Portage

A collaborative community initiative saw members of the Rotary Club and employees from a few local businesses come together this spring to spruce up the Duck Pond area at Island Park, bringing life and colour to one of Portage la Prairie’s most beloved outdoor spaces.

The effort is part of a growing Rotary Club project that includes four distinct garden areas around the pond, each maintained by a local corporate sponsor. This year's sponsors include Homestead Co-op, Mackenzie's Funeral Home, Richardson Milling, and Southport Aerospace Centre.

Portage Collegiate Institute (PCI) students and staff gathered yesterday afternoon to raise the Rainbow and Transgender flags, officially marking the start of Pride Month.

Led by teacher Mr. Yeates and supported by PCI’s Queer Students Association (QSA), the event brought together students, staff, and allies for a short walk, student speeches, and an outpouring of support for 2SLGBTQ+ students. Mr. Yeates says the school has been working to make the Pride event an annual tradition.

More people in northern Manitoba are leaving their homes as wildfires continue to threaten communities.

The roughly 600 residents of Cranberry Portage have been placed under a mandatory evacuation order because fires have knocked out power to the community -- a situation expected to last for days.

An evacuation of Pimicikamak Cree Nation, which started earlier this week, is ongoing and officials are expecting five flights to leave for Winnipeg by the end of today.

Smoke drifting in from wildfires burning in northern Manitoba and northern Saskatchewan is causing pockets of poor air quality and reduced visibility across the region.

As a result, a special air quality statement has been issued.

According to Environment Canada and Manitoba Health, conditions can change quickly, even from hour to hour, depending on wind and smoke levels.

There's no rain in the forecast for Flin Flon, Manitoba, over the next week as crews there fight a wildfire that's raging nearby.

Temperatures throughout the weekend are expected to range from the low to high 20s, before cooling off.

Thousands have evacuated the northwestern Manitoba city, including municipal government officials and health-care professionals.

Flin Flon mayor George Fontaine said on Friday that unless things changed, the fire was projected to take chunks out of the town.

Ottawa probably can't help overhaul how municipalities raise funds in the near future, because the federal government is now focused on major, nation-building projects, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday

"We're building on what has worked. We're learning lessons from what hasn't," Carney said at an event held by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

The group represents cities and towns that have lobbied Ottawa for years to give them more independent means of financing their operations.

The national chief of the Assembly of First Nations says she doesn't blame First Nations leaders who are voicing frustration with governments promising to fast-track development in their territories in the name of national unity.

"I don't blame them. They're frustrated and they're being disrespected," National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak said Wednesday morning.

"If we're not at the table making these decisions right off the bat, this is what happens and it causes the Canadian government more problems later."

After being voted out of the Southeast Manitoba Hockey League, the Ste. Anne Sr. Aces filed a complaint with Hockey Manitoba in hopes of overturning the decision and be allowed to play in the 2025-26 season.

Back on May the 4th, Aces President and Head Coach Kevin Lansard was informed while at a league meeting that the original six teams of the SEMHL held a vote and ousted the Aces on the heels of St. Anne claiming their third straight league championship.

A Portage la Prairie resident is celebrating an incredible series of victories after bringing home four medals from her first-ever bodybuilding competition.

Jayda Yakielashek shone on stage at the recent VDC Natural competition in Winnipeg, a testament to her dedication and months of rigorous training.

Portage la Prairie city councillor Joe Masi says this week’s throne speech offers a promising roadmap for Canada’s future, but the real progress will depend on how well all levels of government work together.

Speaking from Ottawa at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) annual conference, Masi, who also chairs FCM’s Election Readiness Working Group, says the federal government’s plans for housing, infrastructure, and public safety are in step with the needs of local communities.