Strathmore

A brief hailstorm went through Chestermere over the weekend.

According to Brenda Ell, a resident in the Waterford neighbourhood, the Sunday (July 13) storm lasted for around twenty minutes and brought heavy rain, hail, and strong winds to the city.

"We were just sitting, watching TV, and all of a sudden there was a big 'bam', and it just started," said Ell. "I thought our windows were going to break, but thank goodness they didn't."

Maintenance is taking place in Carseland.

Crews will be replacing a fire hydrant on the corner of Nelson Road and Christensen Close during the week of Monday (July 21). 

Residents may experience temporary water disruptions while construction is underway.

Earlier in the summer, Rocky View Utility Corp also conducted fire hydrant flushing as part of regular maintenance. 

Wheatland County advises residents to use caution in the construction zones and to follow all posted signage.  

The annual pace of inflation accelerated to 1.9 per cent in June as consumers were paying more at car dealerships, Statistics Canada said Tuesday.

The June price hike is up from 1.7 per cent in May and was largely in line with economists’ expectations.

StatCan said gasoline prices were nearly unchanged in June as higher crude oil prices and geopolitical conflicts ratcheted up pressure at the pumps. Motorists saw a steeper monthly decline in prices this time last year, which the agency said led to a rise in headline inflation.

Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to convene the Incident Response Group in Ottawa today to discuss the ongoing wildfire situation across the country.

Carney also convened the group of ministers and senior officials a little over a month ago in response to an earlier wave of wildfires, which peaked in May and June, then receded, and have now flared up again.

More than 6,000 people are currently out of their homes in Manitoba, and the communities of Lynn Lake and Snow Lake ordered residents to flee for the second time in just weeks.

As we enter the heart of July and the back half of the 2025 growing season, producers are looking to protect their crops to help ensure they don’t lose any yield come harvest time. That’s especially the case for canola, as plants start heading towards full bloom and will start forming pods and seeds.  

The Conservatives want Prime Minister Mark Carney to sell all the assets in his blind trust to avoid any possible conflicts of interest.

Carney set up the blind trust after he was sworn in as prime minister in March and the details of how it works were made public on Friday.

They show that the prime minister has set up screens to avoid potential conflicts related to his previous interests in Brookfield Asset Management, Brookfield Corporation and Stripe Inc.

But Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre believes that's not enough.

Strathmore residents are set to save over a million dollars this year by borrowing from the local library.

According to a social media post by the Strathmore Municipal Library, local patrons have saved $801,827 between January and June of 2025.

"At this rate, we will surpass last year's savings of $1,200,000," wrote the library. 

Library staff say that the number is more for fun than a true representation of savings, as the number includes readers who took out the same book several times.

The Government of Alberta has approved five modular classrooms for multiple schools in the province. 

The classrooms are intended to provide relief for schools that have reached capacity. 

Rainbow Creek Elementary School in Chestermere is receiving one of the modular classrooms. Rocky View Schools announced that the classroom is expected to be available by spring 2026.

The school previously received another modular classroom, which is set to be ready by late fall 2025. 

The Calgary Stampede wrapped up on Sunday (July 13).

StrathmoreNow readers took to a poll on our homepage asking about the wackiest foods at that the Stampede has to offer.

A total of 38 votes were made, with 19 votes (50 per cent) going towards Mopane Worm Poutine.

Behind the poutine was Smoked Tongue On A Stick, which received eight votes (21.05 per cent), followed by the Fruit Loops Chicken Burger with six votes (15.79 per cent).

In last place with five votes (13.16 per cent) was the Skittle Dog. 

The Southern Alberta RCMP Crime Reduction Unit (SAD CRU) arrested a person who was at large for a series of crimes throughout the area.

SAD CRU detained 36-year-old Chaylee Eagle Plume Bruised Head, a resident of Blood Tribe First Nation, after she allegedly removed her electronic monitoring device on Thursday (July 10). 

Eagle Plume Bruised Head was on bail while waiting for a court date on 32 charges out of Calgary, Canmore, Chestermere, Turner Valley, Okotoks, Cochrane, and Strathmore.