Local News

The Lacombe Fire Department has welcomed six new full members following the completion of their probationary periods.

On Sept. 2, firefighters Floris, Dunn, Wilmot, Wilson, Thompson and Neilson officially became full members after months of training and service as recruits.

The department said completing probation is a significant milestone for volunteer firefighters, as it requires balancing training with work, family and personal commitments.

The Saskatchewan RCMP Major Crimes Unit is investigating what it deems a "suspicious death" after a woman was fatally shot while riding as a passenger in an SUV just outside of Weyburn Friday night. The incident is currently believed to be random in nature.

Shortly after 8 p.m. on Friday, two adult women, who were friends, were traveling together in a black Ford Explorer on Highway 39 near the grain terminals on the northwest edge of town, heading towards Weyburn. They were the only occupants of the vehicle when, according to police, a large crack was heard.

A new medical clinic has opened in Olds, which officials say will expand health care in the community and help attract new physicians.

The Care First Medical Clinic, located beside the Co-op grocery store at 5330 46 Street, officially opened on Friday. It will operate with four doctors practising family and geriatric medicine — one full-time and three part-time.

The flea beetle is a common pest for farmers and gardeners alike in this corner of the province. However, there is more to the species than meets the eye. Provincial Insect and Vertebrate Pest Management Specialist for the Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. James Tansey, says that the term “flea beetle” covers approximately 5,000 species worldwide, in a subfamily called the Alticinae.  

The Red Deer Arts Council's Arts & Culture District Collab is inviting Central Albertans to take part in a free community conversation on the future of arts and culture.

“Audacity in the Arts: Reviving Cultural Relevance” will take place Sept. 16 at 6:30 p.m. at The Scott Block Theatre in downtown Red Deer.

The Cochrane Lions Rodeo has its new queen. Sonia van der Burgh was crowned the 2026 Cochrane Lions Rodeo Queen in August and is excited to represent the rodeo and its community over the next year.

“It definitely didn’t sink in until after the entire rodeo was done,” says van der Burgh. “You’re standing back there, they call your name, and then out you go into the arena. I was shocked. I definitely wasn’t expecting it.”

With more than 100,000 bodies of water across the province, the Saskatchewan RCMP are reminding drivers to be prepared in case their vehicle becomes submerged.

“Drivers and passengers are at significant risk when a vehicle enters the water,” said Cpl. Jamie Diemert, coordinator of the Saskatchewan RCMP Underwater Recovery Team (URT). “Water can pour in through windows and doors, causing entrapment, and the situation can quickly become life-threatening. Knowing and practising an escape plan with your family can prepare you for this kind of emergency.”

A report that could shed more light on why Manitoba's former Progressive Conservative government rejected calls to search a landfill for the remains of two murder victims is being withheld under the province's freedom of information law.

Records obtained by The Canadian Press show senior bureaucrats assembled a presentation for cabinet ministers on a potential search in the weeks before the government decided not to proceed with the idea in 2023.

Temporary housing units will be available this fall for residents displaced from Denare Beach, as municipal leaders and provincial officials outline plans to support the community through the winter months.

Moose Jaw-Lake Centre-Lanigan Member of Parliament Fraser Tolmie had this to say regarding Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre’s statements on the Temporary Foreign Worker program:

“In this riding, agricultural producers, processors, and other businesses rely on seasonal temporary labour to do what they do best. This type of work is why the Temporary Foreign Worker program was created in the first place, and in my view, it is working well.”