Burning truck closes highway

Highway 17 was closed 26 km west of Ignace for several hours Sunday evening after a tractor-trailer, carrying frozen seafood, caught on fire.
The driver, a 24-year-old Kitchener man, pulled over around 7 p.m. when his vehicle’s engine began to smoke.
He got out of the truck and it became engulfed in flames, ultimately destroying the tractor trailer and its payload.
Dryden OPP were called to the scene and closed the highway until the blaze was put out. One lane of Highway 17 was later re-opened and by 10:20 p.m., the entire highway was re-opened.
There were no injuries as a result of the incident.
In other police news, on Sunday Ear Falls OPP, with the assistance of the Winnipeg Police Service arrested a 41-year-old Winnipeg man for a sexual assault which occurred earlier this month.
On July 22, the accused had been travelling on Highway 105 in the community of Perrault Falls, and sexually assaulted a 16-year-old girl. As a result of information received and the subsequent investigation, the accused has been charged with sexual assault and forcible confinement and was slated to appear for a show cause hearing today in Kenora.
On Saturday July 27, Red Lake OPP, a member of the Tri-Force Drug Unit and the OPP K-9 Unit executed two search warrants finding $17,000 worth of drugs.
The first warrant was executed at a home on Hammell Road and officers seized a half kilo of marihuana and approximately $800 in cash. Two men, aged 24 and 28, were arrested and charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking in a controlled substance and proceeds of crime with further charges anticipated.
The second warrant was executed at a home on Keewatin Road where the officers seized approximately 15 plants in different stages of development and a small quantity of dried marijuana. The residents were not home at the time of the search and charges are still pending.