Lacombe

Central Albertans will notice increased activity near the Red Deer Regional Airport over the next few weeks.

CEO Nancy Paish says crews are busy preparing for wildfire season.

"Air Spray has water-suppression bombers, so they are training all of their staff to head out for the firefighting season," she explained. "We've seen more activity, but we'll continue to see an increase in air traffic in and around Central Alberta during this time."

Paish tells people what to expect.

The Red Deer RCMP have located a missing 14-year-old safe.

The teen was last seen in Red Deer on April 3 and reported missing on April 4. 

There was concern for her well-being. 

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The provincial government is inviting Central Albertans to share their input as work continues to refocus the province’s health care system.   

The second round of in-person and online engagement is continuing this week in Central Alberta.   

As of April 1, the Town of Blackfalds’ recycling program will be managed by the not-for-profit organization Circular Materials.

The Town’s service provider, E360 Solutions, will remain the same.

The move to Circular Materials was approved by council during the August 27 regular council meeting.

Spring has officially arrived in Central Alberta, with above-normal temperatures expected to continue throughout the week.

Certain areas could see some showers later this afternoon, as well as tomorrow. Winds are also anticipated to pick up this afternoon, gusting to about 50 km/h.

Stephen Berg, a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada, said:

"Apart from the low-pressure system that starts up by the end of the day today, bringing potential rain to the Red Deer area, it looks pretty clear for the most part from Wednesday onward."

A stretch of the multi-use trail in Rocky Mountain House will be temporarily closed starting today (April 7).  

The trail portion along Highway 598, east of 43 Street will be closed while crews run new power lines in the area.   

The community of Blackfalds collected 1,701 pounds of food during its Stuff-a-Bus Food Drive held on Saturday, April 5.

School buses were stationed at several locations around town, collecting food and cash donations to support the Beyond Food Community Hub, the Blackfalds Food Bank, and Blackfalds Family and Community Support Services (FCSS).

Bus drivers and students were also on hand to help collect donations.

In addition, $220 in cash and $20 in gift cards were also received.

According to Statistics Canada, Red Deer's unemployment rate dropped in March, to 8.5 per cent, compared with 9.6 per cent the previous month.

While the unemployment rate declined, Red Deer remains among the top five Census Metropolitan Areas for the highest unemployment rates.

Alberta's unemployment rate rose from 6.7 per cent to 7.1 per cent from February to March.

The Sylvan Lake Wranglers won bronze over the weekend at the Alberta Junior B Provincial tournament held in Morinville.

The Wranglers defeated the Fort St. John Huskies 4-1 in the bronze medal game. 

The host Jets beat Wainwright 4-3 in overtime to win gold.

Sylvan Lake went 4-1 in the tournament, with their only loss coming to Morinville.

The Monday, April 7, 2025, Regular Red Deer City Council Meeting will start at 10:30 a.m. 

CONSENT: 

Amendment to Lancaster South Neighbourhood Area Structure Plan (NASP) 
Bylaw and Amendment to Rezone 170 Lancaster Drive