Okotoks

When Alice Foubert entered her home in Jasper, Alta., for the first time since a wildfire roared into the community, the rancid smell from her fridge made it difficult for her to recognize where she was.

"It felt like a shell of home," the 25-year-old said in an interview Monday.

"My heart just sank. I'm used to my cats being in there to greet me but the streets were also pretty empty and it just didn't feel like home."

Foubert was among dozens of residents roaming the town Monday on foot, in cars or on bikes. Some were out walking pets.

The Federal Government announced over $6.5 million on Monday for Bioindustrial Innovation Canada (BIC)  through the AgriScience Program.

Peter Fragiskatos, Member of Parliament for London North Centre, announced the funding on behalf of Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay.

"This funding underscores our commitment to advancing technologies that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase the value of Canadian agricultural products. Together, we are strengthening our agricultural sector and building a greener future."

The appointment of longtime broadcaster Charles Adler to the Senate is being criticized in some quarters, including by a member of the federal cabinet.

Adler, who spent decades hosting talk-radio shows, was named to the Senate on the weekend by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and will represent Manitoba. 

Dan Vandal, the minister of northern affairs, has issued a brief one-sentence statement that says there are many Manitobans better suited to represent the province.

Police are investigating a recent break-and-enter.

According to reports, the incident occurred between 7 and 8 a.m. on Saturday (Aug. 17) in Rocky View County. Four suspects, seen driving a Ford truck, are believed to be responsible for making off with thousands of dollars in copper wire and metal. 

Photos of the suspects have been released to aid in the investigation. 

The Okotoks Show & Shine returned over the weekend.

It's an annual event that's been running since 2009, with this latest iteration being a return to downtown Okotoks after last year's Show & Shine was hosted at Seaman Stadium.

This year's event spanned Elizabeth and McRae Street, as it has in previous years.

It also included the Burnout and Poker Rally in the parking lots of the Viking Rentals Centre and The George, respectively.

Alberta's latest crop report shows the Provincial harvest is now three per cent complete.

The fall rye and winter cereal harvest is now at the halfway point in some areas. Farmers have started desiccating pulse crops, while other crops are just a few weeks away from maturity. 

The warm weather is pushing crops out of flowering with spring cereals in the soft dough stage, and 98 per cent of major broadleaves now podding.

The Town of Okotoks has announced the winners of the 2024 Nooks & Crannies Festival.

This sixth iteration of the public art festival featured 17 installations throughout downtown Okotoks, and as always, each of them was made completely out of recycled materials.

The final night of the Battle of the Rockies will have to wait.

Night four of the final WPCA event before the finals was set for Sunday, August 18, but a day of rain made the track conditions unsafe.

The final night is to be held on Monday instead.

Chanse Vigen leads the aggregate heading into the final night, and will be defending his Battle of the Rockies title from the year prior.

A luxury superyacht carrying foreign tourists capsized and sank off Sicily in bad weather early Monday. One body was found, six people remain missing and 15 people were rescued, authorities said.