Estevan

There's been a definite increase in grain moving to market as farmers look to clear out bin space for the new harvest.

Elizabeth Hucker, the assistant vice-president of sales and marketing for bulk with CPKC says in grain shipping week #51 they moved just shy of 400,000 metric tonnes to Vancouver, Thunder Bay, Eastern Canada, the United States and to Mexico all out of Western Canada. 

She notes back to around week #49 they were shipping around that 400,000 metric tonne level, adding that movement is stronger than what we would normally see this time of  the year.

Joanne F. Mills
1949 - 2024

Joanne Mills, late of Redvers, SK passed away on Thursday, July 25, 2024 at the Redvers Health Centre, Redvers, SK at the age of 74 years.

The Funeral Mass will be held on Friday, August 2, 2024, at 2:00 p.m. at the Our Lady of Fatima R.C Church with Rev. Lourdhu Raju Bandhanadam presiding. Interment will take place at the Redvers Cemetery following the service. Everyone is invited to join the family at the Redvers Activity Centre for the luncheon.

The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) is hoping to expand its views of species in Saskatchewan with the Big Backyard Bioblitz, which begins later this week.

The event, which lasts from August 1 to 5, will ask Saskatchewan residents who are in nature to take photos of any notable wildlife or plant species they see.

Kayla Burak, an Engagement Manager with the NCC, says it's not a hugely involved activity.

The Estevan U18 Female Viragos have been battling the heat as they prepare for the upcoming season, having cancelled a practice last week.

The official season will begin the week after Labour Day. “We have a month leading up to it for practising, getting everything in line, and then the weekend after Labour Day, we start,” said Viragos head coach Mark Tribiger.

Starting on Aug. 5, the Viragos will move into a full practice schedule, which runs three evenings a week on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday until the end of October.

UPDATE - 4:00 p.m.:

The Swift Current Rural RCMP have located Tammy Peck and declared that she is safe. 

Anyone who may have posted her likeness on social media is asked to please remove the images from circulation.

ORIGINAL STORY - 1:50 p.m.:

The Swift Current RCMP are hoping to get more info on a person who went missing and may be travelling eastwards.

Tammy Peck was reported missing from Swift Current and was last believed to be in the city on the 28th at 6 p.m.

The U18 AA Estevan Brewers emerged victorious at the U18 AA Tier 1 provincial tournament over the weekend. The win qualifies the team for the Western Canadian Baseball Association Championship, scheduled for August 15-18.

Coach Jeff Kuchinka praised the team’s dedication and spirit. “We just have a great group of kids. They all show up every day ready to work, and we’re just having fun all year long.”

Gardeners hoping to get more yield from their plants are likely aware they need to encourage pollinators, such as bees, insects, birds, and even wind or water. 

Pollination is the process of moving pollen (male) from the anther in one flower to the stigma (female) in another flower of the same species. The act of successful pollination produces fertile seeds. According to Gardening experts at the University of Saskatchewan, while some plants are self-pollinating, almost all flowering plants need to be pollinated by a winged creature.

Despite a late start to seeding, harvest operations are starting to get underway in the Prairies.

Precipitation which delayed seeding activity this spring was welcome in some of the drier areas, while some areas of Manitoba were impacted by too much rain.

The extreme heat with highs into the 30s is now impacting crop potential in some areas of Alberta and Saskatchewan reducing yield and quality expectations.

Getting this year's hay crop cut in top condition has been a challenge across the prairies.

The heat over the last couple of weeks is resulting in a decline not just in crops, but in hay quality as well.

Hay conditions have been slowly declining since we started seeing the higher temperatures with many days hitting well into the 30's.

Estevan organizations are getting some extra money as Lotteries and Gaming Saskatchewan has dispersed $1.16 million in charitable gaming grants for the first quarter of 2024-25.

That goes towards a number of organizations, totaling 750 across the province and dozens in the southeast.