WestCentral

The Saskatoon Berries are doing their best to avoid an early expiration date. 

Entering the playoffs with championship aspirations, the Berries avoided elimination on Saturday night with a 16-12 win against the Moose Jaw Miller Express, a rain-delayed Game 3 thriller that moved Saskatoon to the next round against the Regina Red Sox, where the Berries are already facing elimination again after a series opening loss on Sunday at home.

The Macklin Lakers senior baseball club made sure they didn't come home empty-handed from an 1800 KM round trip to Baseball Sask Tier 3 provincials in Carnduff this past weekend. The Lakers earned a spot in the championship final against the host Carnduff Astros and pulled away late for a 10-6 win to take home the title. 

The Lakers must not have had any road legs as they took a 10-0 win against the Redvers Athletics in their tournament opener on Friday afternoon, moving to 2-0 on Saturday morning as Macklin was first on the diamond for a big 8-1 win over the North East Red Sox.

Rosetown RCMP responded to a range of calls last week, including a fraud investigation, a theft under $5,000, and an impaired driving charge.

On August 5, police assisted a tow operator with traffic control while a semi-truck was removed from a grid road near the community. Later that day, officers received a fraud complaint from Sun West School Division. The investigation remains ongoing.

Police also responded to an erratic driving complaint on Highway 7 near McGee. Officers located the vehicle and issued the driver a warning for speeding.

Property-related crimes kept Luseland police busy in July, as officers responded to multiple reports of trespassing, suspicious activity, and mischief.

According to the Luseland Police Service’s monthly report, police received three separate calls involving trespass to property, along with five complaints regarding suspicious persons, vehicles or activity in the community.

Officers also investigated a case of mischief under $5,000, though no further details were provided.

It's important to be sharp behind the wheel, especially when navigating busy intersections with a dynamic mix of traffic possible at any turn. 

In small-town Saskatchewan it's limited to passenger vehicles, heavy haulers, motorcycles, along with pedestrians and cyclists of all ages. In the city that traffic mix could include taxis or buses, in addition to even more people walking the streets.

With harvest just getting underway across the Prairies, farmers are being reminded to think about safety when working with grain. The Canadian Agricultural Safety Association (CASA) is urging farmers to prioritize safety around grain handling with the launch of its fifth annual Be Grain Safe Week.

Air Canada flight attendants are expected to picket at airports in four major Canadian cities on Monday in what their union is calling a national day of action.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees says demonstrations are expected to take place at Montreal’s Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport, Vancouver International Airport and Calgary International Airport, all at 1 p.m. ET. 

Heartland Livestock Services announced the closure July 25; the Brandon auction mart has been a historic standby for Manitoba beef producers selling their cattle

Manitoba’s livestock producers have one less place to sell their animals.

Heartland Livestock Services announced July 25 that they are closing their Brandon location.

Prime Minister Mark Carney's popularity may be cooling off in the summer but remains broadly positive, a new poll from Abacus Data suggests.

The Carney-led Liberal government's approval rating dipped to 50 per cent in the firm's latest polling, down two percentage points compared to mid-July and the lowest level since March.

With 48 per cent viewing Carney favourably and 19 per cent disapproving, the prime minister maintains a positive net approval. That figure is a couple percentage points lower than in Abacus's previous poll.

They have a bad reputation thanks to carrying 'weapons' on their bums — but wasps are doing more for the prairie ecosystem than most people realize. Dr. James Tansey, an entomologist with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, says stinging wasps like yellowjackets and bald-faced hornets are actually important contributors to biodiversity.