FortSask

Fire restrictions are coming to Sturgeon County this week. 

The county has announced that a fire restriction will be put in place starting on Wednesday (Apr. 26) at 9 a.m. 

"Due to the increased risk of fire, Sturgeon County and the towns of Bon Accord, Legal and Redwater are under a fire restriction," said the county in a release. 

This means that no new burn or firework permits will be issued and that all existing fire permits will be suspended until further notice. It also means that all outdoor fires currently burning will have to be extinguished.

Highway 15 is fully open again after a grass fire had the highway reduced to one lane.

On Monday (Apr. 24) just before 11 a.m., the fire was reported across the highway from the Edmonton Institution.

Edmonton Fire Rescue and Edmonton Police Service (EPS) were quick to the scene to fight the blaze.

The grass fire was put out at around 6 p.m. the same day. 

EPS says that the cause of the blaze is still under investigation.

There isn't anything quite like the hours before a pivotal playoff game. 

The Edmonton Oilers will be returning to Rogers Place tonight with their first-round series against the LA Kings tied 2-2 for a very important Game 5. 

It's been an absolute rollercoaster for the Oil as they are coming off a Game 4 in which they overcame an early 3-0 deficit to eventually win 5-4 in overtime off of a huge goal by Zach Hyman. 

Elk Island Public School (EIPS) parents in rural Strathcona County are not thrilled with the proposed removal of Ardrossan Junior and Senior High's French immersion program by the 2024/25 or 2025/26 school year. 

The proposal, which came from the division, aims to shutter the junior and senior high programs in Ardrossan and move them to Bev Facey High School in Sherwood Park. 

Airlines say it goes too far. Advocates say not far enough.

The proposed overhaul of Canada's passenger rights charter earned mixed reviews Monday after Transport Minister Omar Alghabra laid out measures to tighten loopholes to traveller compensation and toughen penalties.

If passed, the reforms will put the onus on airlines to show a flight disruption is caused by safety concerns or reasons outside their control, with specific examples to be drawn up by the Canadian Transportation Agency as a list of exceptions around compensation.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada released the Outlook for Principal Field Crops last Friday.

Below you'll find some of the highlights from that report.

Wheat and Durum projections for 2023-24:

Total wheat supplies for 2023-24 are forecast at 32.8 million tonnes with an expected increase in seeded areas.

Meantime, the total durum wheat supply is projected to be just shy of six million tonnes,  despite a drop in seeded areas but thanks to stronger yield expectations. 

The town of Morinville has added a new way for seniors to get around. 

A pilot shuttle service aimed at helping seniors 55 years old and above around the region was announced last week and will run until September. 

The service will be able to shuttle seniors to different spots around St. Albert and Edmonton for excursions. The first trip is scheduled for Thursday (Apr. 27) to the Century Casino in St. Albert. 

Four men have been arrested in connection to a string of catalytic converter thefts in the area.

Earlier this month, police responded to a suspicious vehicle report in the downtown area of Fort Saskatchewan.  

Police say they located and pulled over the vehicle. RCMP officers reported that when they noticed weapons and break-in tools in the vehicle, the suspects were arrested.

Officers searched the vehicle and found weapons, suspected fentanyl, cocaine, and meth, as well as four catalytic converters. 

Morinville may allow off-highway vehicles on roads in a pilot project next year. 

In a council meeting late last month, the council accepted bringing up the project in their 2024 budget deliberations.

The pilot project was originally introduced by councillor Ray White, who has been paying attention to a similar project in Legal.

Traffic is reduced to one lane on Highway 15 toward Fort Saskatchewan due to a grass fire.

The fire was reported by 511 Alberta just before 11 a.m. on Monday (Apr. 24) morning and is burning across the highway from the Edmonton Institution. 

Edmonton Fire Rescue and Edmonton Police Services are on the scene. 

Local residents taking the highway posted photos of the blaze to social media to warn other drivers. 

There has been no word on if there were any injuries or what the cause of the fire is.

More to come...