First Nation’s power-outage misery ‘frozen like a rock’

An army of plumbers, engineers and members of the Canadian Armed Forces are continuing to assess damages after a lengthy power outage at Pimicikamak Cree Nation froze water and sewage pipes.

Chief David Monias said it is going to take months to repair damage to homes and years to install new water and sewage treatment plants and systems.

“They have frozen pipes — the sewage plant is completely frozen,” Monias said Wednesday. “The raw sewage has frozen like rock, it is as hard as rock. There is enough (methane) gas in there that we can’t even enter the building. So they are trying to figure out a way how to air out that building so that they can assess the sewage problem.”

Monias said the experts are going to try to get the water and sewage systems up and running while the community works with government on a longer term solution. He said the plants will eventually need to be decommissioned.

Children’s Hospital to spruce up ward with local art

Local artists are being invited to create child-friendly nature-themed original artworks for the walls of CK5, the childhood cancer, blood disorders and transplants ward at the Health Sciences Centre Children’s Hospital.

Ribbon Skirt Day leader reflects on changes since her cultural attire was shamed

In Isabella Kulak's home is a box of about a few hundred letters, notes and hand-drawn pictures of ribbon skirts sent to her from across Canada and beyond — fan mail from those who consider her story and the origins of "Ribbon Skirt Day" as inspirational.

"I have like a whole notebook of letters, a whole stack of drawings from all these schools and it makes me feel so happy and it warms my heart," said Isabella, a shy 15-year-old, on a phone call from her home in Kamsack, Sask., located about 270 kilometres east of Regina.

"I do want to eventually write back to them, but I am really busy with school."

After all, the Anishinaabe girl is still a teenager. This past week, she had a volleyball tournament. These next few months, she will be completing Grade 10 and the next big step is on the path to medical school, she said.

Manitoba law to protect women from partner abuse on horizon

More than three years after a law targeting intimate partner violence received royal assent, the legislation known as Clare’s Law will come into force in Manitoba in March.

The law allows for critical information held by authorities about a person’s history of violence, abuse or exploitation to be disclosed to their intimate partner.

The legislation is named after Clare Wood, a British woman who was murdered in 2009 by an ex-boyfriend who had a lengthy criminal record of sexual violence. The United Kingdom was the first jurisdiction to adopt such legislation.

Before the law comes into force in Manitoba, a regulation was needed that set out the policy and procedures for application, assessing risk, disclosing and sharing information. The Disclosure to Protect Against Intimate Partner Violence Act required a program be established, a provincial government document on the proposed regulation posted online last April stated.

Family from the Democratic Republic of Congo navigates chilly firsts alongside IRCOM supports

All Clever Ganza wants to do this winter is build a snowman.

He’s not yet had the chance, as it hasn’t been the right kind of snow — although to the eight-year-old, all snow is snow.

It’s his second winter in Winnipeg after arriving in Canada with his parents and younger brother Travor, 5, in December 2024.

Clever has acclimatized pretty quickly.

The Forks Market to serve up second helping of Sharecuterie

Cassandra Carreiro has been on quite a ride the last 2 1/2 years.

“It’s all kind of a blur,” the 35-year-old entrepreneur said. “A fever dream.”

In May 2023, Carreiro opened Sharecuterie, Winnipeg’s first drop-in, sit-down charcuterie café, at 160 Stafford St.

Now she’s preparing to open a second location at The Forks Market. Currently under construction, the 150-square-foot kiosk will serve a variety of dine-in and takeout options. It’s scheduled to open in February.

New year, deeper pockets needed

Changes to daily living expenses in the new year are bringing new challenges to Winnipeggers and Manitobans already burdened by the cost of living.

Getting around in the city by public transit got more expensive Thursday, and the cost of vehicle insurance will rise on April 1.

Winnipeg Transit’s standard adult cash fare increased by a dime to $3.45. Youth and seniors will now be charged $2.95, also up 10 cents compared to 2025 rates. Discounts remain in place for peggo card users, though electronic fares also rose to $3.10 for adults, $2.30 for youths and $1.55 for seniors.

Monthly passes also got more expensive: $119.35 for adults, $88.55 for youth and $59.70 for seniors. Short-term passes are also more expensive: a 24-hour adult peggo e-pass climbed to $11.45, and youth and senior versions rose to $8.50 and $5.75, respectively. A seven-day adult e-pass now sells for $31.

‘Canada is not for sale’ hat makers want to share domestic manufacturing tips

OTTAWA - One of the people behind the viral "Canada is not for sale" hat says he wants to help other companies get on board the made-in-Canada train.

Liam Mooney told The Canadian Press he and his fiancée and business partner Emma Cochrane felt distraught watching Ontario Premier Doug Ford tell U.S. President Donald Trump and American media in early January that — the president's musings about annexation notwithstanding — Canada would never be for sale.

A few days later the Ottawa-based pair, now married, stitched together a hat bearing the premier's message. Mooney called it a "creative rebuttal" in a form familiar to Trump.

But after a year of learning the ins and outs of domestic manufacturing — and seeing the lengths Canadian firms have to go just to get their products on local store shelves — Mooney said his goal in 2026 is to spread the "Canada is not for sale" ethos.

Skating trail expected to open in time for New Year’s Day activities at The Forks

Skaters, rejoice: the Nestaweya River Trail at The Forks could be open as early as New Year’s Day, marking one of its earlier openings in recent years.

The port rink on the Assiniboine River and a small section of the the iconic river trail opened on Dec. 31 last year. The earliest recorded opening of the six-kilometre skating trail was Dec. 21, 2013.

“We had a good freeze this year… and we’re hoping for a nice, long season this year,” Adam Dooley, spokesperson for The Forks, said Monday.

Sections of the trail, which snakes along the Red and Assiniboine rivers and meets at The Forks port, have some slush owing to recent snowfall and may take more time to open, Dooley said.

Advocates push for advance MAID requests two years after Parliament recommendation

OTTAWA - Sandra Demontigny knew something wasn't right when she couldn't remember buying herself a new pair of boots. They were a splurge — a little out of character for the mother of three — and she had been excited about bringing them home.

"I saw them near the door and I asked my kids, 'Who bought these boots? I've never seen them,'" she said.

"The kids were saying, 'No, (they're) yours. You bought them and you really like them."

Sliding her feet inside, she realized she couldn't remember buying them. "I started crying," she said.

Foods with healthy-sounding buzzwords could be hiding added sugar in plain sight

Many consumers feel pride in avoiding the glazed pastries in the supermarket and instead opting for “all natural” granola that comes packed with extra protein. Same goes for low-fat yogurts “made with real fruit,” organic plant-based milks and bottled “superfood” smoothies.

Buyer beware: Healthy grocery buzzwords like those often cover up an unhealthy amount of sugar.

Added sugars are difficult to quickly spot because many companies use clever marketing to distract consumers, said Nicole Avena, a professor of neuroscience and psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical School and Princeton University who has studied added sugars.

Avena said while some health-forward brands know people are starting to become aware of the hazards of added sugars, "a lot of the bigger brands don’t worry so much about people’s health.”

Students tasked with designing shelter for homeless

Concerned about the state of empathy at her suburban high school, a St. Vital teacher has tasked teens with designing transitional homes for their unsheltered neighbours.

Collège Jeanne-Sauvé made headlines in September when a student was involved in an altercation with a man living in nearby Dakota Forest.

Winnipeg police and the Louis Riel School Division reported at the time the man came out of a tent and chased after a group of students, injuring one. Allegations the teenagers provoked the man by hurling insults and items at the man’s tent were also reported.

The Sept. 9 incident — as well as the gossip in its aftermath — led Kay Wojnarski to reach out to End Homelessness Winnipeg for advice.

U of M researchers studying whether genetic testing helps zero in on effective mental-health treatment meds

A team of University of Manitoba researchers is recruiting people seeking mental-health treatment for a study that could take the guesswork out of medication with the help of genetic testing.

The study will offer free pharmacogenomic testing — which predicts how a person may react to medications based on their genetic makeup — to 200 adults who are looking to start a new medication or switch their medication treating a mental-health issue.

“Someone with mental-health conditions, they (try) multiple medications, and sometimes it takes months or years to get to a point where those drugs work for them, or to have less side effects,” said Dr. Abdullah Maruf, the lead investigator on the study and assistant professor in U of M’s College of Pharmacy.

“Pharmacogenomic testing can find out how our body will respond to these kinds of medication.”

Métis federation launches second class action over ’60s Scoop

The Manitoba Métis Federation has launched a second court action over the apprehension of Métis children during the ’60s Scoop.

The federation and Albert Beck, a Métis man who was adopted by a non-Indigenous family, filed a proposed class action lawsuit against the Manitoba government in the Court of King’s Bench last week.

The proposed class action seeks damages over the harm suffered by Métis kids who were taken into care and placed with non-Indigenous families in Canada and the United States over several decades.

“The (‘60s) Scoop caused significant, irreparable harm to the Red River Métis children that were removed from their homes and communities. They suffered trauma and physical, sexual, and psychological abuse,” reads the proposed class action.

Beleaguered parents of young children with diabetes ask province for help in schools

Parents of children in elementary school with Type 1 diabetes pleaded for help from the province Tuesday at the legislature.

Two mothers — one who has to leave her job at lunch, the other who had to quit her job altogether — in order to get to their children’s schools in time to make insulin-pump adjustments say other provinces, including B.C. and Nova Scotia, have trained school staff to help.

“It’s heartbreaking to have to gauge whether or not I can maintain my livelihood or my child’s health care,” said Christy Peterson, whose five-year-old daughter Lillian is on an insulin pump.

The pumps support better blood-glucose management, help reduce the risk of long-term diabetes complications and their use results in fewer insulin injections.

Why doing good also makes us feel good, during the holidays and beyond

WASHINGTON (AP) — The holiday season is a time for giving thanks, giving gifts — and for many, a time for giving back.

Food banks, services that deliver meals to seniors and other U.S. charities typically see a surge in volunteering between Thanksgiving and the end of the year. But there are good reasons to volunteer at any time of the year.

Alfred Del Grosso volunteers weekly to work the lunch shift at Shepherd’s Table, a food bank in Silver Spring, Maryland. “I feel more connected to the broader community,” he said.

Most Thursdays, the retired chemist from Kensington, Maryland, also lends an unpaid hand to help clear fallen trees and brush from local trails with the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club. "It’s mostly volunteers who help maintain the trails," he said.

Canada’s Fleming uses ‘rewired’ brain to push for Olympic biathlon spot

Biathlete Jasper Fleming sees the world differently.

After being diagnosed with severe dyslexia around Grade 3, Fleming worked with a tutor to "rewire" his brain.

“I essentially learned to use my brain in a way that it just fits for me," he said. "So the way that I learn, the way that I perceive the world, is totally unique to me."

Now the 20-year-old Canadian is harnessing his unique approach as he competes on the biathlon World Cup tour and pushes for a spot in the 2026 Olympics.

Hydro to cut down more than 260 trees on stretch of Selkirk Avenue

Manitoba Hydro is cutting down 262 mature trees growing near power lines along a north Winnipeg street, drawing objections from the city and disappointment from canopy advocates.

Sexual extortion of children for money is on the rise: financial intelligence agency

OTTAWA - Canada's financial intelligence agency is warning of an increase in cases of sexual extortion of children for profit — acts that often are linked to organized crime.

This type of online blackmail involves threats to distribute sexual images or videos of a victim if they don't send the perpetrators cash or, in some cases, more pictures.

In a newly published alert, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada advises banks and other businesses to be on the lookout for specific dealings and patterns that could point to extortion or other forms of child sexual exploitation.

The federal centre, known as Fintrac, identifies cash linked to money laundering by analyzing millions of pieces of information each year from banks, insurance companies, securities dealers, money service businesses, real estate brokers, casinos and others.

Australia will enforce a social media ban for children under 16 despite a court challenge

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The Australian government said young children will be banned from social media next month as scheduled despite a rights advocacy group on Wednesday challenging the world-first legislation in court.

The Sydney-based Digital Freedom Project said it had filed a constitutional challenge in the High Court on Wednesday to a law due to take effect on Dec. 10 banning Australian children younger than 16 from holding accounts on specified platforms.

Communications Minister Anika Wells referred to the challenge when she later told Parliament her government remained committed to the ban taking effect on schedule.

“We will not be intimidated by legal challenges. We will not be intimidated by Big Tech. On behalf of Australian parents, we stand firm,” Wells told Parliament.

Concerns raised about AI-powered toys and creativity, development as holiday shopping peaks

TORONTO - As parents hunt for gifts that will wow their kids this holiday season, Canadian child development and psychology experts say they should be wary of AI-powered toys because of possible harms, ranging from privacy and security violations to interference with children's creativity and development.

"Early childhood is a time where the developing brain is a little sponge. It's taking everything in and it is so malleable," said Dr. Nicole Racine, an Ottawa child psychologist and scientist at the CHEO Research Institute.

"I think about what kind of inputs do I want my kids to be having? And to be honest, it's not the inputs of an AI algorithm," said Racine, who also has two young children.

Her comments follow an advisory for parents issued last week from Fairplay, a U.S.-based organization aiming to protect children from potential technology harms. It was endorsed by dozens of experts, including child advocacy groups, pediatricians, educators and psychologists.

Derelict historic apartment block gets makeover and thumbs up from neighbourhood

Nearly seven years after fire damage forced tenants to evacuate the Ches-Way Apartments, the once-derelict block in the Wolseley-West Broadway nexus has undergone a complete interior renovation and is nearing full capacity.

Grandparents can make lasting impact for disabled grandchildren by contributing to RDSP

Imagine a gift this holiday season that could one day be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. And it would all start with the impetus to contribute to a little-known registered savings plan.