National News

Jasper's mayor says wildfire evacuees will learn Monday when they will be allowed to return home.

Richard Ireland told an online news conference on Saturday that details on the exact time of the announcement haven't been finalized, but news on the date when people will be permitted back into the town will be delivered by members of the unified command on Monday.

About 20,000 visitors to Jasper National Park and 5,000 town residents were forced out last month due to fires, and flames destroyed one-third of the town's buildings.

The Alberta wildland firefighter killed while battling a blaze in Jasper National Park last weekend is being remembered for his bold personality and sense of humour.

Alberta Wildfire spokeswoman Melissa Story confirmed in an email Friday that family, friends and colleagues are mourning Morgan Kitchen.

A memorial post circulating on social media says Kitchen, who was 24 and lived in Calgary, had a “bold and brilliant” personality, a nimble wit and an “outrageous and ridiculous” sense of humour.

When Elroy Fontaine thinks about his older sister, Tina Fontaine, his mind takes him to a park in Winnipeg's Point Douglas neighbourhood. 

It's where the two would sometimes hang out together.

A decade after the tragic death of the 15-year-old girl, one that shocked the country and was the catalyst for a national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, Elroy Fontaine still stops by the special spot.

The siblings spent time in provincial care but would see each other during scheduled visits that included Slurpee runs and park hangs.

"Freedom Convoy" organizer Pat King was released on bail Friday after spending more than a week in jail on Crown allegations that he breached his bail conditions.

The Crown alleged King broke his previous release conditions, which only allowed him to use social media to fundraise for his legal defence. The Crown says his online activity extended beyond what was allowed between July 10 and 29.

King, whose criminal trial ended last month, flew from his home in Alberta to Ottawa last week to turn himself in to police after learning of the allegations. 

Calgary's mayor says the city is considering ways to strengthen a key water main for the long term, including replacing it altogether. 

Jyoti Gondek says in the spring the city could add a liner or a sleeve to the pipe to strengthen it, or dig alongside it and built an entirely new one.

The pipe in northwest Calgary ruptured in early June, drenching a stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway and nearby parkland. 

The break forced Calgarians to undertake a series of water conservation measures, from not watering lawns to taking shorter showers. 

Students who have been hunting for a summer job and recent immigrants looking for work have felt the brunt of the country's weakening labour market, Statistics Canada's latest employment report shows.

The federal agency’s July labour force survey released on Friday says the overall jobless rate held steady at 6.4 per cent last month as the economy shed a modest 2,800 jobs.

The employment rate, which measures the share of the population aged 15 and older that is employed, fell slightly as fewer people looked for work. 

Residents of Jasper, Alta., who lost their homes in last month’s wildfire face unique rebuilding challenges tied to leasing provisions nearly as old as Canada, followed modern rules dictating what they can and can’t construct.

Lawyer Jessica Reed said property owners in the townsite in Jasper National Park own their buildings but, unlike other municipalities, don’t own the land they sit on.

Global Affairs Canada says it has approved the temporary relocation of the children and their guardians to a safe third country.

Embassy staff are expected to remain in Israel.

"The Embassy of Canada to Israel in Tel Aviv, the Embassy of Canada to Lebanon in Beirut, and the Representative Office of Canada to the Palestinian Authority, all remain fully operational and continue to provide essential services to Canadians, including consular services," Global Affairs Canada said in a statement Wednesday evening. 

Residents in Calgary and surrounding communities, fresh off having to conserve water for weeks due to a water main break, are soon going to have to do it all over again.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek announced Wednesday extended tests on more than 10 kilometres of pipe have revealed 16 more problem spots that need to be fixed.

Work on those spots is to begin in about three weeks, on Aug. 28, and are expected to last one month.

The Canadian government has updated its travel advisory for the United Kingdom amid a rash of ongoing demonstrations. 

It says visitors should "exercise a high degree of caution" in the country and takes note of demonstrations and violent clashes between protesters and police over the past week. 

The travel advice cautions that even peaceful demonstrations can turn violent at any time and can deteriorate quickly.