Google lays off hundreds in hardware, voice assistant teams amid cost-cutting drive

Parts of River Heights hammered by storm

A powerful storm cut a swath of destruction through River Heights on Sunday, leaving much of the area without power.

Nobody was hurt in the storm.

By the time it subsided, parts of the quiet neighbourhood, especially Borebank and Lindsay streets between Grant and Taylor, had been ravaged: power lines downed, Manitoba Hydro poles toppled, trees splintered and crashed down on vehicles and homes.

In one case, a vehicle was flipped into a yard and sat under a partially downed tree. Shingles were stripped from roofs. Some residents described looking out during the storm and seeing power lines ablaze and the blue glow of electricity arcing over their backyards.

Hydro crews working to restore power to about 1,500 people after Sunday storm

About 1,500 people were still without electricity Tuesday afternoon as Manitoba Hydro crews continued working to clear downed trees and repair power lines following a fast-moving, violent and destructive storm that tore through a chunk of south River Heights Sunday evening.

Many of those residents are not expected to have power restored until sometime Wednesday, Hydro said.

City firefighters will be going door-to-door to check on people dealing with extended power outages.

“Starting this morning, Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service firefighters will be going door-to-door in affected areas to check on residents who have been without power since the storm and whose outage may reach 72 hours in length,” a news release sent out by the city Tuesday morning said.

Letters, Sept. 8

I recently read Manitoba Hydro’s integrated resource plan (IRP) and the independent review by Daymark Energy. I’m no expert, but it seems clear that Hydro’s plan to add three new gas combustion turbines to the Brandon power station is going to cost Manitobans a lot more than we bargained for.

Enrolment up at alternative schools

Independent schools are preparing to welcome a record number of students as more families pay for faith-based instruction and secular alternatives.

The overwhelming majority of Manitoba children — 200,000 — are starting in the public school system this fall. Since 2000, the percentage of students enrolled elsewhere — in homeschools, funded and non-funded independent schools — has nearly doubled, to 12 per cent from seven per cent.

“If money was no object, we could fill dozens and dozens more classrooms with the demand for independent education,” said Andrew Micklefield, executive director of the Manitoba Federation of Independent Schools, who is a former Tory government house leader.

The King’s School, Dasmesh School, Springs Christian Academy, Beautiful Saviour Lutheran School, Steinbach Christian School and IQRA Islamic School have all either upscaled at some point over the last five years or are actively in the process of expanding their footprint.