National

HAMPSTEAD, Ont.—Emergency officials in rural southwestern Ontario describe the scene of a devastating crash that killed 10 migrant workers and a truck driver as utter “carnage,” with people trapped inside twisted wreckage, dying shortly after first responders arrived.

OTTAWA—At first blush, it’s hard to think of two more different people than freestyle skier Alexandre Bilodeau and young Bryden Hutt.
Bilodeau is an Olympic gold medallist—the first to win top honours on Canadian soil.
Hutt was born with a rare condition that left him without an immune system and forced him to live in a bubble until he received a bone-marrow transplant.

BEIJING—Centuries ago, emperors flocked to the Temple of Heaven in Beijing to pray for a good harvest.
And that’s where Prime Minister Stephen Harper will make one of his first stops on a four-day trip through China, continuing a course he set two years ago to harvest more of the country’s wealth for Canada.

TORONTO—A man who believes John Diefenbaker may have been his father is on the hunt for the former prime minister’s brain.
John George Dryden has turned up some new leads in his paternity search, which began last June when he found out his mother’s husband was not, in fact, his biological father.

TORONTO—Canada kicks off four months of festivities celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee today—and royal watchers predict the Canuck celebrations will be among the most enthusiastic in the world.

WINNIPEG—Canada’s highest court is set to hear arguments over whether it’s a crime for people with HIV to keep their condition from their sexual partners if the risk of transmission is low.
Supreme Court justices are to hear two cases Wednesday—appeals from the provinces of Manitoba and Quebec—that hinge on the obligations of those with the virus that causes AIDS.

OTTAWA—The official Opposition is calling on the Conservative government to recall Canada’s ambassador from Syria.
NDP foreign affairs critic Helene Laverdiere said the move would send a strong message to President Bashar Assad, who has waged a bloody 11-month crackdown on dissent in his country that has left thousands dead.

TORONTO—American-based heavy equipment maker Caterpillar Inc. announced today it would close its Electro-Motive plant in London, Ont. a month after it locked out 450 workers.
Caterpillar subsidiary Progress Rail Services said the cost structure at the plant was unsustainable.

OTTAWA—A surprising dent in Canada’s job creation numbers stood in stark contrast to a big upswing in America’s employment picture as the latest job numbers from south of the border showed momentum for a recovery starting to build.

TORONTO—Super Bowl ads, it seems, are more popular with Canadians than the game itself.
Almost half of Canadians who don’t plan to watch Sunday’s NFL championship game say they’re still hoping to see some Super Bowl ads, according to a Harris-Decima Canadian Press poll.