OpenAI says its AI technology acted on its own in an ‘unprecedented’ hack of another company

Shilo resource centre on alert to help base families affected by deadly training incident in Alberta

Military officials were unable to say Monday whether any soldiers from Canadian Forces Base Shilo were among the four dead and 39 injured Saturday when a fast-moving grass fire engulfed a training area at a base in Alberta.

A spokesperson for the Department of National Defence in Ottawa told the Free Press Monday they did not know yet if anyone from Shilo was participating in the exercises at CFB Wainwright, about 200 kilometres southeast of Edmonton, when the fire tore through the area.

The Shilo Military Family Resource Centre, located about 30 kilometres Southeast of Brandon, was offering counselling and other assistance to families of soldiers stationed there.

“We understand that this tragedy may also be deeply felt by members and families here at CFB Shilo,” the MFRC said in a statement posted to Facebook. “Across the Canadian Armed Forces, our communities are connected through shared experiences, friendships, service and sacrifice.”

Medical supplies, equipment distribution firm unpacks new, larger local hub

Seven red robots were some of the main attractions as Canadian medical equipment and supplies distributor Stevens Company Inc. celebrated the grand opening of its new 42,000-square-foot distribution centre in northwest Winnipeg.

The company invested more than $4 million to create the new space, which includes what it believes to be Manitoba’s first AutoStore automated storage and retrieval system — a robotic technology that will help employees fill about 20,000 orders annually.

More than 80 employees, vendors and customers gathered for the grand opening Monday afternoon. It was held fewer than four years after the celebration for the Stevens Company’s previous Winnipeg facility, a 33,000-sq.-ft. warehouse in Transcona the company quickly outgrew.

Company president Jay Stevens noted the Stevens Company’s long history in Manitoba.

Katz ‘violated public trust,’ Sheegl lacked ‘moral compass,’ police HQ inquiry commissioner concludes

The final report from the public inquiry into the scandal-plagued Winnipeg Police Service headquarters construction project concludes that former mayor Sam Katz and former city CAO Phil Sheegl broke public trust and engaged in unethical conduct.

And the report, released Monday by inquiry commissioner Garth Smorang, says the cost of the project — transforming a downtown Canada Post office tower and warehouse into the police HQ — soared, in part, because main contractor Caspian Projects overcharged the city by more than $40 million in expenses.

The project’s initial $135-million initial price tag rose to about $209 million in the end. The city purchased the complex in 2009; construction was completed in 2016.

Smorang’s report concludes Katz “violated the public trust” and council code of conduct, and Sheegl suffered from a “complete lack of a moral compass.”

Clay Stevenson credits therapeutic side of hockey in learning to live with mother’s suicide

Hockey has always been more than just a game to Clay Stevenson. That was especially true after he suffered the biggest loss of his life: his mother, Holly, died by suicide seven years ago.

Province looks to keep nearly $1M from traffic stop

The RCMP constable could see that Alireza Haghgoo was nervous. The 22-year-old, seated as a passenger in a rental Nissan SUV the Mountie pulled over for speeding outside Brandon in late July, was breathing heavily and tapping his foot constantly.

De Havilland calls for national water bomber fleet as it scrambles to meet demand

MONTREAL - On July 13, a pair of Canadair water bombers touched down on the Seine River, skimming along its surface to refill their water tanks as they battled a wildfire south of Paris.

The "super scoopers," with their signature ketchup-red wing tips on a mustard-yellow body, sucked up 6,000-plus litres from France’s most famous waterway in one go as part of a fight against the flames then rampaging across Europe.

The event in north-central France underscored how wildfires are ranging even farther from their traditional grounds and fuelling an urgent need for water bombers to fend off climate disasters.

The iconic Canadair turboprops serve as the only amphibious firefighting aircraft currently in production built from the outset for that purpose, rather than being retrofitted to douse flames.