Search And Rescue Drills In Dauphin Skys

You might notice the thundering sound of helicopters in the air next weekend as the Civil Air Search and Rescue Association, or CASARA, will be hosting some search and rescue drills north of Dauphin on March 18th.

The Search and Rescue Exercise, also referred to as SAREX will see four to five CASARA aircraft, drones, and possibly a C-130 Hercules plane flying through Dauphin air space practicing their abilities to spot down aircraft and other emergency situations from the skies.

Cadets from the Dauphin 50 RCACS will set up simulations of a crash site, Emergency Locator Transmitters (ELT), and wounded personnel. The RCMP will also be on the scene running ground-based searches as well.

Zone Commander Colin Bennett commented on the training event, and just how large scale it is.

"The idea behind the SAREX, this one is entitled tri-zone SAREX. thats our three zones in manitoba, zone one being winnipeg, zone two, the brandon area and north to include Dauphin, and zone 3 which is Flin-Flon and the Pas"

This tri-zone event is an effort to get all of the members together for a larger, more complex search scenario in order to keep proficient with situations that deal with larger areas and aircraft.

A C-130 Hercules, Picture Provided by Zone Commander Colin Bennett

With the many training events taking place, it's sure to be a busy day for everyone on the ground, and in the skies.

Details: Contributed by Michael Brossart; Published: Mar 11, 2023 - 9:24 am

Snowfall Warnings are in effect around southwestern Manitoba but aren't in the Dauphin - Russell - Roblin - Winnipegosis area yet.

The Minnedosa - Riding Mountain National Park area, and the Ste. Rose - McCreary - Alonsa - Gladstone area are both under the warnings. The statements say that heavy snowfall is expected tonight through tomorrow night, and both areas should expect between 10 and 20 cm.

A low-pressure system is developing and will track along the border, spreading snow across the southern part of the province this weekend. Snow is expected to taper off Saturday night at the system departs.

While the Dauphin - Russell - Roblin - Winnipegosis areas arent under the warning, we're still expected to get around 2 cm of snow tonight, and another 5 to 10 cm tomorrow.

Details: Contributed by Sam Brownell; Published: Mar 10, 2023 - 6:26 am

The Dauphin Ag Society held Farm Outlook 2023 yesterday and it was a huge success.

At the event, the Ag Society presented the Ron Brook Memorial Award, and this year it went to a group you might not immediately associate with Agriculture. The Dauphin Fire Department was this year's recipient, and selection committee member Tere Stykalo says a lot goes into the decision process.

"You sort of try to pick the most appropriate for that current year, and you know, sometimes a little more assessment goes into the recipient each year, and this year, the Fire Department was hands down what everyone felt was the organization we wanted to acknowledge."

Fire Chief Cam Abrey says it's a great honour for the department to receive the award, and they did some digging into the history between the two organizations.

"A few weeks ago we had one of the members of the Ag Society come to the fire station and ask for the history of the Fire Departments' involvement with the summer fair, and anything else we could put together on our partnership with our Ag community."

Chief Abrey says during their research, they found that 1978 was the first request for them to assist with the fire protection for the demolition derby during the summer fair. He says that relationship is something that means a lot to the department, and it's a great feeling to have their involvement with the Ag Society Recognized.

"It's something for the members of the department past and present. This is a 45-year relationship that they've had with the Ag Society and the Summer Fair for the fire protection. There are a lot of members that have come and gone through our doors. It's nice to remember those folks as well, so having this award presented is recognizing past, present, and future, and a partnership that we hope continues for a lot of years."

The rest of the event featured a number of presentations about everything from grain buying and selling decisions to rural crime and what can be done to slow the trend. Co-chair Chad Sahulka says they really wanted to focus on having a wide variety of topics.

"Having a wide variety of speakers was a huge thing for today. We wanted to kind of get out and get in touch with everyone to try and cover our whole industry. Kind of looking for the same thing next year, hopefully, get some new faces in and some new presentations."

Details: Contributed by Sam Brownell; Published: Mar 10, 2023 - 5:03 am

A recent report from the Manitoba RCMP outlines what can happen if you leave your vehicle running, unattended.

On March 7th at roughly 12:50 pm, RCMP received the report of a truck stolen from a Thompson residence. As the vehicle fled, it got stuck in a snowbank at Waterloo Avenue and Brandon Crescent.

When another vehicle stopped to assist, the truck became unstuck and sideswiped the stopped vehicle leaving its driver with minor injuries.

RCMP received several calls of an erratic driver and was notified of a vehicle that matched the description of the stolen truck, previously stuck on the shoulder of Highway 6.

After learning the location of the vehicle, police set up a traffic stop in an attempt to reign in the stolen vehicle, but the truck refused to stop and continued to drive erratically, nearly colliding with other motorists.

Officers made the decision to stop pursuing due to the dangerous driving, and risk to the public.

Later on patrol, officers found the stolen truck in the snow on the outskirts of Thompson, off Station Road.

Two females were arrested without incident. One of the females was 11 years old and could not be charged. The other female, 12, is facing charges including dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing bodily harm, flight from police, and theft of a motor vehicle.

Thompson RCMP continues to investigate the incident.

Details: Contributed by Michael Brossart; Published: Mar 9, 2023 - 5:16 pm

Four areas in the southwest corner of the province are under Special Weather Statements right now.

According to Environment Canada, a low pressure system is developing in Montana and will spread snow into southern Saskatchewan tomorrow night and eventually into Manitoba as the system tracks eastward to North Dakota. The system will also bring some stronger winds with it which will make for blowing snow at some points.

The snowfall, which is expected to continue through Saturday, could bring anywhere from 10 to 20 cm of snow in some areas.

Even though there is a special weather statement in effect, the low pressure system could track further south, which would significantly reduce the amount of snow we will see.

Currently, the statement is in effect for these areas:

Brandon - Neepawa - Carberry - Treherne
Killarney - Pilot Mound - Manitou
Melita - Boissevain - Turtle Mountain Provincial Park
Virden - Souris

We will keep an eye out for any weather statements issued for areas in the Parkland.

Details: Contributed by Alec Woolston; Published: Mar 9, 2023 - 11:00 am

On March 9th, 2022, the Parkland Ukrainian Family Fund was announced, and Reit-Syd Equipment kicked things off with a $25,000 donation. Since then, the fund has been able to bring 27 families to the area.

Through donations, both monetary and in kind, the Fund and its volunteers have helped more than 70 people come to the Parkland, but the help hasn't stopped with just those families.

While the fund can't financially support every family trying to come to the Parkland from Ukraine, Fund volunteer Lindsay Rubeniuk says they're doing what they can to help people settle throughout the region.

"What we're trying to do now is provide them with some direction. You know we want people to come to our area because we want economic development to occur, so what our Fund is able to do is to try and assist them with employment, and also to try and find them housing."

Rubeniuk says the fund has helped find Ukrainian newcomers jobs in both Grandview and Roblin, as recently as this week.

Fund volunteer Tere Stykalo says while they want to support as many people as possible, they've had to dial back their commitments to new families that reach out.

"The support levels that were established at the start of the whole process were quite extensive, and the fund is not endless in its supply of financial support, so we do have to temper how the new families are going to get support, as Lindsay had said, which is going to come in the form of direction and the form of trying to assist them to get settled in a very positive and successful manner."

Stykalo says that word has spread about the generosity of the Parkland, and they continue to have people reaching out for help.

"We seem to always have knocks on the door, there are other families that want to come to this community and to the surrounding area. Word travels that they've been treated very well and they've had the opportunity to be successful here in a very short period of time."

A major part of the Family Funds' mission has been to bring in people that want to work and be a part of the community in which they're settling. Stykalo says that's already showing, and having positive results in the area.

"There's a spinoff back to the community, and we can see that happening already. When you look at employers who had voids where you didn't have anybody working, they now have some folks from Ukraine, from these families coming there, finding employment, contributing back to that employer's revenue stream."

Stykalo says it goes beyond the families filling job openings in the communities.

"They've got to go to the grocery store to buy groceries, they consume gas, and they're going to do all of their household spending here in Dauphin which creates a tremendous spinoff. You look at our schools, I believe one of the schools has had to hire more teachers, so that again provides a spinoff back to the community as these institutions also expand."

One of the initial goals of the Fund was to bring in families that want to set up roots in the Parkland, and Rubeniuk, who's an immigration consultant and has been helping the families since they arrived, says the process has already started.

"What we have now is currently five families that are in the midst of applying for immigration, and their intention is to remain in the community of Dauphin and surrounding areas."

While just five families are in the process of applying for immigration already, they aren't the only ones who have shown interest says Rubeniuk.

"These are just the first five families that are ready to go, and I've had several talks or emails from the rest of the families indicating their desire to remain in the area, and how to go about completing their application for immigration."

The fund also wants to thank the countless number of volunteers who have given their time, as well as everyone throughout the Parkland and beyond who has donated to the fund.

They are still accepting donations as they continue to try and help as many people fleeing the war in Ukraine as possible, and Stykalo says you can get a donation receipt for any financial donations to the fund.

"If anybody is considering making financial donations to the Fund, please remember and keep in mind that it is a charitable organization, so you will get a charitable donation receipt for your taxes, and also for corporations, there are some deductions available for corporations that want to make donations as well to the fund."

Stykalo and Rubeniuk say that anyone looking for more information can contact them or any of the other committee members.

You can get more information about the Fund, by calling Larry at 204-648-5904.

Details: Contributed by Sam Brownell; Published: Mar 9, 2023 - 6:00 am

The Dauphin Fire Department Hosted its Annual Firefighter Appreciation Dinner, and it was an excellent way to celebrate the people that help keep our city safe.

The event featured speeches from local dignitaries including Mayor David Boziak, Dauphin RM Reeve Ernie Sirski, as well as recognitions from Fire Chief Cam Abrey.

Throughout the night, several firefighters received awards for their years of service:

Conrad Demeria, 10 years
Cameron Popiel, 5 years
Jordon Steiner, 5 years
Mitchell Kanton, 5 years
Devin Kiesman, years
Chris Davidson, 5 years
Sabrina Anderson, 5 year

Three other important awards were also announced, but are to be handed out at a later date:

Wayne Wells will receive the Manitoba Association Of Fire Chiefs Long Service Award for 35 years of service
Alvin Bogoslowski will receive the Governor General's Exemplary Service award after 40 years of service
David Clark will receive a Retirement Plaque after 34 years of service

Fire Chief Abrey was able to speak about the event and its long-standing heritage:

The Appreciation Dinner, we look back into our history, and we see record of it happening in the 1950s, so this has been a long-standing event where, at that time, the town of Dauphin, which progressed in the city and rural municipality of Dauphin, have come together to recognize the achievements of our firefighters.

Picture from the Appreciation Dinner

While it was awarded last year at this event due to pandemic delays, Dauphin's Firefighter Of The Year award will be given out at the Firefighters Ball later this year on November 4th.

Details: Contributed by Michael Brossart; Published: Mar 8, 2023 - 9:35 pm

Update published at 5:38 pm on March 8th, 2023:

Seril Mazawasicuna has been arrested. Virden RCMP announced the arrest this afternoon, after a week and a half of searching for Mazawasicuna.

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Original article published at 4:09 pm Mar 6th, 2023:

The Virden RCMP has arrested two adult females and the search for an adult male continues.

On February 24, Virden RCMP received a report of an injured person, being held against their will by a male, on the Sioux Valley Dakota First Nation. The victim was located, but the suspect fled prior to police arrival.

As a result, the RCMP continues to search for Seril Mazawasicuna, a 32-year-old male from the Sioux Valley Dakota First Nation. He's facing 16 charges, including Assault with a Weapon, Forcible Confinement, Pointing a Firearm, and Assault Causing Bodily Harm.

On March 2, the RCMP arrested Tanya Hunter, 34 years old and Whitney Mazawasicuna, 37 years old, both of the Sioux Valley Dakota First Nation. They are facing charges of Assault, Resisting Arrest, and Obstruction.

If you have any information on Seril's whereabouts, you're asked to contact your local RCMP detachment immediately.

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Mar 8, 2023 - 3:38 pm

It's going to be a busy day for the Parkland Chamber of Commerce as three events are all going to be hosted on march 14th in the Aspen Lodge.

The events will kick off with the Chamber Appreciation Lunch, followed closely by the Annual General Meeting.

Shortly after that, The Parkland Chamber of Commerce's Annual Appreciation Awards will be taking place. The Awards showcase the people and businesses that make the Parkland a better place.

Stephen Chychota, the Chamber executive director, is organizing the event and is ready to highlight the community members being celebrated.

"In the evening, will be our chamber celebration night. That's where we go over to the Countryfest Community Cinema, we look at celebrating some award categories with some of the nominated individuals and organizations that we put the callout late last year for, go through that list, and show off our winners. Just overall celebrate with everyone."

All are welcome to attend the events, and tickets are available online for purchase.

For tickets, and more information, check out this link, or contact chamber executive director Stephen Chychota at 204-622-3140.

Details: Contributed by Michael Brossart; Published: Mar 8, 2023 - 6:00 am

The Manitoba Government released a full description of this year's Provincial budget, totaling $21.9 billion, and many historic investments are on the way.

The press release began by outlining the new, and largest personal income tax reduction in Manitoba's history. Changes to the Provincial Basic Personal Amount will ensure that Manitobans won't pay a cent of income tax on the first $15,000 they earn in 2023. Further tax relief was outlined for 2024, in which the lowest tax rate will then apply to the first $47,000 of income, and the second rate will apply to income between $47,000 and $100,000.

That means more of Manitobans’ money will be taxed at lower rates. Combined, both income tax changes will save an individual taxpayer up to $1,399 in 2024.

In an effort to support the healthcare system, $7.9 billion will be going towards several key investments. These investments include adding more space to 9 hospitals and healthcare locations, reducing surgery wait times, and expanding coverage on insulin pumps and hearing aids.

Manitoba's education system will see the largest boost to its funding in 25 years, with $1.7 billion going towards K-12 programs, creating 23,000 childcare spaces, and the recently announced $10-a-day childcare program.

Finance Minister Cliff Cullen stressed this budget's focus on supporting the well-being of Manitoba families.

Budget 2023 will help people across all areas of family and community life while we work hard to create economic opportunities, This budget is about doing everything possible for Manitobans at a time when they need it most.”

Overall, this year's budget announcements had themes of historic changes, safer streets, a healthier healthcare system, and community growth for everyone in Manitoba.

For a full review of the budget announcements, watch the full press release, or read the news release at the links provided.