Lacombe

Newcomers to Red Deer now have improved access to vital health services thanks to a new Alberta Health Services (AHS) pilot program launched at Johnstone Crossing Community Health Centre.

The Inbound Call Interpreter service, introduced last month, allows callers to select from a menu of seven languages when phoning the health centre. The options include Arabic, Ukrainian, Tigrinya, Tagalog, Spanish, French and English. Once selected, the caller is connected with a medical interpreter who helps them navigate the service.

Lacombe City Council has approved the 2024 update to its Strategic Plan, reporting progress on several community priorities identified during the current term.

According to the city, 76 of 123 total items in the plan have been completed since 2022. That includes 17 completed in 2024, 33 in 2023 and 26 in 2022.

The plan update includes a breakdown of “Green High Priority” items identified by council during a 2024 prioritization workshop. Of the 14 high-priority projects, six were completed in 2024, two more are set for completion in 2025, and the remaining are ongoing.

Three Central Alberta lacrosse players are headed to the national stage this summer after being selected to represent Team Alberta at the 2025 Canada Summer Games in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

An outspoken member of Alberta's legislature, booted from the United Conservative Party caucus, is airing more detailed allegations of what he calls government deception over a health-care contract scandal.

Peter Guthrie resigned as infrastructure minister in February and is accusing Premier Danielle Smith and Health Minister Adriana LaGrange of deliberately misleading a Jan. 30 cabinet committee meeting over procurement issues.

"I didn't step down because nothing happened," he said.

The Alberta government has announced the appointment of a new interim chief medical officer of health, days after the previous one's contract expired.

Officials say Dr. Sunil Sookram is to serve in the role on a temporary basis as arrangements are finalized for a "longer-term appointment."

Sookram is currently the facility medical director and chief of medical staff at Strathcona Community Hospital in Sherwood Park, east of Edmonton.

Red Deer County is excited to announce the launch of its Fire Cadet Program, a unique opportunity for local teens to gain valuable experience in fire and emergency services. This free program combines classroom theory with hands-on training, preparing participants for future careers in protective services.

Red Deer City Council will convene on Tuesday, April 22, with a range of key topics on the agenda including backyard suites, economic development, and proposed funding for an Indigenous Cultural Centre. The meeting will begin in closed session at 9:30 a.m., with the public portion expected to start at 1 p.m. following the lunch break.

Here's what residents can expect from this week’s Council meeting:

The Conservatives and NDP spent the weekend hunting votes in British Columbia — a key late-campaign battleground that one pollster says may offer Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre his best shot at victory.

Both Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh addressed Canadians' cost-of-living concerns at campaign events in B.C. on Sunday.

Singh was asked if he was advocating strategic voting to shore up the party's flagging support against possible Conservative inroads in the region.

Pope Francis will be remembered by Canadian Catholics as a progressive leader whose approach to the papacy helped usher in a new era of Indigenous relations and make the church more responsive to its rank and file.

The Vatican says the pontiff died Monday at age 88.

Francis was the global leader of Canada's most popular organized religion. Nearly 11 million Canadians identified as Catholic in the 2021 census, second only to those without a religious affiliation.

Update:

The snowfall warning is ended for Central Alberta.

Original:

Central Alberta residents are being advised to prepare for heavy snowfall and changing weather conditions across Alberta on Monday and into tonight.

Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued a snowfall warning for parts of Clearwater County and Mountain View County.