Dryden

Waterways in the area will be buzzing this weekend as the walleye and sauger combined season officially opens on Saturday (May 21, 2022).

The season kicks off every year on the third weekend in May through until December 31 in Zones 4 and 5,  (with some waterbody exceptions), primarily where Northwestern Ontario anglers fish. 

Residents will be itching to get back onto area lakes this May long weekend, as high boat traffic is expected by the Kenora OPP.

The recent overland flooding and high water levels, in general, have pushed or exposed a lot of debris in and around area lakes. The Kenora OPP is advising residents out on the lake this weekend to be aware of debris.

The Kenora District’s Flood Outlook has been upgraded to a Flood Warning by the Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources, and Forestry, and will be in effect until June 3, 2022.

The ministry’s definition of a Flood Warning is: flooding is imminent or occurring within specific watercourses and municipalities.

The City of Kenora cut the ribbon on their Glad You Are Here campaign to welcome Kenora residents, seasonal residents, neighbouring communities, and visitors to the city this May long weekend.

Kenora Mayor, Dan Reynard is excited about this event as it’s a sign of summer, as well as events begin and the excitement starts to take off for the community.

“It’s the point where we start to get our summer residents back, but we also start to see the tourists start to move in on the weekends, which leads into the summer activity,” says Reynard.

While much of the region is dealing with rain, residents along Highway 105 are dealing with a spring snowstorm.

This photo was taken by Lesley Bailey, north of Ear Falls around 10 am, who says Highway 105 is slushy and slippery.

The rain and wet snow is expected to end Friday afternoon, before a warmer and dryer May long weekend.

A late-season frost advisory has been issued for northwestern Ontario as the mercury is set to hover near the freezing mark overnight Friday.

Environment Canada says patchy frost is expected tonight into Saturday morning.

Resident should cover up plants, especially those in frost-prone areas.

The overnight low for Kenora, Dryden, and Vermilion is plus 1, while the Sioux Lookout area will dip down to minus 1, before temperatures return to normal towards the end of the May long weekend.

As of 7:45 am Friday, May 20:

The City of Kenora is set to resume work on the East Melick Road and Essex Road intersection to lay a top surface to build up the road and open it. 

As early as Friday, May 20th evening, residents who live along East Melick Road between the Portier bridge and the Essex Road intersection (this includes Victoria Crescent, Decemvir Dr, Bell Point Road, and Aube Dr) should have access back to their homes.

The provincial government says they’re sending resources to northwestern Ontario as residents continue to navigate extreme and rising floodwaters across the region.

"I know that extraordinary weather conditions have created challenges for many families and businesses in the Northwest,” said Greg Rickford, acting MPP for Kenora-Rainy River.

Safety is Kenora OPP's primary concern for those in the evacuation zone north of the Kenora by-pass.

Around 444 properties are in the evacuation zone, though a number of residents have decided to hunker down and stay in their homes.

"If there are any concerns for people, that you may not have heard from in a while, definitely give us a call so we can do check-ins on people to make sure they are doing alright and staying safe," said OPP Provincial Constable Jason Canfield.

The Liberal government is banning Chinese vendors Huawei Technologies and ZTE from Canada's long-awaited blueprint for next-generation mobile networks.

"Telecommunication companies in Canada will not be permitted to include in their networks products or services that put our national security at risk," Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne said Thursday in Ottawa.

"Providers who already have this equipment installed will be required to cease its use and remove it under the plans we are announcing today."