydro One says it was a raccoon. Here’s the latest.       MUST READS Steve Russell/Toronto Star   HEALTH In a brutal viral season, meet the team transporting the GTA’s youngest hospital patients SickKids’ pediatric transport team — called the Acute Care Transport Service, or ACTS — is in high demand. ACTS members transport the sickest infants and children, including those with traumatic injuries, from community hospitals to SickKids’ intensive care units. With a 20 to 25 per cent increase in transportation and consultation calls, team members say the volume of patients in need is “unprecedented.” “I’ve never seen it like this, never,” said one respiratory therapist. The Star’s Megan Ogilvie went behind the scenes with the team as they battle a nightmare viral season to provide care to critically ill infants and children.   R.J. Johnston/Toronto Star   Real Estate Here’s what you can expect in 2023’s housing market Analysts and experts are offering a mostly sober forecast for the 2023 housing market, reports Tess Kalinowski. While some are predicting a few glimmers of optimism that buying and selling could resume in the year’s second half, some believe the worst is yet to come. So, which is it? It’s a little bit of both. There won’t be a quick recovery for the housing market as interest rates will remain high, but relief may be in sight for tenants with the completion of 31,000 condos and 8,000 purpose-built apartments this year. Here’s everything you need to know about the trouble ahead for real estate in 2023.   Jeff Bottari/Toronto Star   Business How Elon Musk, Sam Bankman-Fried, and the Liver King taught us a powerful lesson in business — and life Richard Warnica calls them the Liver King Capitalists — leaders who peddle obvious lies but are committed to proving otherwise. The true hoax is that, sometimes, we become so used to self-evident lies in public life that a confession, no matter how hedged or begrudging, seems like a revelation. But here’s the lesson: Sometimes, a grift is just a grift. Here’s what Elon Musk, Sam Bankman-Fried, and the self-proclaimed Liver King all have in common.   Juan Carlos Cruz/AFP via Getty Images   Mexico Here’s what led to violence erupting in Mexico’s Sinaloa state — and how Canadians are faring Several cities in the northwestern Mexican state of Sinaloa exploded into violence this week after the arrest of El Chapo’s son, Ovidio Guzmán. At least 29 people have been reported dead following a battle between a heavily armed cartel convoy and Blackhawk military helicopters, report Joanna Chiu, Kieran Leavitt, and Omar Mosleh. As Mexico remains a popular vacation destination for Canadians, the federal government is advising Canadians in Mexico to shelter in place, avoid crowds and demonstrations, and try not to cross blockades, even if they appear unmanned. Here’s everything you need to know about the operation to detain Ovidio Guzmán and its aftermath.   Elizabeth Ruiz/AFP via Getty Images   Travel Sunwing says it is “incredibly sorry” about the travel fiasco — but customers are still getting the short end of the stick Customers say their compensation claims are being denied as the airline maintains that the situation that left thousands of passengers stranded in Mexico was beyond their control due to bad weather. In a joint statement on Thursday, Sunwing Travel Group CEO Stephen Hunter and Sunwing Airlines president Len Corrado said they are “incredibly sorry for letting our customers down.” But customers say the airline’s current handling of the situation is unacceptable, reports Clarrie Feinstein. Here’s why one customer is turning to a class-action lawsuit to hold the airline accountable.       POV     Martin Regg Cohn: Think you’ve got the answer for our ongoing COVID-19 woes? So did China.   Andrew Phillips: Shutting down speech is the death of creativity, even when we’re outraged by what people say. Heather Scoffield: If we’re heading into a recession, why are there so many jobs? Could Canada’s rosy jobs report be a warning sign?   Julia Marich: Letter from Ukraine: Everything was stolen from us. Our history, our culture — even our name. George Tombs: AI chatbots are no substitute for human authorship.   Vinay Menon: Calm down, Céline Dion fans. Rolling Stone’s “200 Greatest Singers of All Time” is not a list — it’s trolling.       DRINK THIS Supplied If one of your resolutions is to give up booze this month (or indefinitely), this is the list for you. Sarah Laing of The Kit has found the yummiest non-alcoholic drinks on the market. From rosé kombucha to a non-alcoholic lagered ale, here are some of the best non-alcoholic spirits, beer, and wine.     Thanks for reading. You can reach the First Up team at firstup@thestar.ca, and I will see you back here tomorrow.     If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below.   Unsubscribe From This Newsletter Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts View in Browser Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. One Yonge Street, 4th Floor, Toronto, ON M5E 1E6. 416-367-2000 PRIVACY POLICY