Canadian history sizes down in small scale model competition
A Winnipeg scale model builder is using his craft to showcase a large piece of Canadian history in miniature form.
Gilles Messier created a model Type B Fallout Reporting Post based on one he found in Victoria Beach, Man.
Messier’s creation is based on a cross-Canada network system of Fallout Reporting Posts, 200 of which are located in Manitoba. According to the Manitoba Historical Society, the stations were commissioned by the Canadian government during the height of the Cold War in 1962 to measure the pattern of radioactive fallout if a nuclear explosion occurred.
“After a nuclear attack, volunteers from the RCMP, from the forestry service, from the railroads, all sorts of organizations will go down into these fallout reporting posts to stay there for two weeks and report on the drift of radioactive fallout from the bombs,” Messier said. “So you could be able to tell where it was going across the country.”
Messier said his research inspired him to create a scale model of the shelter for ValourCon, an annual building competition organized by the International Plastic Modellers’ Society (IPMS) Winnipeg division.
“Everything in here is accurate,” Messier said, referring to his display. “I've measured these shelters myself, I've researched all the equipment that would have gone into them. So this is an exact representation of this forgotten piece of Cold War history.”
He said he’s also using the model to promote a full-scale fallout shelter restoration project he’s working on in Miami, Man.
Messier’s display was one of more than 150 models at the St. James Legion Saturday, marking the first ValourCon competition since the pandemic.
While ValourCon has been going on for around 20 years, the club’s president said Saturday’s event was one of the biggest yet.
“I attribute that to pent up demand,” said Jim Grant. “I guess people had nothing to do for the last four years. So they were sitting in their basements building models, and if you look at some of the work on the tables, you can see that time (was) well spent.”
Designs range from military crafts to cars, and even include newer styles influenced by anime artwork.
“Anything at all – people will build models of it, so there's a huge variety here,” said Messier.
Visitors also had the chance to purchase models from some of the vendors.
The club operates on a volunteer basis and first started gathering in Winnipeg in 1969. It’s now one of 20 IPMS branches across Canada. Those interested in joining IPMS Winnipeg are encouraged to visit the club’s website and social media pages.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Signs of Alzheimer’s were everywhere. Then his brain improved
Blood biomarkers of telltale signs of early Alzheimer’s disease in the brain of his patient, 55-year-old entrepreneur Simon Nicholls, had all but disappeared in a mere 14 months.
Box tree moths have infested Ontario and experts say more are coming. Here's what to do to protect your garden
An invasive moth species is on the rise in Canada and, if you've planted a certain shrub, it could stand to ruin your garden.
Lyon-bound Air Canada Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner from Montreal turns back midflight due to pressurization alert
Passengers heading from Montreal to Lyon, France on Friday were forced to return home and depart the next day after a pressurization indication was detected in flight.
VIA Rail service delayed for hours due to suspicious package investigation in Kingston, Ont.
VIA Rail service resumed in the Kingston, Ont. area late Saturday afternoon, after a suspicious package investigation halted train service for more than four hours over the Victoria Day long weekend.
$500K-worth of elvers seized at Toronto airport
Fishery and border service officers seized more than 100 kilograms of unauthorized elvers at the Toronto Pearson International Airport on Wednesday.
B.C. pipeline company argues its 'haulers' are not trucks, for tax purposes
A contractor working on the Coastal GasLink pipeline has been denied more than $333,000 worth of tax rebates because pieces of machinery it purchased – and claimed were not trucks – were deemed sufficiently truck-like in B.C. Supreme Court.
Usyk beats Fury by split decision, becomes undisputed heavyweight champion
Oleksandr Usyk defeated Tyson Fury by split decision to become the first undisputed heavyweight boxing champion in 24 years.
His SUV was stolen on Montreal's South Shore. Then he got a $156 parking ticket
A couple is frustrated after their SUV was stolen from Montreal's South Shore in March and they received a parking ticket for the same vehicle last week.
Banking mogul suing government after intelligence leaks leave him shut out of Canadian economy
Chinese Canadian banking mogul Shenglin Xian has launched a $300 million lawsuit against the federal government. It’s a means to find the source of intelligence leaks which Xian says has cost him his livelihood.