JULY/AUGUST 2011
www.celtic-connection.com
Page 11
Royal Couple visit blaze-ravaged northern Alberta town of Slave Lake
CALGARY, Alberta - After a whirlwind week charming the Canadian public, Prince William and Catherine escaped on July 7 to a secret romantic hideaway in the stunning Rocky Mountains far from the madding crowds.
The young newlyweds left Slave Lake in northern Alberta the day before after touring the devastation caused by forest fires in mid-May which razed 400 homes and businesses in Canada's second-costliest disaster.
The fire forced the complete evacuation of the settlement's 7,000 residents and is considered the largest displacement in the province's history.
The Duke and Duchess met families who were forced to leave their homes along with rescue workers who fought the fires.
Hundreds of firefighters converged on the town to tackle the blazes and officials knocked on hundreds of doors to ensure everyone had left.
Kevin MacLeod, the Canadian secretary to the Queen, said the visit was a gesture to say thank you to the emergency services for their efforts.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, married just a few months ago in London, had broken with their original plan to spend a day alone to visit those hit by the forest fires.
But returning to their program, they gave their media entourage the slip late Wednesday, heading to a destination which has been kept a closely guarded secret, leaving journalists and locals guessing.
Later Thursday, William and his new bride, the former Kate Middleton, were set to resume their first official state visit as a married couple, heading for Calgary and cowboy country.
PRINCE William met with members of the RCMP detachment in Slave Lake, Alberta when he and his wife Catherine made a surprise visit to the devastated town. The RCMP detachment building in Slave Lake survived the fire, which struck most of the structures surrounding the site, however seven officers had had their residences and personal possessions destroyed by the fire.
They were set to be "crowned" with traditional white, broad-rimmed cowboy hats.
The couple were also scheduled to take part in a traditional rodeo before leaving Canada Friday at the end of their nine-day visit.
They are due to leave Canada on Friday when they will head for Los Angeles for a three-day visit to California.
PRINCE WILLIAM and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, examine a car damaged by fire in Slave Lake, Alberta on July 6 as they looked to lift spirits of the community still recovering from fires that devastated homes and public buildings two months ago.
A FINAL FAREWELL - William and Catherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, wave goodbye following the conclusion of their hugely successful Royal Tour of Canada.
Prince Harry set to return to Afghanistan
LONDON - Prince Harry has been cleared to be redeployed to Afghanistan and could return next year. The Prince, who was hastily withdrawn from a tour of Helmand in 2008 after his position was compromised by foreign media reports, has often expressed the desire to return to the front line.
Now he is set to be granted another tour when his squadron is deployed to Afghanistan next year, by which time he should have completed his Apache pilot training.
Clarence House said the Prince would complete his training next year and would then be available for deployment wherever Apaches were needed -including Afghanistan. It is understood that his squadron is being lined up for a return to Afghanistan next year, most likely in late summer.
Google to digitise British Library books
LONDON - Around 250,000 books will be put on line as part of a deal between the British Library and Google.
The works, which are all out of copyright, date from between 1700 and 1870 and have been selected by the library to be digitised by Google.
Library chief executive Dame Lynne Brindley said, "In the nineteenth century it was an ambition of our predecessors to give everybody access to as much of the world's information as possible to ensure that knowledge was not restricted to those who could afford private libraries. The way of doing it then was to buy books from the entire world and to make them available in reading rooms.
"We are delighted to be partnering with Google on this project and through this partnership believe that we are building on this proud tradition of giving access to anyone, anywhere and at any time.
"Our aim is to provide perpetual access to this historical material, and we hope that our collections coupled with Google's know-how will enable us to achieve this aim."
The books will be available online at Google Books and on the British Library's website.
Director of external relations at Google Peter Barron said, "What's powerful about the technology available to us today isn't just its ability to preserve history and culture for posterity, but also its ability to bring it to life in new ways.
"This public domain material is an important part of the world's heritage and we're proud to be working with the British Library to open it up to millions of people in the UK and abroad."
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