Local News

Brooks RCMP reunited a found child with their family over the weekend.

On Friday (June 27) police announced that they were looking for the family of a young child who was found alone on Highway 1, approximately 1 kilometre away from Brooks.

Officers described the child as around 7 years old, wearing an orange T-shirt, pyjama-style shorts, and white socks. Despite canvassing the area, officers could not locate the child's family.

However, the following morning, it was announced that the child had been reunited with their care providers.

The weather played dodge-me with this weekend's Humboldt Summer Sizzler, but many of the events were unaffected by the rainfall and cloud turmoil, particularly on Saturday. 

There was plenty of sunshine for the hungry Humboldt denizens who gathered at Civic Park in the early morning to partake in the community breakfast hosted by the Humboldt Community Soup Kitchen. 

A byelection has been called in the federal riding of Battle River--Crowfoot, where Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is hoping to win a seat in the House of Commons.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has set Aug. 18 as the date for the vote.

Poilievre, who represented the Ottawa-area riding of Carleton for more than 20 years, lost to Liberal MP Bruce Fanjoy in the April 28 election.

Damien Kurek resigned his seat earlier this month to make way for the Conservative leader's return to Parliament.

Tick season has arrived in Lacombe County, with some recently found in the Soper Natural Area, east of Blackfalds.

Ticks are most active in warmer months and can be found in tall grass, wooded areas and even urban parks. While most ticks are harmless, some can carry Lyme disease — a serious bacterial infection that can affect both people and animals if not treated early.

If you find a tick

The South East Cornerstone Public School Division is continuing to deal with a shortage of bus drivers as student ridership rises across the region. The issue was the focus of the transportation report presented at the division’s board meeting on June 17th, where officials also noted efforts to improve service heading into the 2025-26 school year. 

It was another weekend of active weather across east-central Saskatchewan, with multiple funnel clouds reported and Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) currently investigating a possible tornado near Humboldt. 

Jason Knight, a meteorologist with ECCC, confirmed on Monday that a specific weather event at approximately 4:06 p.m. on Saturday near Humboldt is under review. 

While people are celebrating Canada Day, there will be some facility closures in Okotoks on July 1.

Canada Day is happening on a Tuesday this year, and many places in town will be closed to the public.

The Municipal Centre and Operations Centre, Fire Station No. 1 on Milligan Drive, the RCMP/Municipal Enforcement office, Okotoks Eco Centre, the Art Gallery and Museum & Archives, the Okotoks Public Library, Viking Rental Centre, and the Okotoks Family Resource Centre will all be closed on Tuesday, July 1.

The Airdrie Urban Farm Collective has made their second donation to the Airdrie Food Bank this outdoor growing season.

According to Jana Hooper, a board member and volunteer with the collective, they donated over 250 pounds of lettuce and 15 pounds of rhubarb so far.

"We started our lettuces back in April indoors and transferred them to the farm. There were probably about 250 heads of romaine lettuce that we took in, and then just a couple of butter crunch lettuces."

She explained that several volunteers filled a vehicle full of lettuce.

Several facilities will be closed in High River for Canada Day.  

On Tuesday (July 1), High River’s Town Hall, Family and Community Support Services (FCSS), Greater Foothills Family Centre, Public Works, the Recycling Centre, and the Bob Snodgrass Recreation Complex will be closed.  

The Rosetown RCMP responded to a range of calls between June 19 and 26, including traffic concerns, animal complaints and a disturbance.

On June 19 at 9:22 p.m., police received a report of a vehicle hitting a deer near Saskatchewan Landing Provincial Park. No injuries were reported, and the matter was deemed non-reportable.

Officers assisted a member of the public on June 20 in response to a front-counter complaint at the Rosetown/Kyle detachment. That investigation remains ongoing.