Clown sisters explore a classic

Former Manitoba MP Inky Mark charged with firearms offences; more than 400 weapons seized from home

A former member of Parliament from Manitoba has been charged after a stockpile of ammunition and firearms — including an antique cannon — and $300,000 in cash were seized from a Dauphin home last week.

Manitoba RCMP charged Inky Mark, 78, with a dozen firearms-related charges, including firearms trafficking, possession of property obtained by crime, unsafe storage and careless use of a firearm.

In total, RCMP seized 439 firearms from Mark’s property, Mounties said at a news conference Monday morning.

It is expected to take investigators weeks to sort through the arsenal and determine how many of the weapons were legally possessed, but police have already identified three guns that are believed to have been illegally trafficked, and one that had a tampered serial number, RCMP Cpl. Barry Kirby said.

If it works in Ontario, why not in Manitoba?

Grid-scale battery storage has fundamentally changed the global energy landscape — and Manitoba needs to get on board.

Battery systems store large amounts of excess electricity for when it’s most needed. While they can be charged from any generation source, they are especially beneficial for integrating wind and solar power, which vary with weather and time of day. Batteries allow electrical grids to meet the need for firm, dispatchable and affordable capacity using renewable energy, rather than relying on coal, nuclear and fossil gas. They also provide numerous other benefits, including reducing overloading of transmission infrastructure and helping to regulate the grid’s frequency and voltage.

Average costs for grid-scale batteries plummeted by more than half between 2023 and 2025 and installations have skyrocketed in China, the U.S., Australia and Europe. Texas now has 16,500 megawatts (MW) of battery storage, while California has 15,200 MW. Closer to home, Ontario recently awarded 640 MW of contracts to three battery storage projects in a competitive auction, with batteries beating out fossil gas-fired power plants on cost every time. One of these projects will be built near Dryden, only four hours east of Winnipeg.

Each battery system will provide eight hours of capacity but will cost considerably less than Ontario’s previous battery procurements, which provide only four hours of capacity. With this latest auction, Ontario has now secured 3,600 MW of battery storage capacity, including the operational Oneida (250 MW), Hagersville (300 MW) and Napanee (250 MW) projects. Almost all have significant Indigenous participation, with the latest procurements boasting 50 per cent First Nations ownership.

First-aid volunteers treat folk fest attendees suffering from heat

Shade was at a premium at Birds Hill Provincial Park over the weekend as Winnipeg Folk Festival goers tried to keep cool during an extreme heat wave.

Heat warnings were issued across southern Manitoba and temperatures peaked at 35 C Sunday afternoon.

First-aid volunteers were seen administering cold compresses to several overheated attendees. STARS air ambulance responded to a medical call at the park on Saturday night, but did not transport the patient to hospital. By Sunday at noon, EMS had been called to the festival nine times.

“This is not an unusual number of calls for us or other events of our size,” festival executive director Valerie Shantz said.

Banned drunk driver in crash charged with getting behind wheel again

A Winnipeg man who served time for drunkenly slamming a minivan into an off-duty police officer riding a motorcycle in 2023 is accused of getting behind the wheel, despite court orders.

Braedon Lee Gordon, 25, is charged with one count of driving while prohibited for an incident on March 2. His next court date is later this month.

Dan Léveillé, a veteran Winnipeg Police Service constable who was left with life-altering injuries in the June 14, 2023, collision, said he was not surprised to learn of the new charge.

“This is just another one of those stories, where a habitual, repeat offender is charged for the same offence. After having served time, his behaviour continues,” said Léveillé.

Look who’s coming back: a sneak peek at fringe faves

It’s all in the game at this year’s Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival. Though the majority of the indie performances at this year’s fest don’t have to do with video games, the “Play Hard” theme will surely yield dozens of critical hits for veterans and newbs alike.