Airdrie

Mother nature treated us to a dramatic display of nature’s power and beauty Friday as wild weather swept across parts of the province, bringing funnel clouds, severe hail, and flooding.

Northwest of Edmonton, Environment Canada issued tornado warnings after funnel clouds were spotted in the afternoon. While no touchdowns were confirmed, several residents reported seeing rotating columns of air and swirling debris under darkening skies.

The federal public service shed almost 10,000 people last year, with the Canada Revenue Agency and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada losing the most employees.

The last time the public service contracted was in 2015, when the number of people employed dropped just slightly from 257,138 to 257,034.

The number of public servants employed by the federal government fell from 367,772 to 357,965 over the last year.

Canada's fentanyl czar says the fight against the deadly opioid would get a boost from proposed new tools for law enforcement in the Liberal government's recently tabled border bill.

Kevin Brosseau, the federal point person on fentanyl, welcomes provisions in the Strong Borders Act to increase inspection powers, give police easier access to information, crack down on money laundering and improve control of chemicals used to make the drug.

Airdrie Mayor Peter Brown appeared in a Facebook Live broadcast on Friday afternoon, marking his first public remarks since an article by the Investigative Journalism Foundation was published on June 11.

Alberta's government announced Friday residents who are not immunocompromised or on social programs will soon have to pay to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

In a late afternoon news release, the government said that since provinces took over responsibility for procuring the shots in April, it has wanted to cut down on waste and recoup costs.

It said an estimated one million COVID-19 vaccine doses, or just over half of Alberta's supply, were not used during the 2023-2024 respiratory virus season. It said $135 million worth of shots were wasted.

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) issued a severe thunderstorm watch for the Airdrie area yesterday, but it has since been removed.

Thunderstorms were developing over the Alberta foothills and were moving to the northeast through the afternoon and evening, shared ECCC.

Severe thunderstorm watches are issued when conditions are favourable for storms that could produce damaging hail, strong winds, or heavy rain.

Alberta Parks has issued a wildlife warning for the Votier’s Flats Area and Day Use site in Fish Creek Provincial Park due to aggressive coyote behaviour.

According to Alberta Parks, the warning was issued due to "aggressive coyote(s) attempting to attack dogs." The advisory took effect June 12 and is in place "until further notice."

Pet owners are being reminded to use caution and keep pets on leash and under control at all times.

The Airdrie Pro Rodeo is urging fans not to purchase tickets from a fake website posing as an official seller.

In a public alert issued Thursday, organizers confirmed that all legitimate tickets are sold exclusively through www.airdrierodeo.com via Zeffy, and that they are actively working to report and remove the fraudulent site.

On Tuesday, the City of Airdrie held a meeting with Demetrios Nicolaides, the Minister of Education and Childcare.

Airdrie Mayor Peter Brown shared that it is always great to have a meeting with a provincial minister.

"We're welcoming 800 students on average, students every year, to our system. Our desired resolution is that the government continues to work with high-growth municipalities like Airdrie."