News briefs for Tuesday, January 17, 2023

Fire on Regent Avenue West

8:46 AM

A fire broke out in a commercial building on Regent Avenue West late Monday night.

Fire crews were sent to the three-unit building in the 1500 block of Regent Avenue West at 10:51 p.m. and saw heavy smoke coming from one of the units.

The fire was declared under control at 11:18 p.m., the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service said in a news release Tuesday morning.

No one was in the building at the time, the WFPS said.

Fire guts Gertie Street apartment building

8:53 AM

A vacant apartment building on Gertie Street will have to be demolished after a fire early Tuesday.

Firefighters were sent to the three-storey building in the first 100 block of Gertie at 4:44 a.m. after police officers reported the blaze.

Hours later, crews were still using aerial ladders to fight the fire. The Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service is using a drone to view the fire from above and find hot spots.

The WFPS said in a news release Tuesday that the structural integrity of the building “is believed to be compromised” and that the building is considered a complete loss.

“As such, arrangements are being made for the building to be demolished,” the release states.

Gertie Street is closed to traffic, and Bannatyne and McDermot avenues are closed to traffic at Gertie.

Festival du Voyageur returns to in-person program

12:53 PM

Next month, Winnipeg’s annual francophone music and cultural festival returns to a full-scale program for the first time in three years. Organizers of the 54th Festival du Voyageur, which runs Feb. 17 to 26 at locations across St. Boniface, unveiled a record number of events during a media conference on Tuesday.

“We’re excited not just to reopen, but to reopen in a bigger and better way,” Festival executive director Darrel Nadeau said.

The event will include 200 local and national musical acts, more than a dozen visual art installations, more snow sculptures and tents with increased capacity. A new timed ticketing feature will allow for better crowd management on the festival grounds,

Visit heho.ca (in English here) for the full lineup.

Norway House woman killed in hit and run

3:11 PM

Nelson House RCMP are investigating after a woman believed to have been hit by a vehicle in Nisichawayaihk Cree Nation Friday died of her injuries.

The woman, a 45-year-old from Norway House, was found laying on the road on Otetiskiwin Drive at around 8 p.m. and sent to a nursing station, where she died.

Investigators are asking for any witnesses or anyone with pertinent information to call Nelson House RCMP at 204-484-2837, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or send a secure tip online at www.manitobacrimestoppers.com.

Three charged after assault in RM of Ste. Anne

3:18 PM

Three people have been arrested after a 69-year-old man was assaulted in the rural municipality of Ste. Anne Sunday.

Steinbach RCMP believe two men visited the victim at his home on Road 41 E to speak with one of its residents in the morning when a fight ensued. The victim was sent to hospital in Steinbach and later transferred to Winnipeg in critical condition. He is now in stable condition.

Officers arrested 28-year-old Darcy Funk at a home on Provincial Road 210 without incident. He was charged with aggravated assault and mischief. The second suspect, 27-year-old Dallas Funk resisted arrest and faces charges of aggravated assault, mischief and resisting arrest. A third person, 50-year-old Gerald Funk, attempted to intervene in the arrest and threatened an officer. He now faces charges of uttering threats and resisting arrest.

All three are in custody and appear in court Tuesday.