World Headlines: The life and legacy of “Hurricane Hazel”

First Up

By Manuela Vega

Good morning. The WHO says that the pandemic may be nearing an “inflexion point.” Here’s what we know.

Plus, the latest on the death of Hazel McCallion, the homelessness crisis hitting ERs and new alcohol guidelines.

DON’T MISS

Keith Beaty/The Star

mississauga

Hazel McCallion has died at age 101

Known as a shrewd and iron-willed politician, the longtime Mississauga mayor also had a reputation for her common touch and boundless energy, David Rider, Janet Hurley and Mike Funston report. She died early Sunday of pancreatic cancer, according to a longtime friend speaking on behalf of her family. Here’s what you should know about the life and legacy of the feared and revered “Hurricane Hazel.”

Context: McCallion left elected politics in December 2014 after 12 terms as Mississauga mayor. She was 93.
The early days: As a rookie mayor in 1979, McCallion led the evacuation of 220,000 residents after the derailment of a train loaded with toxic chemicals. It was one of Canada’s largest emergency relocations. International news coverage focused on her military-like efficiency and decisive actions.
The last days: “I’ve done way more in my life than I ever thought I would do,” friend Jim Murray recalled her saying. “None of us get out of this alive. I’m fine.”
Kathleen Wynne’s take: McCallion was a champion who defied stereotype.
More: These five stories showcase McCallion’s extraordinary political life.

Richard Lautens/The Star

housing

On the front lines of the homelessness crisis, a downtown ER tries a novel approach

At St. Michael’s hospital, staff aren’t just facing the pressures of the health care system — they’re facing a homelessness crisis as people turn to ERs for shelter when they have nowhere else to go. An emergency room chief says more than 4,500 homeless Torontonians entered the trauma centre in the last year, about 15 per cent of them because they had no alternative shelter options. Victoria Gibson reports on the new approach that connects ER patients with outreach workers who can help those experiencing homelessness find short- and long-term help.

Wait, what? Hospital workers who call the city’s shelter intake line are usually told to try again later. Their success rate in September was a new low of less than five per cent. In January, ER staff were only able to secure beds less than 20 per cent of the time.
More: “You can’t be alone,” Dan Shaffer, who became homeless in his 70s and benefitted from the program, said. “You can’t have someone who says, ‘good luck on your own, hope you can swim.’ You have to believe someone is in your corner, someone is holding your hand … Someone is going to walk with you all the way.”

Getty Images

health

Canada’s new alcohol guidelines have us rethinking our relationship with risk

According to new guidance from the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, no amount of alcohol is good for your health and anything more than two drinks a week increases the risk for alcohol-related consequences like injury or cancer. The advice is a drastic change from what it had been over the past dozen years — that 10 drinks a week for women and 15 for men was considered low-risk. Janet Hurley reports on the guidance — and the emerging disbelief, displeasure and denial.

Go deeper: “More information is always better. And I’m a firm believer in evidence-based medicine,” said associate professor Jessica Mudry, director of the Healthcare User Experience Lab at Toronto Metropolitan University. “But the second we quantify the consumption of anything … you create a framework for people to moralize others and to moralize themselves.”

WHAT ELSE

To hold off Pierre Poilievre, Justin Trudeau has to counter a familiar — and effective — playbook.

RSV is still a threat, especially in Canada’s North. But new treatments and vaccines are on the way.

A suicide bomber has killed 28 people and wounded 150 at a mosque in northwestern Pakistan.

An eyewitness refused to name this man’s killer — but his detailed account in a secret video became pivotal evidence.

These are 10 reasons why Mike Schreiner should think before swapping Green for Grits.

Massive layoffs at Google are shining a light on the tech giant’s ugly side.

Five people were injured in a multi-vehicle collision with a TTC bus.

Here’s how to stop fraudsters from selling your house out from under you.

Police in Brazil raided Jair Bolsonaro nephew’s home in a Jan. 8 uprising probe.

There’s a hungry Arctic predator with a lot of arms that eats dead polar bears.

Farewell to Noah Cowan, the ultimate film buff and “true child of TIFF.”

When will Toronto home prices hit a low before rebounding?

POV

Stephen Velasco Graphic

Toronto’s housing rules control where the city grows — and where it doesn’t. Here’s what that looks like.

CLOSE-UP

Steve Russell/The Star

MATTAMY ATHLETIC CENTRE: Premier Hockey Federation all-star Saroya Tinker, 24, is the executive director of the Black Girl Hockey Club. The girls are “my purpose … they’re what keeps me going,” she says. Here’s how she’s pushing to change the sport’s culture.

Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at firstup@thestar.ca. I’ll 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.