News briefs for Thursday, June 18, 2026

New paramedics to start working in rural Manitoba

3:08 PM

Ten new paramedics will soon join ambulance services in rural and northern Manitoba communities.

In a news release the province said the paramedics will be working in The Pas, Lac du Bonnet, St. Laurent, Ashern, Arborg, Minnedosa, Glenboro, Erickson and Gypsumville.

Two additional students currently enrolled in University College of the North’s primary care paramedic program will work in The Pas. Five new primary care paramedics will also begin onboarding this month and will support ambulance services in rural Manitoba communities, the news release states.

No timeline was provided on when the paramedics will begin working.

City to close part of Corydon Avenue on summer Sundays

1:18 PM

The City of Winnipeg and Corydon Avenue BIZ have announced a portion Corydon Avenue will close every Sunday for the summer to create a “vibrant, car-free urban oasis.”

Beginning July 5 through Sept. 6, Corydon Avenue will close to vehicle traffic between Lilac Street and Daly Street on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. so restaurants can extend their patios to the streets and pedestrians can walk through the area freely. A press release from the city states there will also be curated art installations.

The initiative aims to bring an “eclectic, festival-like atmosphere” to Corydon Village, the release says.

Marked detours for motorists will be in place during the closures.

RCMP probe suspicious death in Leaf Rapids

11:19 AM

Mounties are investigating the suspicious death of a 21-year-old man in Leaf Rapids.

Officers received a report of “an unresponsive male lying in an open area within the community” shortly after 3 a.m. on Wednesday. They responded to the scene and found the man dead, RCMP said in a news release Thursday.

Police are asking anyone with information related to the death to contact investigators at 204-427-2469, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or submit a secure tip online at manitobacrimestoppers.com.

Suspect sexually assaults woman on bus, passengers intervene

8:55 AM

A 23-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting a woman he followed onto a city bus on Sunday night has been arrested.

Winnipeg Police Service patrol officers who were on the 3900 block of Portage Avenue, near the Perimeter Highway, were alerted of the sexual assault just before 11 p.m. on Sunday.

They learned a man had encountered a woman on the street and began talking with her, before he grabbed her and kissed her, until she managed to break free and board a nearby Winnipeg Transit bus.

The man followed her onto the bus and proceeded to sexually assault her, police said, before passengers intervened and stopped the assault.

Officers found the suspect and arrested him. The 23-year-old man is facing a charge of sexual assault and was released by police on an undertaking ahead of a court date.