The Wrap: Vacant building fires, city ponds thick with algae, Brodbeck on racism in civil service, and remembering Randy Turner

New city data reveals vacant property fires in Winnipeg are happening more frequently this year than ever before.  As of June 30, fire crews had responded to 114 blazes at vacant properties. In all of 2023, there were 156 such fires, the most ever recorded.

According to the firefighters’ union, the pressure vacant building fires put on city fire crews is prompting emergency responders to turn down overtime pay to look after their physical and mental health.

“(Firefighters) are saying, ‘No, I’ve been to five, six, 10 fires in the last week and I need a few days off with my family,’” said Tom Bilous, president of the United Firefighters of Winnipeg.

Reporter Nicole Buffie investigates.

Retention ponds around Winnipeg are packed with algae and murkier than usual this summer after the city stopped using a previously approved herbicide to clean the man-made bodies of water.

The aquatic herbicide is used by municipalities to limit plant growth in retention ponds. But a discrepancy in the product’s label was reported to the province and it was determined it was authorized only for the treatment of aquatic invasive species, and the city’s licence to use it was revoked in the spring.

This has led to some complaints about the amount of algae in the ponds near residents’ homes.

Reporter Jura McIlraith dives into the issue.

The Coalition Against Workplace Discrimination obtained an internal report from the federal public service that was released Monday. It examined allegations of racial discrimination against Black and other racialized staff, including Indigenous workers, in the Privy Council Office.

The report found there was a culture of white supremacy where racial slurs are common — including the use of the N-word — and where non-white staff are regularly passed up for promotions in favour of their white colleagues.

Columnist Tom Brodbeck asks how this is happening in 2024 and why haven’t heads rolled?

Oh, to imagine what Randy Turner would have had to say about his induction into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame.

You know it would have been hilarious. It would have been brilliant. And, of course, it would have been self-deprecating. That was Turner in a nutshell, a beloved talent with the Free Press who left us all too soon in 2019.

The pride of Boissevain is among the HoF Class of 2024 announced Tuesday.

Writer Mike McIntyre takes a look at all the inductees, who will officially be honoured at a gala dinner on Nov. 7.