Canada’s 2025 wildfire season is now the second-worst on record. Fires have torn through 72,000 square kilometres of land – roughly the size of New Brunswick. Manitoba and Saskatchewan account for more than half the area burned so far – but BC, Alberta and Ontario are all also well above their 25-year averages.
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The Chiefs of the Island Lake First Nations have called for a national Indigenous wildfire strategy saying there’s a chronic lack of firefighting, fire prevention and emergency services in First Nations. The Chiefs say more funding is needed to keep people at home – not on evacuations.
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It’s been confirmed – three tornadoes touched down in Manitoba last week. Western University’s ‘Northern Tornadoes Project’ reports twisters touched down near Melita on August 5th, and near Birds Hill Park and Dugald on August 6th. All three were given EF-zero ratings – the lowest on the scale.
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Five people had to be rescued from the Pinawa Channel this weekend. The group got stranded while tubing. Officials say they couldn’t swim, had no paddles and weren’t wearing life jackets.
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Nurses in Manitoba have ‘grey listed’ Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre declaring it too dangerous to work in, and plan to discourage working there until safety concerns are addressed. The last time there was a ‘grey listing’ was Dauphin Regional Health Centre in 2007. Shared Health says security measures have been taken, including increased patrols and new cameras.
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Around 100 Canadians and Americans gathered at the International Peace Garden south of Boissevain over the weekend for a ‘Handshake Across the Border’. The event was held to show our two countries still remain good friends and neighbours. The handshake was organized as part of the garden’s annual Summer Floral Celebration.
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Air Canada flight attendants are expected to picket at airports in Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary today. Their union wants to raise awareness about what it calls ‘poverty wages’ and unpaid labour. The flight attendants could go on strike August 16th.
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A horror movie about missing kids all from one teacher’s classroom – ‘Weapons’ – was number one at the weekend box office. The Freaky Friday sequel with Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis – ‘Freakier Friday’ came in second followed by ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ and the animated ‘The Bad Guys 2’. Rounding out the Top 5 was Liam Neeson in ‘The Naked Gun’.
