SPRING BROKE
Some people believe that miracles happen all over the world, every day; a mother lifts a car to save their child; a lost dog returns home after 20 years—a driver in Gatineau tows a pontoon boat with a Toyota Echo. But alas, there was no miracle in Gatineau when police pulled over a driver who was trying to kick off their summer by any means necessary, attempting to haul a pontoon boat behind their car on a Gatineau road. The driver’s car; the Toyota Echo, was revamped to the Yaris about 20 years ago due to its small size for North American roads—but no one tell that to the driver.
A DOLLAR FOR YOUR DREAMS
As residents of British Columbia await their Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) rebate cheques to materialize, one B.C. woman is asking the Crown insurer questions after receiving a $1 cheque in her mailbox. The cheques, averaging about $190 according to ICBC, were sent out in late March after seeing weeks-long delays due to cyberhacks. When O’Neill tweeted her frustrations—calling the cheque a “colossal waste of money”—ICBC responded by saying it “will be issuing refund cheques for any amount of $1 or more,” a change from the insurer’s “historical practice of not issuing cheques for $5 or less.” ICBC has not said how many cheques under $5 have been mailed out, though it estimates 0.2 percent of cheques will have value of $1. As for O’Neill, she says she doubts she’ll ever cash the cheque and reap the $1 rewards. “It’s a huge waste of resources that could go someplace else,” she said.
THE KICKER
In late January a video of a Toronto man launching his most powerful roundhouse kick on an oncoming SUV began making rounds, prompting the internet to question his sanity. In a video shared to Instagram, the man—initially behind the wheel of a moving car—slams on his brakes to allow some ill-time jaywalkers to pass. The man then spots on SUV approaching the pedestrians at a reduced speed and deeming himself Superman in the blink of an eye, launches himself from his vehicle and into the path of oncoming traffic. Seemingly unaware that the approaching SUV has spotted the pedestrians and has slowed down to let them pass, the man the launches a kick to the vehicle’s tire before collapsing in pain in the middle of the highway.
WHAT THE TRUCK
Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway was home to a scene straight out of Italian Job in March when a dump truck pushed a Mini Cooper for more than half a kilometre along the highway. In a video shared to social media, plumes of black smoke can be seen as the massive piece of machinery propels the sedan down the strait. The collision initially occurred as the Mini Cooper driver—a Toronto nurse on her way to work administering COVID-19 vaccines—accelerated along the on ramp. The dump truck operator claims he did not see the other driver and collided with her vehicle, pushing the Mini Cooper sideways. The dump truck continued up the ramp and onto the expressway, pushing the vehicle sideways along the highway for more than 500 metres. The dump truck was eventually flagged down by passing motorists and the Mini Cooper driver suffered only minor injuries.
CHEVY ON THE ROCKS
In the latest edition of our ongoing segment, “Will that truck fall through the ice?”; the answer was once again, yes. This time, the Saskatchewan- based Big Ice removal service was called in to Fort Chipewyan, north of Fort McMurray, to pull a partially sunk Chevrolet Silverado out of a fast-moving river, taking a massive slab of ice frozen on the hood of the truck along with it. Naturally, Big Ice posted photos of the recovery to their Facebook to help further document this rash of pickup truck drownings. Remember, the next time you see a pickup truck parked on a frozen body of water and you think to yourself, “Will that truck fall through the ice?” the answer might not surprise you.
