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A Dauphin man and two adults from Winnipeg are facing charges following a drug seizure by members of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP).
The seizure happened on April 25 during a traffic stop on Highway 17 near Vermillion Bay, Ontario. Roughly 15 grams of methamphetamine was found inside the vehicle.
As a result, Kristopher Ranville of Dauphin has been charged with possession of a Schedule 1 substance for the purpose of trafficking.
Joseph Liew and Janine Desjarlais, both of Winnipeg, have also received the same charge. The three will appear in a Dryden courtroom on July 20.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
After postponing graduation ceremonies to the fall, the DRCSS has now settled on a date.
September 4th was chosen to allow the most students, staff, and sponsors to attend.
The DRCSS recognizes that any postponement date will create difficulty for some to attend the ceremonies.
This date is the last day before the 2020-21 school year, bringing closure to the interrupted school year.
In a press release, the DRCSS says that while the plans optimistically look forward to a time of relaxed social restrictions, should restrictions still be in place, a plan will be put together to host the ceremonies differently.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
The provincial government has introduced policy changes to create more inclusive birth certificates.
The changes will allow individuals to choose non-binary in addition to male or female when applying for a change of sex designation under the Vital Statistics Act.
In a November 2019 decision, the Manitoba Human Rights Commission required the province to recognize and implement policies to allow for non-binary sex designations by May 2, 2020.
Also, last November, a human rights adjudicator ordered the province to pay $50,000 to a transgender individual, for denying their request to replace the sex designation on their birth certificate with an “X”.
The Manitoba government has taken the additional step of introducing a legislative change that would remove the requirement to display a sex designation on birth and death certificates.
Finance Minister Scott Fielding added this legislation hasn’t passed yet.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
A local business has decided to postpone their spring sale event, but aren't letting that get in the way of making sure their customers get the products they need.
Assistant Manager Kim Trush from Sammy’s Farm Supply Ltd. explains the annual event is very important, but must be put on hold due to the current circumstances.
“It’s a chance for us to have a more personal touch with our farmers and all of our customers. This year we’re just not able to. Hopefully in the future we’ll have a chance to actually celebrate it.”
The 35th Anniversary of Sammy’s Farm Supply Ltd. was supposed to be a big celebration. Their annual spring sale event features deals, discounts, and free coffee & donuts.
Although the company will miss the opportunity to socialize with their customers & community at the spring sale, Kim has found the silver-lining in the situation.
“If anything comes out of this pandemic on a positive note, it’s reinforced that our Ag producers are invaluable. We strive to meet everyone’s needs, but especially those people that feed us.”
Otherwise, the business has been operating as usual; Kim says staff are working hard to meet everyone's needs.
Sammy’s Farm Supply Ltd. in Dauphin can be reached at 204-638-3566, and at their website.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
Today marks the first day Canadian businesses can apply for the federal wage subsidy program.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says nearly 10,000 businesses applied for the 75% wage subsidy in just the first few hours.
But will this federal program be able to meet the needs of Parkland businesses? Executive Director of the Dauphin & District Chamber of Commerce Stephen Chychota says we’ll have to wait and see.
“It’s kind of early to gauge and figure out what supports are really needed. It will still take some time to figure out where government has to step in and make some supports. Maybe some other organizations, including the chamber, have to get creative to see where we can help out local businesses.”
Chychota says some local employers have been forced to drastically scale-down business in order to carry on during the COVID crisis. If federal assistance can help save some of their employees, he says that’s a good thing.
There are several provincial support measures in place for Manitoba businesses. The province recently announced a new call-centre to help Manitoba businesses get connected with the support programs available to them.
Locally, the Dauphin & District Chamber of Commerce continues to help local businesses; listening to their concerns and providing resources to help navigate the support programs available to them.
Although their office is closed, Chychota says local businesses can contact the Dauphin Chamber on Facebook, Twitter, or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
Today Manitoba public health officials announced one additional case of COVID-19.
The new case brings the total number of lab-confirmed and probable cases to 272. There are 61 active cases, while 205 individuals have recovered from the virus.
Seven individuals are currently hospitalized, and two of them are in intensive care. The number of deaths due to COVID-19 remains at six.
There remains a total of 14 cases identified in the Prairie Mountain Health region.
(graph courtesy of the Province of Manitoba)
Manitobans are still being encouraged to stay home as much as possible. If you do have to go out, chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin recommends you maintain a distance of six feet between others, and wash your hands frequently.
Dr. Roussin says Manitoba is looking ahead to allowing certain non-essential businesses to reopen. He stresses this will be done very cautiously and slowly.
Public health officials have expanded the testing criteria, stressing the importance of people getting tested even if they are only showing mild symptoms of COVID-19. Symptoms of the novel coronavirus include a cough, runny nose, sore throat and fever.
If you are showing symptoms and meet the testing criteria, call Health Links at 204-788-8200 or (toll-free) at 1-888-315-9257 for more information.
For more information and to access the online screening tool for COVID-19, click here.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
Tim Hortons will be selling a “Nova Scotia Strong” donut beginning this week.
The money raised goes to the Canadian Red Cross Stronger Together Nova Scotia Fund.
One hundred percent of the proceeds be used to support the people and communities impacted by the tragic shooting rampage in Nova Scotia.
The treats go on sale starting on Wednesday.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
After a few weeks at a standstill, the price of gas in Dauphin has lowered by one cent to 73.9 c/L.
The average price in the province fell by 0.7 c/L in the past week to average at 70.39 c/L.
Manitoba’s average is 7 cents lower than the national average of 77.39 c/L.
Including the change in gas prices in Manitoba during the past week, prices yesterday were 58.5 c/L lower than the same day one year ago.
Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, predicts prices to remain subdued for weeks still.
“While much of the talk last week was about the West Texas Intermediate benchmark falling to $0 and then into negative territory, it was very isolated and oil eventually rebounded back to the current $15 per barrel level, while many other crudes like Western Canadian Select continue to sell for just a few dollars per barrel. Prices will likely remain subdued until meaningful demand for petroleum returns, and that may not be for weeks or perhaps longer. In addition, every day until OPEC's oil production cut come into force May 1 is another day where global supply drastically outpaces demand, flooding the market with more oil, prolonging the time gas prices will remain low- something that easily could last into the summer."
Dauphin’s gas price of 73.9 c/L is higher than the average price of 71.59 c/L in Saskatchewan, and Winnipeg’s price of 66.41 c/L.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
Dauphin musician and full-time health care worker Marc Clement has been providing a much-needed community experience on his Facebook page lately.
His most recent virtual concert on Facebook — where he sings while playing the guitar and harmonica — has over 250 comments and two thousand views.
Marc says it’s been great seeing the members of the community interacting with each other in real-time, catching up, requesting songs, and just having fun.
He says he’s glad he can give something back to the community.
“I would just like to thank everybody for tuning in, and to encourage folks to continue following the rules and listening to public health officials. We are going to get through this, and I’m proud of Manitobans for the great job they’ve done.”
Although it’s been a great experience for the Dauphinite, who’s been able to share his music with such a large audience, Marc worries about the current hardships facing many independent musicians.
“I do work full time, but I really feel bad for working and touring musicians who basically had the rug pulled from under their feet. I encourage folks to find an independent artist they like the most, and find some way to get money in their hands because they are really suffering.”
He suggests Manitoban’s support independent artists by either buying their merchandise, by tipping musicians during live shows, or tipping their PayPal account.
You can watch Marc’s virtual concerts and join the conversation by visiting his Facebook page.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
For the 2nd day in a row, the number of COVID-19 cases in Manitoba has increased by four.
This brings the total number of lab-confirmed and probable cases up to 271, as of 9:30 a.m. on Sunday.
In the Prairie Mountain Health region, there remains a total of 14 cases that have been identified by public health officials.
At this time, the number of active cases is listed at 66, while 199 are listed as recovered.
Public health officials have expanded the testing criteria, stressing the importance of people getting tested even if they are only showing mild symptoms of COVID-19. Symptoms of the novel coronavirus include a cough, runny nose, sore throat and fever.
If you are showing symptoms and meet the testing criteria, call Health Links at 204-788-8200 or (toll-free) at 1-888-315-9257 for more information.
To access the online screening tool and latest information from the province, click here.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
Manitoba’s new COVID-19 case number remains low, and the province is focusing on increased testing to get a better idea of the spread of the virus.
Four new cases have been identified today by Manitoba public health officials.
The total number of lab-confirmed and probably cases is 267. As of 9:30 a.m. Saturday morning, there are 62 active cases and 199 that have been listed as recovered.
The number of COVID-related deaths remains at six.
As of April 23rd, there have been 173 COVID-19 screening tests conducted at the Dauphin drive-thru location. The other testing site in the Prairie Mountain Health region — a site in Brandon — has administered 718 screening tests.
Public health officials are now expanding testing criteria to include people who are showing even mild symptoms — such as a cough, runny nose, sore throat, and fever — to get a clearer picture regarding the spread of the virus in Manitoba.
If you’re showing symptoms of COVID-19 and meet the testing criteria, call Health Links–Info Santé at 204-788-8200 or (toll-free) at 1-888-315-9257 for more information. As a reminder, testing sites are operating by referral only.
You can also access the latest information for the province, and the online screening tool, by visiting www.manitoba.ca/covid19.
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- Contributed by Matt Hamel
