Chickens mishap won't pose health threat

The refrigeration unit malfunctioned in one of two trucks containing thousands of frozen chickens destined for incineration, spilling an unknown amount of red-tinged fluid onto the ground of a River Road facility where the chickens were being stored this week.

The chickens were going to be destroyed following the discovery of a case of the avian flu at an Abbotsford farm.

The local spill didn't pose a health threat to local residents, according to Cornelius Kiley, a veterinarian for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

As soon as the spill was discovered late Monday, a veterinarian was sent to the site to supervise the situation. A disinfectant was used to clean up the site of the spill, which is on a gravel lot.

Asked if any of the fluid reached storm drains, Kiley said that wasn't the case.

Kiley said a Richmond company was contracted by the agency to take the 36,000 contaminated birds and store them before they are shipped to Princeton for incineration.

When the refrigeration unit malfunctioned, the temperature rose, causing the frozen birds to thaw, and spilling some fluid from the trucks. The fluid is believed to have been mostly water, but it did have a red tinge, and may have contained blood.

Kiley said that the rest of the contaminated chickens will now remain in Abbotsford until they are shipped out, while the locally-stored chickens should be gone by the end of the week.

Business links foster generous donation

More than 400 books about Jewish culture, history, religion and traditions have been donated to the Richmond public library by a Vancouver family with business links to Lulu Island.

Ben and Esther Dayson recently made a $50,000 donation-the largest one-time donation in the library's history-as well as donating books on different topics such as customs, culture and traditions of Judaism, geography, literature, sociology, politics, cookbooks and children's books.

The donation will be placed in an endowment fund and only the interest will be used, likely to enhance the library's collection.

"The Dayson's desire to foster cultural diversity is at the heart of their donation to the library," library communications officer Shelley Civkin said. "Living in a multicultural society like ours, it's vital for people to learn about each other's cultures and beliefs. Education and learning about the different cultures that make up our community are vital elements for living in a climate of tolerance, understanding and acceptance."

The book donation will be called the Ben and Esther Dayson Judaica Collection.