Lacombe

After many entries and much consideration, Cassidy Roberts of Sylvan Lake has been named our first-ever Strand 360-Sunny 94 Athlete of the Month.

Roberts, a basketball player for the HJ Cody High School team, talks about how she got into playing.

"I think it was around the age of 6. It started with a league that was in Ontario, and it was pretty big back there.  And now I just continued it."

Roberts says that apart from basketball, she enjoys other sports as well. 

The cost to send a letter in Canada is increasing by about 25 per cent, effective today.

Canada Post says the cost of stamps for domestic mail bought in a booklet, coil or pane has increased by 25 cents to $1.24 per stamp. 

The cost of a single domestic stamp is now $1.44, up from $1.15.

Canada Post proposed the increase in September last year. It says the higher price is required to better align stamp prices with the rising cost of providing letter mail service to all Canadians.

Alberta’s wildland firefighters are on their way to assist in California, as the state is gripped by deadly wildfires fueled by dry conditions and powerful winds.

The state of California has been devastated by fast moving wildfires, which have already destroyed about 12,000 homes and buildings, and have tragically taken lives.

Alberta Wildfire received a request to assist California through the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. 

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, fresh off a weekend visit with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, says if Ottawa uses an energy embargo to combat Trump's promised tariffs, it would spark a "national unity crisis."

"Oil and gas is owned by the provinces, principally Alberta, and we won't stand for that," Smith told reporters in a virtual news conference Monday.

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly hasn't ruled out an energy embargo in response to Trump's promise to impose punishing 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian products.

Due to an unexpected clinical personnel shortage and inability to secure temporary coverage, the Stettler Hospital and Care Centre emergency department (ED) will be temporarily closed:

Update:

The Red Deer RCMP General Investigation Section have completed an investigation into an armed robbery at a business on Reichley Street in Red Deer.

As a result, 49-year-old Robert Boy Idayan of Red Deer was arrested.

He has been charged with the following offences:

• Robbery – with a firearm x3
• Disguised with intent to commit offence x3

He was released on an undertaking with conditions.

As of January 1, 2025, The Town of Bentley has annexed land from Lacombe County.

In Alberta, annexation is normally intended to provide additional land supply for an urban municipality to grow.

Annexation does not change the ownership of land. The landowners continue to own their property, but the property is now within the boundaries of another municipality.

In this case, Lacombe County’s bylaws no longer apply to the subject lands, as they are now within the Town of Bentley, subject to the Town’s regulations. 

You'll want to get out and enjoy the weather over the next few days with an upper ridge continuing to bring warmer temperatures to Central Alberta. 

Todd Bate is a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.

"It appears that the warmer than normal weather is going to continue until at least Thursday with highs generally above zero," said Bate.

Daytime highs for Monday and Tuesday are plus two and plus one for Wednesday and Thursday. 

That's when Central Alberta will see a return to winter.

Red Deer Public Schools (RDPS) City Wide School Council is inviting families to the upcoming City Wide School Council’s Agency Fair, an event that will showcase the vital contributions of local community agencies in supporting students and their families.

This drop-in event will take place on January 14 from 7 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. at the Red Deer Public Schools Central Office (4747 53 Street). 

Many Lacombe residents took advantage of the nice weather over the weekend to enjoy the city's outdoor skating ponds.

The city maintains two ice surfaces including Cranna Lake and the pond near Royal Oak Manor (College Ave. & Calgary Edmonton Trail).

Lacombe's Director of Operations Doug Halldorson spoke to CentralAlbertaOnline.com on Friday.

"We check the ice to make sure it's safe to go on prior to us clearing the ice," he explained. "We just continue to monitor the thickness as the winter progresses."