News briefs for Wednesday, May 31, 2023

Vacant house burns in Elmwood

8:58 AM

Crews extinguished a fire in a vacant house in Elmwood on Tuesday night.

Firefighters were sent to the home in the 300 block of William Newton Avenue at 6:56 p.m. and declared the fire under control at 8:45 p.m.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, according to the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service.

Fire on Westminster forces street closure

8:59 AM

A fire in a house on Westminster Avenue closed the street to traffic early Wednesday.

Firefighters were sent to the two-storey house in the 600 block of Westminster at 5:05 a.m., fought the fire from inside and declared the blaze under control at 6:30 a.m.

Westminster Avenue was closed between Sherbrook and Langside streets while firefighters battled the blaze.

Task force touts 42% bite out of COVID backlog

10:26 AM

There’s been a 42 per cent overall reduction in Manitoba’s surgery and diagnostic test backlog, the province’s task force announced today.

In a progress update, leaders of the surgical and diagnostic recovery task force said more than 72,300 procedures have now been completed, less than 500 of them done out of province.

Task force officials David Matear, Dr. Ed Buchel and Dr. Peter MacDonald announced a nine per cent increase in the number of surgeries completed since their last update in April, representing 46 per cent reduction in the surgical backlog.

The task force will continue to pursue private-sector contracts and investments in the public health system, task force officials said. Buchel said “rhetoric” around public versus private is harmful, saying all of the task force’s secured agreements are publicly funded.

The task force is setting target wait times for procedures across the province and expects more information to come this summer.

Girl, 12, dies after off-road vehicle rollover

10:41 AM

Neepawa RCMP say a 12-year-old girl died after the utility terrain vehicle she was riding in rolled off a rural road in early May.

Mounties were called to the rollover on Road 76 West, south of Road 83 North, at about 7:45 p.m. on May 1, where they found the three girls who had been ejected from the vehicle, RCMP said. Officers have determined the vehicle slid into the ditch and rolled.

The driver and one passenger, both 14, were taken to hospital with serious injuries, while the third girl, 12, was rushed for treatment for life-threatening injuries. She died on May 5. None of the girls were wearing helmets or seatbelts.

CancerCare Manitoba Foundation receives $27M donation

11:09 AM

The CancerCare Manitoba Foundation received a $27-million donation Wednesday, which it says is the largest philanthropic gift to a healthcare organization in the province’s history.

The donation came from the Paul Albrechtson Foundation.

The CancerCare foundation said the money will be spent on four key areas: $17 million for updating research laboratories, $4 million for single cell technology, $2.5 million on genomics and $3.5 million on a cancer centre in Brandon.

WFPS at scene of platform collapse at Fort Gibraltar

11:58 AM

Several Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service crews are at Fort Gibraltar in St. Boniface, where a platform has collapsed, according to Free Press staff at the scene.

Multiple units responded to a “medical emergency” shortly after 9:50 a.m., according to an incident entry on the PulsePoint app.

Police are assisting at the scene, a spokesman said.

Fatal stabbing victim identified, suspect arrested

12:22 PM

One man is in police custody and another is dead after a stabbing in the William Whyte neighbourhood.

Winnipeg police were called to the 400 block of Burrows Avenue around 3:45 a.m. Tuesday and found a 22-year-old male who had been stabbed.

In a release issued Wednesday, police identified the victim as Alan Henry Anderson, 22.

Investigators learned Anderson was walking with a group near the intersection of Salter Street and Burrows when a fight broke out with another group in the area. Anderson was stabbed and later died in hospital from his injuries.

The suspect fled before police arrived.

Officers arrested Cory Dylan Watt, 24, in the 300 block of Mountain Avenue around 4:30 a.m. the same day. He remains in custody and is facing charges of manslaughter and failure to comply with conditions of a release order.

Both men are from Winnipeg. They did not previously know each other, police said.

Police do not expect to make any more arrests relating to the incident, WPS said.

Man enters high school bathroom, confronts female students

12:27 PM

Winnipeg police are warning the public after a suspicious man entered the women’s washroom at Maples Collegiate and confronted female students.

Investigators responded to reports of the incident on Monday. They learned the man was inside the washroom and confronted the girls when they entered. The students ran away and reported the man to school staff. The suspect fled, and police were immediately alerted, the WPS said in a release.

None of the students were physically injured, police said.

School officials alerted parents and nearby schools to the incident.

Anyone with information regarding the suspect is asked to call investigators at 204-986-6245 or Crime Stoppers at 204-986-TIPS (8477).

Man found dead on road in Sioux Valley Dakota Nation

2:42 PM

Mounties are investigating after a 21-year-old man was found dead on a road in Sioux Valley Dakota Nation Tuesday morning.

RCMP say officers from the Virden detachment were called to the scene on Cemetery Road at about 9:15 a.m. When the Mounties arrived, they noted the victim appeared to have been hit by a vehicle.

RCMP say the victim, who was from the community, had been walking with friends when he split off from the group to head down the road where he was found. Officers seized a vehicle in the community that RCMP say is “of interest to the investigation.”

Mounties, including criminal collision investigators, are still examining the vehicle and probing the incident. The community is about 50 kilometres west of Brandon.

Winkler man accused of trying to disarm RCMP officers

3:13 PM

A man is accused of trying to disarm RCMP officers who had tried to arrest him at a home in Cypress River on Saturday.

RCMP say officers from the Treherne detachment were called to the home for a reported assault at about 11:45 a.m., where they found a woman with minor injuries.

Officers found a suspect and told him he was under arrest, but as they tried to cuff him, he “became combative” and assaulted them, RCMP say, before trying to take their guns. The Mounties then managed to get him in cuffs but received minor injuries in the fray. RCMP say the suspect then threatened the officers and spat on one of them.

A 21-year-old man from Winkler has been charged with three counts of assaulting a peace officer, two counts of uttering threats, and one count each of disarming an officer, assault and resisting arrest. He’s still in custody.