Airdrie

Airdrie-area residents face mixed skies this weekend along with active wildlife and water advisories across southern Alberta.

Environment and Climate Change Canada forecasts mainly cloudy conditions Saturday, with a 30 per cent chance of showers late in the morning and early afternoon and a risk of a thunderstorm. Winds become southwest at 20 km/h, gusting to 40 near noon. The high is expected to be 24 C, with a humidex of 26. Skies clear overnight, dropping to a low of 6 C.

Sunday will be sunny with a high of 24 C and a low of plus 4.

The Bearspaw First Nation says one of its four tipi canvases along the Trans-Canada Highway west of Calaway Park was stolen Wednesday evening.

In a Facebook post on Thursday, the First Nation said the canvas was removed and taken between approximately 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Aug. 13.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Cochrane RCMP at 403-932-2211 or Stoney Tribal Security Services at 403-881-2666.

Calgary police say sections of Deerfoot Trail were closed early Friday but reopened within the hour.

In a social media post just after 6:30 a.m., police said southbound Deerfoot Trail was being diverted at Memorial Drive, while northbound traffic was being diverted at Peigan Trail. Ramps from Memorial and Peigan Trail to access southbound and northbound Deerfoot Trail were also closed.

Police advised motorists to use alternate routes.

Stephen's Backpack Society is preparing to hand out thousands of backpacks to students in need for the upcoming school year.

Nancy McPhee, the Executive Director of the society and mother of Stephen, explained that they are preparing to build and distribute around 4,000 backpacks.

"Friday night is when we will build our high school backpacks, Monday we will do our middle school backpacks, Thursday will be elementary, then we hand them all out (next) Saturday."

Handing out backpacks for 19 years now, the society is expected to reach the 100,000 mark this year.

The ice is back in place at the Didsbury Memorial Complex.

Back in December of 2024, the ice was removed from both the arena and curling rink, following the discovery of an ammonia leak in the condenser.

At the end of June, a new adiabatic condenser was put in place, which allowed the town to get the rink ready for the skating season.

Airdrie RCMP are reminding residents to take precautions against scams when buying items online or in person.

Jessica Hawkins, the acting corporal for the community unit in Airdrie, explained that while reports to the RCMP of getting scammed are rare, that does not mean it does not happen. She explained that it is important to trust your gut feeling.

Thousands are out of their homes, and many more are on alert to evacuate as wildfires continue to rage across Atlantic Canada.

Officials in Newfoundland and Labrador have expanded an evacuation alert along the Bay De Verde Peninsula as the Kingston wildfire burns nearby.

The community of Job's Cove in Newfoundland is affected by the expanded evacuation alert for the wildfire, which is considered out-of-control and is now more than 90 square kilometres in size.

The Kingston fire is the largest in the province and has forced more than 3,000 people from their homes.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has set his sights on Canada's electric vehicle mandate, pledging Thursday that his party will embark on a national campaign to push the Liberal government to scrap the policy he's dubbed the "Carney tax."

Poilievre led the charge as the Conservatives relentlessly attacked the consumer carbon price over the last two years, with the Liberals admitting the Tory tactics swayed public opinion and forced them to end the so-called carbon tax earlier this year. 

A judge has denied an application to quash a review of a proposed Alberta referendum question on separation.

Court of King's Bench Justice Colin Feasby says it will benefit democracy to have a full hearing on the constitutionality of the question.

Alberta's chief electoral officer, Gordon McClure, referred the question to court last month so a judge could determine whether it violates the Constitution, including treaty rights.

The group that submitted the question applied to have the referral quashed.

There's a growing push for Prime Minister Mark Carney and the Liberal government to step up and help support Western Canadian producers that are being impacted by the increased tariffs on canola.