Oil City’s Kember eighth at national wrestling tourney
The Independent nominated for nine Ontario awards
February 14, 2025
The Independent of Petrolia and Central Lambton has been nominated for nine awards in the Ontario Better Newspaper Competition.
The Ontario Community Newspaper Association host the awards for community weekly newspapers to recognize the outstanding quality of work produced each week newspapers.
The Independent was recognized for its stories about Mississauga developer York1’s plans to reopen the derelict Dresden landfill and the Chatham-Kent politicians who courted the developers since 2019 with a nomination for the Best Investigative News Series and the Best News Story. Wright also received an honourable mention in the Stephen Shaw Award for Reporter of the Year in part for that coverage.
“We’re very proud to be recognized for the work we did telling our community about the possibility of a mega dump on Lambton’s border,” says Publisher/Editor’s Heather Wright. “Our stories were the most comprehensive in the region. Because residents knew the plans from reading our articles, the community banded together to force a full Environmental Assessment on the project.”
The Petrolia newspaper has also been nominated for Best Editorial called Cyber Wake Up Call which called on all levels of government to invest in cyber security after a massive data leak at Bluewater Health.
Wright’s story about the impact changes to international student visas at Lambton College has been nominated in the Education Writing division.
Cathy Dobson and Glenn Ogilvie’s series Hungry in Lambton, which examined food insecurity in rural areas, has been nominated in the Best Feature/News Series.
A photo spread featuring the action at the Alvinston Pro Rodeo has been nominated in the Best Photo Layout category.
Tyler Viscount, a graphic designer who worked for The Independent in 2024, has been recognized for a two-page Christmas feature for the Petrolia Volunteer Business Association.
And The Independent’s Petrolia150, 1874 replica newspaper which was sent to every home in the town during its anniversary year, was also recognized in the Community Service category.
The winners will be announced April 11 in Niagara on the Lake.
Front Page
Oil City’s Kember eighth at national wrestling tourney
June 4, 2026
Barry Wright/The Independent Micah Kember of the Sarnia Bluewater Wrestling Club is back home after delivering a “determined performance” at the Canadian Wrestling Championships in Montreal, according to his coach Henry Dickson. The Oil City wrestler competed in the 55-kilo competitors in the under-17 division and reached the final round of the consolation side of the bracket placing in the
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Front Page
Fire heavily damages Sombra waterfront home
June 4, 2026
Heather Wright/The Independent No one was injured during a fire in one of Sombra’s original homes. Sombra firefighters were called to a house on Water Street, south of the ferry dock, around 7:30 pm Wednesday. They found heavy smoke and flames coming from the family home on the St. Clair River. “They started an aggressive interior attack but the fire
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Front Page
Sarnia Library to open museum on second floor
June 3, 2026
Owners of Stones and Bones will turn over all artifacts for the project The Independent The second floor of the Sarnia Library will become a natural history museum as early as 2028. The county and the owner of Stones and Bones Museum, Allison Richards who owned the museum with her late husband, Jim, have come to an agreement which will
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Front Page
Thedford man faces five charges after accident in Warwick Village
June 3, 2026
The Independent A Thedford man is facing five charges after a crash. Sunday, Lambton OPP were called to a collision on Egremont Road near Digby Street up the road from the Warwick Conservation Area when a vehicle left the road. The driver fled. Police later arrested a 46-year old from Thedford and charged him with two counts of impaired driving,
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