UN health agency issues 1st strategy to address snake bites

UN health agency issues 1st strategy to address snake bites

LONDON - The World Health Organization is publishing its first-ever global strategy to tackle the problem of snake bites, aiming to halve the number of people killed and disabled by snakes by 2030.

Nearly 3 million people are bitten by potentially poisonous snakes every year, resulting in as many as 138,000 deaths. Last week, Britain's Wellcome Trust announced an 80 million-pound ($100 million) program to address the problem, saying there were new potential drugs that could be tested.

In a statement, Doctors Without Borders said it was "cautiously optimistic" WHO's snakebite strategy could be a "turning point" in addressing snake bites.

The agency called the problem of snake bites "a hidden epidemic" and said most bites are treatable.

Governments pledge ‘storefront success’ with downtown grants

The city and province will provide $1.4 million to help spruce up downtown storefronts along and around Graham Avenue, a proposal met with mixed reviews by some businesses.

The “Storefront Success” program, launched Tuesday, aims to boost the appeal of one downtown area, with the two governments each covering half the cost.

“This undoubtedly helps businesses in this region. Having the ability to access some funding to help with the storefronts makes their businesses more attractive and more welcoming,” said Manitoba Business Minister Jamie Moses.

Eligible small- and medium-sized businesses located in the area bordered by Portage Avenue to the north, Hargrave and Donald streets to the east (excluding Canada Life Centre), St. Mary Avenue to the south and Vaughan Street to the west can now apply for grants of up to $200,000 each.

Suspension upheld for teen hockey player involved in hazing

A high school hockey player who was found to have been involved in sexualized hazing of rookie teammates lost his suspension appeal.

The youth player was barred from Hockey Canada-sanctioned activities. He was handed the four-year and nine-month suspension from sanctioned hockey after an interim ban issued in March 2024.

He appealed his suspension late last year to the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada, an independent conflict tribunal, but the centre upheld the youth’s suspension, according to a written decision issued earlier this year.

An independent investigator who probed the hockey player’s actions described the youth as a veteran player who both participated in and co-ordinated the “assigning” of rookie team members to veteran players to perform tasks for them. He himself was “assigned” a rookie, the decision said.

Arcade bar to open in former downtown Keg

Smash burgers and Skee-Ball will replace steaks as the former downtown Keg transforms into an arcade bar.

A new chapter: Renamed Winnipeg Book Festival takes to The Forks this fall

Winnipeg’s long-running annual literary festival returns this fall, once again featuring a slate of authors, local and beyond, ready to engage with readers.

New this year is pretty much everything else, including a new name, executive director and team of staff — as well as a shift to a tight, condensed timeline and a move to hold all events under one roof.

The festival formerly known as Thin Air/Livres en fête is now the Winnipeg Book Festival; the event takes place Oct. 1-4 at The Forks Market, with most events offering free admission.

It’s a lot of changes for the stalwart literary festival, which was run for more than two decades by Charlene Diehl, who stepped away in late 2025.

A Winnipeg home with a mountain view? You won’t find a real one, but AI-generated visuals suggest otherwise

Manitoba’s mountain range peeked out behind a Scotia Street home.

At least, it did in a photo attached to a real estate listing for 232 Scotia St. in Winnipeg’s (flat) Seven Oaks neighbourhood.

Another picture — now removed — showed a cartoon cityscape viewable from the bungalow’s front porch.

Both photos had tags in their bottom left corners: “AI-generated content.”