FortSask

Now that cooler temperatures are hitting Fort Saskatchewan, many residents are excited to get back out onto the ice.

There are 12 rinks in Fort Saskatchewan, here is where they are and when they open.

Boarded rinks:

Mowat boarded rink
North of 96 Avenue and 84 Street.

RCMP boarded rink
South of 97 Avenue and 90 Street.

All boarded rinks are expected to open on Sunday (Dec. 4).

Snowbank rinks:

Peter Ream Park
Near the intersection of 101 Street and 100 Avenue.

Over 700 ringette players from across the province have arrived in Fort Saskatchewan for the weekend. 

The annual Diamond Ring Tournament started on Friday (Dec. 2) morning and will run until Sunday (Dec. 4) at the JRC, Sportsplex, and Dow Centennial Centre. 

15 ringette associations from across the province have teams participating in the tournament, totalling up to about 45 teams. Kids from ages four to 16 will be playing throughout the weekend. 

Jody Urlacher with the Fort Sask Ringette Association is excited to see the tournament come back in its full form. 

A young boy with a special heart brought two opposing hockey teams together for a good cause.

Eight-year-old Tyler Grycan is a third grader at Muriel Martin Elementary School. He was born with a congenital heart defect and has had six open-heart surgeries. He has been on the heart transplant waiting list for over two years.

"He needs a very close match, which is not very common," said Trisha Tuchscherer, Tyler's mother. "He spends lots of time in [the Stollery]. He's there every month for an infusion."

Fort Saskatchewan RCMP has charged three men in a slew of catalytic converter and vehicle thefts. 

On Wednesday (Nov. 30), police were called to a Fort Saskatchewan farm equipment dealer after reports of a break-and-enter and a stolen vehicle. RCMP noted that this was the second theft from the business in a short period of time, the previous incident involved stolen catalytic converters. 

The next day, Fort Saskatchewan officers set up surveillance at a private recycling center in Edmonton and saw the stolen truck arrive at the business. 

The property manager of the Morinville Plaza Hotel and Suites has provided a few more details regarding the fire that occurred last month. 

Alan Durston, with Durston Properties, told FortSaskOnline.com that no definitive cause of the fire has been determined, but that it did start in one of the units. 

Damage to the hotel section of the property was so severe that there are plans to have that side demolished. It is too early in the process to determine whether or not the hotel portion will be rebuilt. 

Cereals Canada and the Canadian Grain Commission have assessed the quality of the new wheat crop and released a New Wheat Crop Report. 

Lisa Nemeth, Director of Market Support and Training with Cereals Canada says the information in that report is shared with our global customers. 

She says following last year's challenges with the drought, prairie farmers were able to see an increase in production for 2022 and brought in a high-quality crop.

Those who enjoyed some homemade bannock at last Friday's (Nov. 25) Lights Up! celebration can thank the local Indigenous Society and Fort Sask Fire Department. 

The Indigenous Society of Fort Saskatchewan teamed up with local firefighters to bake bannock on the morning of Lights Up!.  

Colleen Dollfusz says the collaboration went as smoothly as can be. 

An extreme cold warning has been put in place by Environment Canada. 

Communities included in the warning are: 

• Fort Saskatchewan
• Edmonton
• Sherwood Park
• Gibbons
• Bon Accord
• Bruderheim
• Lamont
• Redwater

Temperatures for those communities are expected to hit around -40 C with the wind chill on Thursday (Dec. 1) night.

A man was seriously injured after colliding with a snowplow on Highway 16 on Wednesday (Nov. 30) afternoon. 

Strathcona County RCMP says that they responded to a call at about 2:55 p.m. after reports of a two-vehicle collision just east of Range Road 215. 

An investigation by police revealed that a truck hit the back of a snowplow while travelling eastbound on the highway. 

The male driver of the truck was sent to hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. 

The man driving the snowplow was able to escape with no injuries. 

One man was killed in a collision on Highway 14 on Wednesday (Nov. 30) afternoon. 

Strathcona County RCMP says that at about 3:02 p.m. they were called to the scene of a multi-vehicle crash just east of Range Road 205. 

An investigation into the collision found that a Dodge Ram crashed head-on into a semi-truck travelling the other direction. 

The 26-year-old driver of the Ram was transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The passenger, a 59-year-old man from Spruce Grove, died at the scene.