What you need to know
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Guilty of bus slaying: It took only two hours on Thursday afternoon for a jury to find Brian Kyle Thomas, 24, guilty of second-degree murder for the stabbing death of a Winnipeg Transit driver who had awoken him when the bus ended its route. A union spokesperson for bus drivers said: “We will continue to push for a workplace where our operators and passengers feel safe.” Katie May reports. READ MORE
Jets win nail-biter: With only 1:14 left in the game, and the score tied, Winnipeg Jet Kyle Connor wristed the puck into the net of the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday evening, prompting a frenzy at Bell MTS Place. It was the second consecutive game in which Connor was the Jets’ hero. Mike McIntyre reports. READ MORE
Win for treatment centre: A controversial proposal to convert the old Vimy Arena site into an addictions-treatment centre was passed on Thursday. City council approved zoning changes that will permit the Bruce Oake Recovery Centre in the Crestview neighbourhood of St. Charles. Aldo Santin reports. READ MORE
Your weather
Warming up: Today’s high of -15 C may not seem warm to some people, but it’s considerably warmer than the frigid temperatures of the past two weeks. The windchill could make it feel as cold as -28 and there will be periods of snow. The highs for Saturday and Sunday will be about -17, with scattered periods of snow.
What’s happening today
River patrol: Free Press reporter Alexandra Paul will don her warmest winter wear today as she visits the frozen Red River to meet RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki, who recently became the first woman to be appointed as Manitoba’s top Mountie. The new commissioner will be on a snowmobile, visiting ice fishing shacks.
Youth speak out: Winnipeg students will again be striking for the climate today, meeting at city hall at 1 p.m. for speeches. They’re part of a worldwide youth movement demanding action on climate change, which included Greta Thunberg, 16, addressing the World Economic Forum in Switzerland. Chants prepared by the Winnipeg teenagers include: “No more coal, no more oil, keep your carbon in the soil!”
In case you missed it
RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESSJamie Leduc, head of the department of interactive digital media at Sisler High School, helps students Ayaiya Alibudbud (right) and Isabella Recuenco learn creative uses of technology during Game On, a two-day celebration of techno-creative skills for Manitoba students at Sisler High School.
Winnipeg “hidden gem”: Sisler High School has become a hotbed of interactive digital media instruction. More than 300 students from 26 schools across the city are at Sisler this week taking part in a game development experience called Game On. Said Daryl Long, an official for the Paris-based international video game production house Ubisoft: “What they are doing at Sisler showed us that Winnipeg was a hidden gem for the gaming industry that we were looking for.” Martin Cash reports. READ MORE
Longer waits at ERs: Wait times at the city’s emergency rooms and urgent care centres in December rose to 1.75 hours compared with 1.5 hours in November 2018 and 1.63 hours a year earlier. “If the (reorganization) plan was working, we should have seen wait times drop,” said Darlene Jackson, president of the nurses’ union. “Clearly this ‘transformation’ is not having the intended effect.” Larry Kusch reports. READ MORE
On this date
On Feb. 1, 2011: The Winnipeg Free Press reported that the WHRA was asking city council to ban cigarette smoking in parks and on patios. One million people were expected to march in the streets of Egypt, seeking to oust president Hosni Mubarak, who had held power for three decades. Manitoba Hydro’s estimate of the cost of the Bipole III line grew to $4.1 billion.
Today’s front page
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