Keep your pumpkin safe

‘Historic day’: two-year demolition of Arlington Bridge begins

The first pieces of the Arlington Bridge, a long-deteriorating Winnipeg landmark, were removed Thursday morning, nearly 115 years after it was built.

Fringe reviews #5: Power up!

Dan's Inferno, Great & Powerful Tim, Hapalochlaena, Jean-François, Letters, No Worries If Not, One Human Being Toy Story, Onwards!, Quintland, Meat Machine

Animal rescue worker reportedly killed in dog attack

Police are investigating after a woman died on the Sandy Bay First Nation, reportedly after being attacked by dogs.

The woman was identified by family as 37-year-old Amanda Nobiss.

“It’s just disbelief,” said Sherri Nobiss, her mother, in a phone call. Her family is devastated by the loss. “You just want to know what has happened.”

She said Amanda was a dedicated animal advocate who was volunteering with K9 Advocacy Manitoba in the community at the time. Amanda, who was from Winnipeg, is pictured with a dog in almost all of her photos on social media.

Main Street crash involving motorcycle linked to speeding

Speed appears to be a factor in a serious four-vehicle collision, including a motorcycle, on Main Street Friday.

Police did not immediately release information about the crash, but at around 7 p.m., a large section of Main Street was taped off between Jarvis and Dufferin Avenue. Traffic was redirected and pedestrians were told to stay clear.

Behind the tape, a crumpled white sedan was smashed into the side of a building, and a damaged motorcycle was on its side in the middle of the street. Two SUVs were also damaged.

The Free Press watched video captured from cameras at the nearby Northern Hotel that shows the two vehicles involved in the crash — the motorcycle that had a rider and a passenger, and the white sedan — speeding side-by-side southbound on Main Street. The speed limit in the area is 50 kilometres per hour.

Another summer of fun at Roseau River Bible Camp

The Roseau River Bible Camp was an integral part of Jessica Knelsen’s childhood, and she wants it to be a core memory for her daughters, too.

Knelsen’s eldest daughter, nine-year-old Sophia, is preparing for her third trip to Roseau River, about an hour from the United States border, and this summer’s camp couldn’t have come at a more critical time in their lives.

Last fall, Knelsen escaped an abusive four-year relationship fraught with domestic violence. Short on the necessary funds to afford an apartment, she spent three months surfing the couches of family members and close friends with her youngest, three-year-old Kacey Glowacki, while she relied on her former in-laws to help with Sophia.

It was nothing short of a blessing when Knelsen finally found an apartment that she and her daughters could settle into in December. However, now a single mother of two, financial restraints became a barrier to sending Sophia to a summer experience she’s grown fond of over the last few years.

A whack-a-mole approach to a complex problem

The Winnipeg Police Service has produced a report that details the results of a recent 10-day crackdown on open drug use and trafficking. Unfortunately, and to the detriment of both the community and police service, they just won’t show it to anyone.

This week, a WPS spokeswoman confirmed no decision has been made “regarding reporting, future activities or the release of results” from the drug sweep. As the operation was ongoing, WPS did say that it “interacted” with more than 100 people and arrested 25, with most of those related to warrants and breaches of court orders, not open drug use or trafficking.

These very preliminary results prompted criticism that the WPS had failed to adequately collaborate with social service agencies that help the homeless and those suffering from addictions and mental health.

A detailed report on the results of the sweep, along with commentary from the police about lessons learned, is essential if police are to engage in this kind of initiative again. In fact, it would be hard to see how police could ever unleash a similar operation without some sort of accounting of the impacts — both good and bad — of the first effort.