Brandon received over 20 cm of snow in the last 24 hours and it’s not over yet – the forecast calls for more snow today and tomorrow. Starting the day , the majority of the highways in the Brandon region had snow-covered and icy sections including the Trans-Canada and Highway 10. Several highways still have closures – check Manitoba 511 for the latest updates.
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There’s a proposal to expand Brandon’s Riverview School to offer Grades 7 & 8. The elementary school is currently Kindergarten to Grade 6. The Brandon School Division has posted an online survey to get feedback on the idea.
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Samaritan House Ministries received $8,000 from last Thursday’s stop by the CP-KC Holiday Train. The food bank says it also collected almost $458 in individual donations and 487 pounds of non-perishable food items at the event. Samaritan House serves more than 3,200 Brandon households.
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Premier Wab Kinew announced over the weekend that the province will provide $25,000 to Brandon and Westman Christmas Cheer. The group says requests for hampers are up this year, but donations are down including cash, toys and food. They had planned to create 1,100 hampers this year.
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Manitoba plans to send conservation officers to the border to appease U-S president-elect Donald Trump and attempt to defuse his trade tariff threats. There’s no word on how many officers will be part of the new plan – but the premier says the government will roll out more details soon.
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If the U-S slaps a 25% tariff on imports from Canada – a new survey has found two-thirds of us would be less likely to purchase American-made goods. As for how Canada should respond to Donald Trump’s plan – 47% said try and negotiate lifting the tariffs – while 30% said retaliate immediately with new tariffs on U-S products.
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The Manitoba government passed legislation last Friday to try and end machete violence across the province. Under the new rules, retailers will have to store machetes, knives and swords away from public access – and sales are restricted to those 18 and older.
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There’s growing pressure on the federal government to end the Canada Post strike now into its 4th week. It recently intervened in major rail and port disputes ordering binding arbitration. Canada Post, meantime, says it’s awaiting a formal response from the union to its last proposal.
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Disney’s animated film ‘Moana 2’ remained at the top of the box office in its second weekend. The film’s domestic total has now hit $300-million surpassing the original. Second place was occupied by ‘Wicked’, followed by
‘Gladiator Two’, ‘Red One’ and the Indian action pic ‘Pushpa: The Rule ‘Part 2’.
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The oldest known wild bird in the world has laid an egg – her first in 4 years. She’s a long-winged Laysan albatross named Wisdom – and she’s 74-years-old. Experts believe this may be Wisdom’s 60th egg. She was first banded in 1956 and has raised as many as 30 chicks. The birds typically live 68 years.
