Late start to season due to cold washed away in storm-powered flash for many Manitoba farmers

Torrential rains eroded Manitoba farms, flooded fields, isolated cattle herds and damaged longstanding rural properties.

The entirety of the damage from this month’s storms is still unknown. Many producers are waiting for water to drain.

The provincial government plans to assess the situation at the end of June by using crop insurance data and talking to producers. From there, it’ll determine whether more support is needed for impacted farmers, the agriculture minister said.

Meanwhile, the Manitoba Agricultural Services Corp. — which oversees crop insurance — has received an average 314 calls daily over the first three days this week.

City looking into expanding 30 km/h zones in residential areas, on regional streets

Winnipeg city council’s public works committee has directed staff to study whether to expand its 30 km/h school zone speed limit to additional residential streets, or even busy regional roads.

Designated encampment debate returns to city hall

A city councillor is renewing efforts to identify potential locations for designated encampment sites following an Ontario court decision that could impact how homeless people are relocated in Winnipeg.

The motion, introduced by Coun. Cindy Gilroy is scheduled to go before the executive policy committee next week. It calls on the public service to examine multiple locations across Winnipeg that could be considered suitable to host encampments.

Speaking to the Free Press on Thursday, Gilroy said a recent court decision in southern Ontario has renewed the case for designated encampment sites in Winnipeg. Last month, a judge barred the Region of Waterloo from clearing an encampment in Kitchener, Ont., unless alternative housing options were made available to those living there.

“The laws are changing so dramatically,” the chair of the community safety committee said, adding she’s unsure if the city is prepared for a similar legal challenge in Winnipeg.

Millions of litres of sewage dumped into rivers after outages

Millions of litres of untreated sewage were dumped into Winnipeg rivers over the past 48 hours after Tuesday night’s massive storm caused power failures at pumping stations across the city.

Two tornadoes confirmed in Manitoba during Tuesday’s storm

The massive storm that brought torrential rain and hail to southern Manitoba Tuesday afternoon and evening produced at least two tornadoes, Environment and Climate Change Canada confirmed Thursday.

The first, pinpointed by Environment Canada Wednesday, was in Ste. Anne, southeast of Winnipeg. The second was in Dufrost, just east of Morris.

Investigations into the impact of this week’s wild weather are still ongoing, and there’s a chance more tornadoes will be confirmed, said Environment Canada meteorologist Brian Proctor.

“It’s a possibility,” he said. “It was a very, very severe weather day.”

Mayor’s inner circle to consider $600K grant for soccer complex upgrades if city gets women’s pro league team

City administrators are recommending a $600,000 grant to the Winnipeg Soccer Federation to help fund upgrades at the Ralph Cantafio Soccer Complex, subject to Winnipeg securing a Northern Super League team, Canada’s top professional women’s soccer league.

Canada Post moves to convert nearly half a million more homes to community mailboxes

Canada Post is rolling out the latest phase of its transition from door-to-door delivery to community mailboxes, selecting more than three dozen communities that will undergo the conversion starting next year.

Spanning seven provinces and 37 communities from Halifax to Victoria, the change will see an additional 485,000 addresses move to a more centralized mode of mail delivery.

Those homes come on top of the 136,000 addresses in 13 communities already selected for conversion late this year or in early 2027.

Switching the four million addresses that still enjoy doorstep delivery to community mailboxes within about five years marks a key pillar in Canada Post's plan to overhaul its business model in the face of declining letter mail and mounting financial losses.

City mulls grant to give life to vacant buildings

The city is looking at a vacant building grant that could entice developers to convert empty buildings into new homes.

Encampment numbers down since ban

The City of Winnipeg has identified 120 people living in 62 encampments — a far cry from the 700 people in roughly 100 camps last August, before the municipal government’s clampdown on such sites began in late 2025.

The figures were discussed during Tuesday’s community services committee meeting in which city officials provided a ward-by-ward breakdown of encampments.

Data collected by Main Street Project through outreach work and point-in-time counts shows Point Douglas has the highest number at 19 sites, followed by Fort Rouge–Fort Garry with 15 camps.

Chris Brens, the city’s community development manager, said the 62 encampments do not include people who stay in bus shelters, vehicles or other spaces. He told the committee MSP had identified 128 people in encampments, including 63 in Point Douglas and 30 in Fort Rouge–Fort Garry, as of May 31.

Inuit group calls for overhaul of Nutrition North, poverty reduction frameworks

OTTAWA - The organization representing Inuit in Canada says the federal government program meant to subsidize the high cost of food in the North isn't working and should be scrapped.

The call to shut down Nutrition North is part of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami's new poverty reduction strategy, released Tuesday.

The report says the program has failed to improve food security in Inuit Nunangat, the Inuit homelands, and that its fragmented approach is not fully aligned with Inuit priorities.

"It's a scattershot approach in a policy environment that is begging for specific intervention," ITK president Natan Obed told The Canadian Press.

Bike-to-school day initiative features fun pit stops across city, encourages families to ride

Bike Week Winnipeg is piloting new student-friendly pit stops Tuesday as part of its signature event.

This year, for the first time, bike-to-work day is also being branded as bike-to-school day.

“When students ride, their families ride,” said Andraea Sartison, event producer for the volunteer-run organization promoting cycling with activities scheduled through Sunday.

“(This initiative) is a really good way for us to reach more people, I think. School communities are much larger than the student population, so this is a really nice way to get into neighbourhoods.”

City facing $20.4-M budget shortfall but finance chairman ‘not pressing the panic button yet’

The City of Winnipeg expects to end the year with a $20.4-million operating shortfall. However, council’s finance chairman said the budget gap is “not insurmountable.”

Sweet dreams in new beds for 50 children

Fifty twin-sized beds were hand-built for 50 children by volunteers Friday as part of an annual event put on by Manitoba Blue Cross and Sleep in Heavenly Peace.

“New people are always needing beds, and so there’s always a demand,” said Jim Thiessen, co-president of the charity in Winnipeg.

This is the third year volunteers from both organizations have built beds behind Blue Cross Park since the non-profit announced they’d pay for a five-year lease on a warehouse that has allowed the charity to build beds year-round.

The non-profit organization relies solely on donations to build and deliver beds to families in need across Canada.

Efforts underway to determine ecological, economic benefits of Winnipeg’s trees

How a municipality cares for its trees — especially under increasing climate pressures — is just as critical to forest health as planting.

SCO-led app Miikahnah Connect links Indigenous workers to labour demand

As Jay Sanderson turned to face his job site, evidence of his work stared back — plywood replacing windows at the former Hudson’s Bay Co. flagship store downtown.

Lately, he’s been in the basement.

He’s working with several First Nations members on the construction of Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn, the Southern Chiefs’ Organization’s revamp of the old Bay site.

Construction on the facility — which will include housing and a childcare centre, among other things— is slated for another two-and-a-half years, according to SCO’s grand chief.

Treating the fever while ignoring the infection

Manitoba’s health-care system has a fever. It shows up as emergency room waits, crowded hallways, ambulance delays and patients waiting too long for care. A fever, however, is not the infection. It is the symptom.

Auto sales down for eighth consecutive month as May sales fall 1.7%: DesRosiers

RICHMOND HILL - DesRosiers Automotive Consultants Inc. says auto sales in May were down from a year ago, marking the eighth consecutive month of declining sales.

The firm estimates 184,000 vehicles were sold in the month, down 1.7 per cent from May 2025.

DesRosiers says while Statistics Canada's latest GDP data indicated a technical recession, the auto industry has already been in a "feels like" recession in recent months.

DesRosiers managing partner Andrew King says while there were hopes that the market may crack the 190,000 barrier for what is traditionally the biggest sales month of the year, that remained out of sight.

Heat wave leaves schools sweltering

Classes are being cancelled as thermostats spike — up to 42 C, in one case reported to the teachers union — in schools without building-wide air conditioning.

Paramedic team to focus on overdoses in city’s core

With opioid-related emergencies overtaking alcohol-related calls for service in Winnipeg, the province is investing more than $1 million to ease pressure on front-line responders and improve overdose care.

The funding includes $802,000 for a three-month pilot project that will see a 24-7, two-person paramedic team respond to overdose calls in high-demand areas, including the downtown core, where many of the city’s shelters and support agencies are located. The pilot will start this month, the province said.

The province will also spend $150,000 on approximately 20 oxygen delivery devices to be managed by Main Street Project, which help when overdoses don’t respond to naloxone. Another $100,000 will be given to provide first aid and overdose response training for workers through St. John’s Ambulance and Manitoba Harm Reduction Network.

“We’ve been meeting quite regularly with the front-line organizations and this really came from them, and what they wanted and they need,” Housing, Addictions and Homelessness Minister Bernadette Smith told the Free Press Tuesday. “This was something that we could immediately respond to.”

Manitoba makes strides on poverty, but EIA rates must increase: report

When Jayline Bursey gets her monthly Employment and Income Assistance cheque, it’s gone almost immediately.

Police-to-population ratio increases for first time since 2013

The ratio of Winnipeg Police Service officers to the city’s population has increased for the first time in more than a decade.

In 2025, the so-called “cop-to-pop” ratio reached 166.8 officers per 100,000 people, up from 164.8 the previous year.

While that falls behind a national average of 180.3 per 100,000, it was the first local increase since 2013.

Overall, the service added 35 more officers since 2024, to reach a complement of 1,425.