Anna Ferensowicz

Two surprise grizzly bear encounters in Alberta's provincial parks have occurred in recent days, with officials issuing bear warnings for the areas.

One surprise encounter occurred in the West Bragg Creek Provincial Recreation Area, which resulted in a bluff charge. A bear warning is now in place for West Bragg Creek and the surrounding areas until further notice.

Days after a deadly grizzly attack in Banff National Park, Alberta Parks officials have issued a closure of several popular mountain biking trails west of Bragg Creek due to bear activity. 

According to the closure notice, the Jean Guy on the Rocks, Toothless, SLF and Shattered Mountain bike trails are all closed down due to a black bear in the area that has been spotted feeding on carcasses. 

Two people have died following a grizzly bear attack in Banff National Park.

According to reports, the Banff field unit received an alert from a GPS device on Friday evening at approximately 8 p.m., coming from the Red Deer River Valley. The alert indicated a bear attack; and while a team that is specially trained in wildlife attacks was mobilized, weather conditions did not allow a helicopter to be used. 

The driver who was previously found guilty of manslaughter in the killing of Calgary Police Officer Sgt. Andrew Harnett on New Year's Eve 2020, will serve 12 years in prison.

The now 20-year-old man, who can only be identified as A.M., because he was a youth when the incident occurred, was less than two weeks away from turning 18 when the incident happened.

Health officials believe that meatloaf and vegan loaf meals served on August 29 from a shared kitchen utilized by several daycare facilities in the Calgary area, are the most likely to have been the source of an E. Coli outbreak that sickened hundreds of kids. 

During a Wednesday morning press conference, Dr. Mark Joffe, chief medical officer of health, said that neither of the items could be tested as they were either discarded or eaten.

On Wednesday, the City of Calgary announced that Fueling Minds, a catering company and school lunch delivery service provider - which has been at the center of the E. Coli outbreak in Calgary and the surrounding areas -  has been charged by The City with serving food at childcare centres in Calgary without a Food Services - Business licence.  

According to a media release by The City of Calgary, the charges were issued after it was discovered that Fueling Minds had been providing third-party food services to five Calgary childcare centres that were not owned by the company. 

Alberta Health Services has declared an E. coli outbreak for six locations of a Calgary daycare and five additional sites that share a central kitchen.

"At this time, 17 lab-confirmed cases have been linked to the outbreak, as well as 12 individuals hospitalized, and up to 50 children presenting to hospital," AHS stated.

Families with children attending any of the listed locations are being sent letters advising of the outbreak. They are being asked to monitor for symptoms and present to an emergency department if necessary.

You have until Monday, September 4, Labour Day Weekend, to take advantage of the Parks Canada free Park & Ride shuttle service.

The pilot program, which was launched on August 1, offers a free Park & Ride shuttle service from the Minnewanka Scenic Drive into the town of Banff. It's offered between 10:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. daily. 

Alberta Parks has issued an advisory that the Spray West campground and its surrounding area will be closed to accommodate construction between September 2023 and the end of June 2024.

Banff National Park is issuing a warning and reminder to those visiting the National Park, and all other National parks: the recreational use of drones at all Parks Canada places is not allowed.

"Drone flying is a popular hobby for many people and may also be used for commercial purposes. However, Drones can pose risks to visitors, disturb wildlife and lead to negative experiences for other visitors to Banff National Park. For these reasons, Parks Canada strictly limits the use of drones," a statement from Parks Canada read.