Heavy rain in forecast, flooding possible in Interlake

Canada’s first drive-thru-only McDonald’s opens in Winnipeg

One Grimace and dozens of smiles were on display Wednesday as McDonald’s staff and supporters celebrated the grand opening of the fast-food chain’s first drive-thru-only restaurant in Canada.

Mayoral rematch between Gillingham, Klein gets ugly on Day 1

Former city councillor and provincial cabinet minister Kevin Klein says he will soon enter the race to become Winnipeg’s next mayor — prompting an immediate war of words with incumbent Scott Gillingham.

Gillingham quickly responded to the announcement by calling Klein “toxic” and a “fixer” for Peter Nygard.

Klein said Tuesday he had decided not to enter the mayoral race weeks ago due to an unspecified health scare that required surgery. After recovering, he decided to run.

“The future of the city means a lot to me. I believe that we have so much untapped potential that I felt I should do something about it,” said Klein, noting he felt compelled to run because key city issues, such as perceptions of public safety in the downtown, have grown worse over the past four years.

QDoc patients in tight spot over billing dispute

Manitobans have been pulled into a dispute between QDoc — a Winnipeg-based virtual health-care platform — and the NDP government over fees billed to the province for patient care.

An Aug. 24 email from QDoc to its users prompted concern or calls for clarity from Manitobans who use the 24-7 platform to see a physician or nurse practitioner through encrypted video calls.

“When I first read it, like many others, I assumed they were going to be nixing the service altogether because that’s the way it was presented,” Tyndall resident Stephanie Pituley said.

“Upon further research, obviously that’s not the case, but I am still concerned to be honest. How many people did that research, I don’t know.”

Klein put on defensive as mayoral run made official

Kevin Klein faced a barrage of attacks from the city’s incumbent mayor and largest union as he officially entered Winnipeg’s mayoral race Thursday.

While the former city councillor and Progressive Conservative cabinet minister was registering to run at city hall, Mayor Scott Gillingham’s team sent out a news release noting Klein was one of two councillors to vote against pursuing legal action against participants in the Winnipeg police headquarters scandal.

Shortly after, Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 500 accused Klein of blaming Canada for its ongoing trade war with the U.S. and called him an “unfit” candidate who would “bend a knee to American interests” in a news release of its own.

Klein defended himself outside city hall after putting in his papers.

Heavy rain in forecast, flooding possible in Interlake

A heavy rainfall warning was in effect for Winnipeg and other parts of southern Manitoba on Thursday, with 40 to 70 millimetres of rain expected Friday. That region is expected to get the most rain, along with the Interlake and Whiteshell lakes areas. Flooding is possible if there is a particularly heavy amount of precipitation in a short time, Manitoba Transportation and Infrastructure’s hydrologic forecast centre said in a news release. Levels on rivers and streams will increase, but most major rivers are expected to remain with their banks, including the Red and Assiniboine, the province said. Soil moisture is […]

Goldeyes back in playoffs and attendance on the rise

Tip your cap to the Winnipeg Goldeyes — they’re having a fantastic season, both on and off the field.

From a pure baseball perspective, the Fish are flying high. Wednesday’s 6-2 victory in Fargo was the latest in a second-half surge that has helped punch their ticket to the American Association playoffs.

Winnipeg has officially locked up a post-season spot, meaning it will play for keeps for the 22nd time in 32 seasons.

The final five games of the regular season — including Thursday’s finale against the RedHawks in North Dakota, followed by four dates in Kansas City from Friday through Monday — will determine the final seeding and the Goldeyes’ first-round opponent.