Cessna 208 Caravan de Blasio’s Personal Boy Toy?

WHEW! The first breath of fresh air this morning for all those who sweltered through the 11-day straight extreme heat wave—but no thanks to New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, vacationing in Quebec where 33 people died. Vacationing in air-conditioned luxury, Hizzoner de Blasio ignored both the killer heat wave, and the massive carbon footprint caused by his ride from his Canada vacation spot to the Bronx for a brief memorial appearance on a $3 million counterterrorism plane. De Blasio’s joy ride was reported by the New York Post, citing police sources.

Before the mayor hitched his ride, the aircraft was being kept quietly at MacArthur Airport on Long Island. The aircraft, a Cessna 208 Caravan, was acquired by the NYPD in 2017. Never meant as anyone’s personal boy toy, Cessna 208 Caravan, was designed for counterterrorism measures. In short for protection of the masses. Transportation to and from a lavish vacation hideout is a far cry from counterterrorism. “De Blasio reportedly left his vacation spot in Quebec around 9 a.m. Thursday and arrived in Westchester County Airport shortly before 11 a.m. By noon the New York City mayor was speaking at a memorial on behalf of slain NYPD detective Miosotis Familia and was back in Montreal before 4 p.m., according to records cited by The Post. (Fox News, July 6, 2018) 

“De Blasio’s decision was questioned by some police sources, who noted that the cost far exceeded commercial transportation. One source estimated the mayor’s trip cost in the thousands. “I think it’s excessive, because that wasn’t what that plane was designed to do. It’s designed for counterterrorism measures. “It’s very unusual to go on an international flight to pick up the mayor,” another source told The Post. “I think it’s excessive, because that wasn’t what that plane was designed to do. It’s designed for counterterrorism measures.” “A spokesman for the mayor’s office told the paper it was the mayor’s first time using the plane but didn’t comment on why the decision was made. The NYPD made no comment on their decision to transport the mayor.”

Quebec officials, as expected, are blaming the deadly Quebec heat wave, on so-called global warming/climate change: “With climate change, heat waves will probably be much more frequent, and we’ll have to adapt,” Horacio Arruda, Quebec’s director of public health, said in an interview on Thursday. “Most people will survive them without any problem. But for others with risk factors, they can kill them.” (Globe and Mail, July 5, 2018)

“In the meantime, the profile of the 18 who died in Montreal has become clearer. They were overwhelmingly men aged 53 to 85 who lived alone and had health issues such as schizophrenia or heart disease. “Their housing conditions increased their vulnerability. Most lived on the upper floors of multistorey buildings, where heat rose and became trapped. “When ambulance technicians entered their apartments, they found smothering conditions with no air conditioning and temperatures exceeding 30 and even 35 degrees.”

Temperatures exceeding 30-35 degrees caused no sweat for vacationing de Blasio, who cavalierly left his carbon footprint, flying in and out of La Belle Province on the Cessna 208 Caravan, designed not for hitch-a-ride vacationers but for counterterrorism measures. Ironic that authorities admit that access to air conditioning could have saved lives considering that ‘Father of the Environment’, Canadian Maurice Strong banned the use of Air Conditioning for the masses.

Judi McLeod——Bio and Archives -- Judi McLeod, Founder, Owner and Editor of Canada Free Press, is an award-winning journalist with more than 30 years’ experience in the print and online media. A former Toronto Sun columnist, she also worked for the Kingston Whig Standard. Her work has appeared throughout the ‘Net, including on Rush Limbaugh and Fox News.