Life & Style – Winnipeg Free Press

Health

Congo’s Ebola outbreak has recorded over 4,000 deaths as authorities struggle to contain the virus

The Associated Press 2 minute read Updated: 4:12 AM CDT

BUNIA, Congo (AP) — Congo's Ebola outbreak has now recorded more than 4,000 deaths, authorities said as they struggle to contain the spread of the virus.

The latest figures were released by the health ministry on Thursday. They show that 4,018 people have died from among 8,300 confirmed cases, making up for nearly half of the confirmed cases in what has become the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history.

Congo announced an outbreak on May 15, caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, which has no known treatment or vaccine.

The World Health Organization has recently raised the alarm regarding the rapid geographical spread of the virus into new health zones, stretching limited resources.

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Health

Anne Latendresse, a Quebec Solidaire candidate for the riding of Maurice-Richard, speaks to a supporter outside her campaign office in Montreal on Friday, Sept. 25, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

Women 60 and over vastly outnumbered by men on Quebec’s campaign trail

Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

Women 60 and over vastly outnumbered by men on Quebec’s campaign trail

Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press 5 minute read 3:00 AM CDT

MONTREAL - Anne Latendresse retired from her job as a university professor and researcher in June. But instead of taking time to relax, the 65-year-old jumped right into a new challenge: running as a candidate for left-wing party Québec solidaire in the Oct. 5 election.

Latendresse says the timing was right. Her 26-year-old son is not only grown, but serving as her campaign manager. She also felt like her 25-year career in the Université du Québec à Montréal's geography department, as well as involvement with social movements and non-profit organizations, had given her the skills and confidence needed to make the leap.

"I’m coming in with a sense of maturity and greater depth of knowledge," she said in a recent interview at her campaign headquarters in the Maurice-Richard riding north of downtown Montreal. "I think it’s a good time for me to champion issues, push initiatives forward, and develop expertise."

While Latendresse has good reasons to enter politics in her 60s, her choice is less common for women of her age.

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3:00 AM CDT

Autos

Supplied
The 2027 Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric puts its 1,159 horsepower to pavement with surprising aplomb.

There’s fast and then there’s this

Kelly Taylor 5 minute read Preview

There’s fast and then there’s this

Kelly Taylor 5 minute read 2:00 AM CDT

The advice was not unexpected but it was surprising considering it applied to a vehicle weighing almost 6,000 pounds.

“Before you let off the brake, put your head against the headrest,” the instructor said.

We — myself and a handful of Porsche customers gathered at Red River Exhibition Park — were about to experience launch control on the 2027 Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric.

Launch control works like this: you put the vehicle in Drive, hold the brake as hard as you can with your left foot and quickly depress the accelerator pedal as far as it goes and hold it.

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2:00 AM CDT

Faith

FILE- A dirt road through barren mountains in the Mustang region, 462 kilometers (288 miles) west of Kathmandu, Nepal, Thursday, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha, File)

As India and China repair ties, a Tibet film tells the story of a forgotten resistance

Aniruddha Ghosal, The Associated Press 7 minute read Preview

As India and China repair ties, a Tibet film tells the story of a forgotten resistance

Aniruddha Ghosal, The Associated Press 7 minute read Yesterday at 11:12 PM CDT

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — In the mountains of Nepal's Mustang region, just hours from the homeland he had never seen, Tenzin Rigzin Phurpatsang struggled to breathe the air his Tibetan ancestors had adapted to over generations. The thin air felt heavy.

The 37-year-old, first-time actor was in Mustang to film “Four Rivers Six Ranges,” a historical drama about resistance fighters who helped the Dalai Lama escape Tibet in 1959. A year later, Phurpatsang's own grandfather, Yeshi Wangyal, had returned to Tibet after CIA training to lead a separate guerrilla mission. He was killed fighting Chinese forces.

Born in exile in India, Phurpatsang is now a New York model. As he filmed firefight scenes in the mountains, a world away from his life, he thought of his family’s past.

“Wow, is that what my grandfather went through?” he asked himself.

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Yesterday at 11:12 PM CDT

Environment

Trump tried to make an ally out of fishermen. Some have started to turn on him

Patrick Whittle, The Associated Press 7 minute read Yesterday at 11:09 PM CDT

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — John Evich, a commercial fisherman in Washington and Alaska, has voted for President Donald Trump three times, viewing him as someone who would fight for his industry.

But these days, Evich is weary of the high cost of doing business at sea, with fuel prices rising and trade hostilities with Canada jeopardizing markets for the crabs that he pulls off the ocean floor.

“If somebody came along that was going to do a better job, I would vote for them in a heartbeat,” he said.

Evich's sentiment, echoed throughout the U.S. seafood industry, is another piece of a political puzzle that is working against Trump in the midterm elections. Dissatisfaction among commercial fishermen could cause collateral damage for Republicans in competitive races in Washington, Alaska and Maine.

Faith

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth gives a State of the Force address at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026 in Quantico, Va. (Alex Wong/Pool Photo via AP)

Pete Hegseth creates a Pentagon Office of Religious Affairs reporting directly to him

Tiffany Stanley, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Pete Hegseth creates a Pentagon Office of Religious Affairs reporting directly to him

Tiffany Stanley, The Associated Press 3 minute read Yesterday at 11:02 PM CDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is launching an office of religious affairs, the latest of his faith-related reforms at the Pentagon.

He announced in a speech Wednesday that the office will help offer “first-class religious support” and will report directly to him.

“Our department is, you might say, putting on the full armor of God, because while we wage physical war, we all know the real battle is spiritual,” he said.

Hegseth has infused his evangelical Christianity into his leadership of the Pentagon, hosting Christian worship services for employees and often speaking of the United States as a Christian nation.

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Yesterday at 11:02 PM CDT

Environment

FILE - A natural gas meter operates Jan. 22, 2025, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)

Households will pay more for energy because of Trump’s policy changes, think tank says

Jennifer Mcdermott, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

Households will pay more for energy because of Trump’s policy changes, think tank says

Jennifer Mcdermott, The Associated Press 6 minute read Yesterday at 11:02 PM CDT

Households in the contiguous United States will pay thousands of dollars more for energy through 2040 because of federal policy changes since President Donald Trump returned to office, according to modeling released Friday by a nonpartisan think tank.

The Energy Innovation analysis found that households will pay an average of $6,500 more for energy, cumulatively through 2040. In five states, households will pay roughly $9,000 more: Oregon, Mississippi, South Dakota, Virginia and Wyoming.

The California-based think tank said there will be more demand for natural gas for electricity because the administration is canceling new clean energy projects and there will be more demand for gasoline for transportation because Trump and Congress are revoking policies that encouraged or created incentives for more efficient and lower-emissions vehicles. Higher demand drives prices up.

Electricity bills are already rising faster than inflation in much of the U.S., which is being blamed in some areas on demand from data centers. The Iran war has sent oil and gasoline prices sharply higher, too.

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Yesterday at 11:02 PM CDT

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Environment

A resident fills their container with clean water as others wait for their turn from a tanker truck amid a drought in Sanggau, West Kalimantan, Indonesia, Friday, Sept. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Indonesian villagers on Borneo struggle for water as El Niño intensifies peatland fires

Edna Tarigan And Victoria Milko, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

Indonesian villagers on Borneo struggle for water as El Niño intensifies peatland fires

Edna Tarigan And Victoria Milko, The Associated Press 6 minute read Yesterday at 8:07 PM CDT

PENYELADI, Indonesia (AP) — After three months with no rain, Sriwati, a shopkeeper and mother of three children living in Penyeladi village on the tropical island of Borneo, can no longer depend on the river for her needs.

Experts say communities like Sriwati’s are facing a severe water crisis as this year’s super El Niño, combined with decades of degradation of the island’s ecologically vital peatlands — ancient wetlands that are critical for carbon storage, water regulation and pollution control — has created the perfect storm exacerbating human-caused climate change.

The Kapuas, Indonesia’s longest river that over 3 million people rely on, has extremely receded in the area near her home. All that’s left is a shallow stream of muddy water that's not safe to drink or wash the rice she cooks to feed her children. She now has to buy water, adding to her monthly expenses.

“The water shortage affects us, especially when it comes to drinking water,” Sriwati, who like many Indonesians uses only one name, told The Associated Press from her small, concrete home.

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Yesterday at 8:07 PM CDT

Science & Technology

FILE - The Army dress uniform and photo of the late Christopher Pelkey is displayed at his mother's home, May 7, 2025, in Chandler, Ariz. (AP Photo/Matt York, File)

Sentence tossed in Arizona case where deceased victim was depicted speaking in AI-generated video

Jacques Billeaud, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Sentence tossed in Arizona case where deceased victim was depicted speaking in AI-generated video

Jacques Billeaud, The Associated Press 5 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 7:16 PM CDT

PHOENIX (AP) — An Arizona man’s 10-year manslaughter sentence has been tossed in a case where a video generated by artificial intelligence portrayed the deceased victim addressing a judge before the punishment was imposed.

In a decision released Wednesday, the Arizona Court of Appeals concluded Gabriel Paul Horcasitas must be resentenced in the 2021 shooting death of Christopher Pelkey because the AI video wasn't reliable.

The court found the video crossed the line, saying it didn’t reflect actual events and presented statements made in the footage as coming directly from the victim.

“Indeed, rather than document an event or recording a particular moment, the AI video presents a depiction of the victim and his thoughts created from the imaginings of the victim’s sister,” the three-judge panel wrote.

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Updated: Yesterday at 7:16 PM CDT

Environment

FILE - The Teton mountains reflect on Oxbow Bend in Grand Teton National Park in Moran, Wyo., Aug. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Amber Baesler, File)

MLB won’t consider game at Grand Teton National Park, says was only conducting initial due diligence

The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

MLB won’t consider game at Grand Teton National Park, says was only conducting initial due diligence

The Associated Press 3 minute read Yesterday at 6:52 PM CDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball won't consider staging a game in western Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park.

Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred sent a letter Thursday to Teton County Commissioner Chair Mark Newcomb, Jackson Mayor Arne Jorgensen and Jackson Hole Chamber of Commerce President Rick Howe, who wrote to Manfred voicing objections on Monday following a report in The Washington Post that Grand Teton was under consideration.

Manfred sent a similar letter to U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico.

“MLB has no formal plan to play a game in Grand Teton National Park,” Manfred wrote. “Our team was conducting initial due diligence on many potential sites when this story was reported and we had made no decision of the feasibility of staging a game in Grand Teton National Park. We also had not reached the stage in our due diligence in which we evaluated the environmental impact or spoke to members of the community to solicit their views — steps that would have certainly been a part of any process should it have moved forward.”

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Yesterday at 6:52 PM CDT

Science & Technology

Bell Canada is building what's expected to be Canada's largest Canadian-owned data centre outside Regina, seen under construction, on Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeremy Simes

Construction of Bell Canada’s AI data centre in Saskatchewan scaling up

Jeremy Simes, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Construction of Bell Canada’s AI data centre in Saskatchewan scaling up

Jeremy Simes, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 7:35 PM CDT

REGINA - Saskatchewan’s Crown investments minister stood Thursday in front of a skeleton of steel beams to tout progress on an artificial intelligence mega facility, while the Opposition again called on the province to consult first, then build.

"We have just an amazing thing going on here behind us," Jeremy Harrison told reporters at the site, southeast of Regina.

"Literally millions of pounds of steel."

Harrison and Bell Canada held a news conference at the company's 65-hectare site. Behind them, construction crews moved heavy equipment.

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Updated: Yesterday at 7:35 PM CDT

Faith

FILE - Christian musician Sean Feucht, of California, preaches to the crowd during a rally at the National Mall in Washington, Oct. 25, 2020. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

Donor revives fraud claims against Christian worship leader Sean Feucht over a $250,000 donation

Deepa Bharath, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Donor revives fraud claims against Christian worship leader Sean Feucht over a $250,000 donation

Deepa Bharath, The Associated Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 7:21 PM CDT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sean Feucht, a Christian worship leader who attained rock star status after his large rallies in defiance of pandemic-era regulations, is facing allegations of fraud from a Southern California donor.

In an amended federal lawsuit filed Wednesday, Steve Bray, an Orange County businessperson and Christian philanthropist, accused Feucht of soliciting a $250,000 donation for a 2023 concert tour that had already been fully financed by the late Charlie Kirk's Turning Point USA. A federal judge on Sept. 9 had dismissed the original lawsuit Bray brought, citing a lack of specific details and lack of evidence to support the fraud allegations. But he left a door open by giving the plaintiff 20 days to file an amended complaint with more specifics and proof.

According to court documents, Feucht met with Bray in his Anaheim office on March 6, 2023, seeking a donation for his Kingdom to the Capitol Tour, which he planned to take to all 50 states. Bray said in the complaint that he agreed to fund five tour stops for a total of $250,000, but later discovered that Feucht’s entire concert tour had been fully funded.

In a statement issued via his spokesperson, Feucht said he “looks forward to this case being dismissed, just as the last one was.”

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Updated: Yesterday at 7:21 PM CDT

Health

FILE - Lindsay Clancy, center, speaks with her lawyer Kevin Reddington during proceedings in her murder trial, Aug. 20, 2026, in Plymouth, Mass. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds, Pool, File)

Judge denies defense motion asking Lindsay Clancy be found not guilty due to a lack of evidence

Michael Casey, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Judge denies defense motion asking Lindsay Clancy be found not guilty due to a lack of evidence

Michael Casey, The Associated Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 5:05 PM CDT

BOSTON (AP) — The judge in the Lindsay Clancy murder case on Thursday refused to declare her not guilty, turning down a defense motion that had argued there wasn't enough evidence to prove she was responsible for killing her three children.

During Clancy's first trial, which ended Sept. 4 with a deadlocked jury, her defense argued that she was not criminally responsible because of a mental disease, specifically a rare condition called postpartum psychosis. As such, the defense didn’t dispute that the 36-year-old former labor and delivery nurse carried out the killings at her family's Massachusetts home in 2023.

However, in a hearing earlier this week, Clancy’s attorney Kevin Reddington tried to persuade the judge that prosecutors had not offered any proof that Clancy did it. Prosecutors argued there was plenty of evidence, calling Reddington’s claim “laughable.”

___

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Updated: Yesterday at 5:05 PM CDT

Health

Health of women with diabetes may deteriorate after menopause: study

Jean-Benoit Legault, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

Health of women with diabetes may deteriorate after menopause: study

Jean-Benoit Legault, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Yesterday at 3:10 PM CDT

MONTRÉAL - Women with Type 1 diabetes appear to be at greater risk of physical and psychosocial health problems after menopause and require an updated treatment plan, according to a new study.

Published in September by Diabetes Research and Clinical Practices, the research found that post-menopausal women had a higher risk of retinopathy, cardiovascular disease, neuropathy, falls, and moderate-to-severe depressive symptoms.

They were also less likely to have been prescribed antihypertensive and lipid-lowering medications.

Jane Yardley of the Montreal Clinical Research Institute was one of the co-authors of the study.

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Yesterday at 3:10 PM CDT

Health

Manitoba’s labour board rules Dynacare medical lab staff to be essential workers

Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Manitoba’s labour board rules Dynacare medical lab staff to be essential workers

Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 5:16 PM CDT

WINNIPEG - The terrain of the ongoing collective bargaining battle involving workers who do medical tests across Manitoba shifted Thursday with a ruling from the province’s labour board.

The board, in a written decision, said the staffers who carry out and interpret medical tests for the private company Dynacare are to be classified as essential workers in the event of a future strike or lockout.

The board said it accepted the province's argument that the testing, while routine, can have major ramifications on everything from cancer diagnoses to strokes. It noted on average 15 routine tests a day find critical issues in patients.

"An interruption or a significant backlog to those services would create a clear and foreseeable risk to health and safety,” the board stated. The board ruled that in the event of a strike or lockout, core functions like lab testing, home visits and mobile collections must continue.

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Updated: Yesterday at 5:16 PM CDT

Science & Technology

A T5 data center is seen on Aug. 14, 2026, in Elk Grove Village, Ill. (Maggie Dougherty/Capitol News Illinois via AP)

Report: New data centers could create more than 120K Illinois jobs, though mostly temporary

Maggie Dougherty And Ben Szalinski/capitol News Illinois, The Associated Press 8 minute read Preview

Report: New data centers could create more than 120K Illinois jobs, though mostly temporary

Maggie Dougherty And Ben Szalinski/capitol News Illinois, The Associated Press 8 minute read Yesterday at 3:06 PM CDT

A new study predicts data centers expected to be built in Illinois over the next decade would create thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in new property tax revenue.

But many are skeptical the touted benefits will live up to their promises or outweigh the environmental and energy burdens.

The study by the Illinois Economic Policy Institute projected that $57 billion worth of new data center investments through 2035 will create 121,000 jobs. Most of those would be temporary construction and other jobs throughout the economy, with just 2,800 of them direct, permanent positions.

After lawmakers failed to pass data center regulations in the spring session and Gov. JB Pritzker paused the state’s data center tax incentive program, a comprehensive study was needed to help guide policymakers on how to address residents’ concerns, according to Frank Manzo, an economist at ILEPI, a labor-backed research organization that “promotes thoughtful economic growth for businesses and working families.”

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Yesterday at 3:06 PM CDT

October 2, 2026

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