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NASA releases satellite images of Manitoba flooding; province bracing for more rain

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WINNIPEG — Severe flooding that has displaced thousands of people in southern Manitoba has reached levels that are quite literally out of this world.

Satellite images of flooding in the Red River Valley were NASA Earth Observatory’s images of the day on Thursday.

The two false-colour images, taken on Tuesday and Wednesday, show the flooded valley on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border.

The images were taken with sensors that are used to track Earth and climate measurements on two NASA satellites called Terra and Aqua. They orbit throughout the day, passing over the equator from north to south and south to north.

The image from Tuesday shows dark masses of flooded area around the Red River from Winnipeg south to Grand Forks, N.D.

NASA Earth Observatory said the images were produced using different settings within the sensors to better distinguish river water out of its banks.

Heavy snowfall and spring rainstorms have left many parts of Manitoba flooded, including the Red River Valley.

Flood warnings are in place for most parts of the Red River north of Emerson, near the border, the province said in its latest flood bulletin.

Doyle Piwniuk, Manitoba’s minister responsible for emergency measures, said water levels in some areas along the Red River have already peaked.

“The Red River peak is declining in Emerson, has peaked in St.-Jean Baptiste and (is) near peaking in Morris,” Piwniuk said Thursday.

The province has issued an overland flood warning for a portion of southwest Manitoba and the southeast corner of the province, while an overland flood watch for all of southern Manitoba remains in effect.

A new low-pressure weather system is expected to bring 20 to 40 millimetres of rain beginning Thursday with the possibility of some areas exceeding 50 millimetres.

Environment and Climate Change Canada issued special weather statements for several communities across southern Manitoba.

It said heavy rain and thunderstorms were expected for the Winnipeg area and in the western part of the province near Brandon.

“The risks we have with this rainfall event is obviously an exasperation or worsening of overland flood concerns in any area that’s having flooding issues,” said Alysa Pederson, who is a meteorologist with the weather agency.

“When we get severe storms or thunderstorms that can drop 50 millimetres over a couple of hours even in mid-July, it can cause localized flooding. So it’s not going to be a good situation where there is already a lot of flooding or overland concerns.”

Pederson added the combination of heavy rainfall and strong winds means there is a concern of further washouts for some areas.

There is also a high risk of ice piling up on the east shore of Lake Manitoba including areas along Twin Lakes and Lundar beaches, the province said. Strong winds could also cause water levels in flooded areas of the Red River Valley to rise by up to about 30 centimetres.

Parts of Manitoba have recently been battered with heavy snow and rain. Most southern Manitoba basins received 20 to 40 millimetres of rain earlier this week.

Pederson said these amounts are normal for this time of year but not with the same frequency.

“We don’t usually see this many consecutive events occur. Usually, there’s one or two. This is (the) fourth or fifth week here with another system moving through.”

There are 28 municipalities and four First Nation communities that have declared states of emergency, with 2,500 people out of their homes.

Three municipalities have requested resources to help with flooding ahead of the expected rainfall, said Piwniuk.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 12, 2021.

— With files from Steve Lambert in Winnipeg

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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

 

Brittany Hobson, The Canadian Press

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Canada’s Denis Shapovalov wins Belgrade Open for his second ATP Tour title

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BELGRADE, Serbia – Canada’s Denis Shapovalov is back in the winner’s circle.

The 25-year-old Shapovalov beat Serbia’s Hamad Medjedovic 6-4, 6-4 in the Belgrade Open final on Saturday.

It’s Shapovalov’s second ATP Tour title after winning the Stockholm Open in 2019. He is the first Canadian to win an ATP Tour-level title this season.

His last appearance in a tournament final was in Vienna in 2022.

Shapovalov missed the second half of last season due to injury and spent most of this year regaining his best level of play.

He came through qualifying in Belgrade and dropped just one set on his way to winning the trophy.

Shapovalov’s best results this season were at ATP 500 events in Washington and Basel, where he reached the quarterfinals.

Medjedovic was playing in his first-ever ATP Tour final.

The 21-year-old, who won the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF title last year, ends 2024 holding a 9-8 tour-level record on the season.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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Talks to resume in B.C. port dispute in bid to end multi-day lockout

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VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.

The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.

The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.

The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.

The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.

MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.

In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.

“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.

“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”

In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.

“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.

The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.

“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”

The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.

The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.

A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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The Royal Canadian Legion turns to Amazon for annual poppy campaign boost

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The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.

Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.

Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.

Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.

“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.

“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”

Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.

“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.

Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.

“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”

But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.

Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.

“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.

Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.

The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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