Prairie Update – CP

Source: The Canadian Press – Broadcast wire
Oct 1, 2015

(Alta-Fatal-Fire)

Investigators have determined that a house fire which killed two people in a southern Alberta home was deliberately set by one of the victims.

The Monday morning blaze in Vulcan took the lives of a 47-year-old man, Robert Farrow, and a 56-year-old woman, Karen Currie.

R-C-M-P say the motive for the arson is still unclear.

But court records show Farrow was jailed last year after pleading guilty to assaulting and unlawfully confining Currie.

(CHQR, CFFR)

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(Alta-House-Fire)

A body has been recovered from a burned home on a northern Alberta reserve.

The remains were discovered following the blaze early yesterday on the Frog Lake First Nation, about 240 kilometres northeast of Edmonton.

The person’s identity is not known.

An autopsy is scheduled for today. (The Canadian Press)

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(Prairies-Minimum-Wage)

Workers in all three Prairie provinces who earn the minimum wage are getting a raise, effective today.

In Alberta, the wage is increasing by one dollar to 11 dollars, 20 cents an hour.

A liquor server’s income in the province is rising one dollar and 50 cents to 10 dollars, 70 cents an hour.

In Saskatchewan, the wage is going up by 30 cents to 10 dollars, 50 cents an hour.

Manitoba is also boosting its minimum by 30 cents to 11 dollars. (The Canadian Press)

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(Alta-Menthol-Ban)

Effective today, stores in Alberta can no longer sell menthol cigarettes.

The move is an attempt by the province to reduce the teen smoking rate.

The government says if a retailer sells a menthol product, the store could face a 500-dollar fine.

Health Minister Sarah Hoffman says she’s confident store owners will comply with the new rules. (CTV Edm)

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(Mba-Care-Home-Inquest)

The Manitoba government says it’s accepted the recommendations from an inquest into the death of a senior who was pushed to the floor by a 70-year-old dementia sufferer in a Winnipeg care home.

Frank Alexander, who was 87, died in 2011 after he was shoved by Joe McLeod.

An inquest report released earlier this year called for the creation of a special unit for persons with violent and aggressive behaviour in every personal care home in the province.

An implementation plan released by the province yesterday says some of the recommendations have already been met, while others could take more than two years to put in place. (Wpg F-P)

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(Sask-Speed-Limit-Cut)

The speed limit on a stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway east of Regina is going to be reduced when construction begins on the city bypass.

The highways ministry says starting in mid-October, drivers will be held to 80 kilometres an hour between Regina and Balgonie.

Minister responsible Nancy Heppner says there will be delays in what will be a very large and busy work zone, but the focus will be on moving traffic smoothly and safely.

The bypass project will cost upwards of one-point-nine billion dollars and is scheduled for completion in 2019. (CJME)

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(No-More-Funeral-Escorts)

Edmonton police will no longer escort the dead on their final journey to the cemetery.

The department says a shortage of officers has prompted it to stop providing escorts for funeral processions.

Police have offered the service for decades, doing between 20 and 40 funerals a year.

But acting chief Brian Simpson says the department’s primary duty is to answer calls for service, so it can’t afford to take four to six officers off the road for a few hours anymore. (Global Edm)

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(HKN-Senators-Police-Escort)

The N-H-L’s Ottawa Senators will be getting a bill from the City of Winnipeg for a police escort that helped get them to M-T-S Centre on time for a game against the Winnipeg Jets this week.

Plane troubles delayed the Senators’ arrival in the city for a Tuesday evening exhibition match, so they asked police for an escort to get through rush hour traffic.

Police agreed but informed the club it would have to pay.

Billing details and the exact cost of the escort are still being worked out.

The Jets won the game in overtime. (CJOB)

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(Prairie Update by The Canadian Press)

(The Canadian Press)