Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today…
Smoky conditions help B.C. fire fight
Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today…
Smoky conditions help B.C. fire fight
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More soldiers deployed to N.W.T for wildfire fight
Defence Minister Bill Blair says another company of soldiers is being deployed to Hay River in the Northwest Territories, which has been evacuated for more than a week due to a threatening wildfire nearby.
Blair announced the deployment to the town located on the south shore of Great Slave Lake in a tweet yesterday afternoon, saying it will bring the number of soldiers who are helping the territory around Hay River and Yellowknife to around 400.
N.W.T officials say a fire that’s forced the evacuation of Yellowknife didn’t grow much yesterday and still remains about 15 kilometres away from the capital, but the fight is expected to become more difficult as temperatures rise this week.
Here’s what else we’re watching …
N.W.T. premier recounts hunt for homeless
The premier of the Northwest Territories says she checked to make sure homeless people weren’t forgotten when a wildfire forced mostly everyone to leave the territorial capital last week.
Caroline Cochrane was a social worker for 20 years before entering politics.
She is now among the nearly 70 per cent of territory residents forced to flee the fire threat, including most of the 20-thousand who live in Yellowknife.
She says the government worked closely with shelters in the city to make sure people were being brought to the evacuation centre.
She says all day on Thursday, she drove around with a homeless man, whose name she didn’t provide, trying to find people still on the street.
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Gathering to help healing after mass stabbing
A Saskatchewan First Nation that was the site of a mass stabbing last year is hosting a gathering of traditional healing.
Burns says many people in the community are still struggling with trauma and the event is meant to help with healing and provide support.
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Recently shuffled cabinet meeting in Charlottetown
The Liberal cabinet is in Prince Edward Island’s capital this week for a retreat as it gets ready for the next sitting of the Parliament.
It’s expected the housing crisis will be the central topic for ministers as they sit down to discuss their government’s priorities.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said this summer’s cabinet shuffle was meant to signal a new focus on the economy and affordability.
MPs will be back in the House of Commons on Sept. 18.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 21, 2023.
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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Alberta town adopts new resident code of conduct to address staff safety
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Unifor says workers at Walmart warehouse in Mississauga, Ont., vote to join union