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Bob Podolski is already running about two weeks behind normal and now he's hoping for a miracle.
Podolski Honey Farms began extracting honey from its apiary earlier this month; however, they have found very little in the hives. In a normal year, about 750-850,000 pounds of honey is extracted. This year, they won't be anywhere close to that.
"If we get one-quarter of our normal crop, it will almost be considered a miracle," said Podolski. "It has been a struggle. What could have gone wrong has gone wrong, it's been poor. What do you do, just take it as it comes."
Podolski isn't the only beekeeper struggling; it's been widely documented that bee colonies across the country have been ravaged. Podolski said a solution would be getting bees from the United States; however, it isn't as easy as that. Under current regulations only certified queen bees can be imported from the U.S.
When talking about the stock from the United States, Podolski doesn't understand the current regulations
"They're clean and good stock and it's cleaner than the stock that we're bringing in from Australia," offered Podolski. "There might be programs but you know how it goes, it takes time to see the funds."
Bob has said that if they don't receive a replacement stock from the continental U.S. he doesn't see a future for his sons who are in line to take over. Podolski has been in the business for 47 years.
"It's the harsh reality, unfortunately," said Podolski. "If we don't get the stock, why would we want to bring old bees from across the globe here? I think to myself, who is more productive... a 20-year-old man or a 75-year-old man? The U.S. stock is much cleaner and there have been tests to prove it."
According to an associate professor of entomology at the University of Manitoba, bee losses are in the 40 percent range for parts of the country; however, Manitoba is much higher at about 57 percent. Another reason for the loss of so many bees is the varroa mite, an invasive parasite.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
The Dauphin RCMP have released photos of a suspect in the series of recent arsons in the city. The photos and full press release are below:
On August 1, 2022, at approximately 11:45 pm, Dauphin RCMP responded to an alarm call at a business located on 3rd Avenue NE in Dauphin. Upon arrival, officers observed smoke coming from the building which they were able to quickly extinguish before it could spread.
Throughout the morning, officers responded to three additional fire calls. At 1:10 am, a vehicle was reported on fire on 3rd Avenue SE, a 6:05 am, another vehicle fire in the 500 block of Main Street and at 8:15 am, an attempted arson took place at a business located on 3rd Avenue NW. No injuries were reported.
Surveillance footage obtained captured images of a suspect being sought by the Dauphin RCMP.
Anyone with information in regards to the identity of this individual or in relation to these fires is asked to contact the Dauphin RCMP at 204-622-5050 or call Manitoba Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, submit a secure tip online at www.manitobacrimestoppers.com or text “TIPMAN” plus your message to CRIMES (274637).
Dauphin RCMP continue to investigate.
Suspect photo #1 (from Dauphin RCMP)
Suspect photo #2 (from Dauphin RCMP)
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- Contributed by Alec Woolston
The Manitoba government recently announced grants totalling $627,070 devoted to heritage projects in the province.
In the Parkland, the Watson Arts Centre, the South Bay School near Winnipegosis, and the Union Bank building in Hamiota were included in the grants.
The Watson Arts Centre will get $25,000 for window repairs and upgrades. The South Bay School is to receive $3,530 for exterior painting and the Union Bank building is getting $3,715 for window restoration and masonry repairs.
The Heritage Resources Conservation Grant provides funding to support projects that show a commitment to the conservation and long-term sustainability of legally protected heritage sites.
Owners or long-term lessees of heritage sites as well as municipal governments, professional associations or non-profit organizations that manage heritage sites can apply for funding for eligible projects related to research, conservation planning, capital projects, endowments and long-term maintenance or education and training.
Applications are assessed based on the following:
- importance of the project to the overall heritage conservation goals;
- quality of the proposed work;
- ability of the applicant to complete the project;
- financial need of the applicant; and
- community benefit of the project.
For more information on the Heritage Resources Conservation Grant, click here. The list of grant recipients can be found here.
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- Contributed by Alec Woolston
A Neepawa RCMP officer was involved in a collision with an SUV while they were on patrol near Minnedosa last Saturday.
At around 9:15 a.m., the police vehicle was travelling westbound on Highway 16 and began to slow down as it was approaching the stop sign at the intersection of Highway 16 and Highway 10 when it was struck by the SUV.
The RCMP's initial investigation determined that the SUV was travelling northbound on Highway 10 and then took the yield east onto Highway 16. As the driver performed the manoeuvre, they took the turn too fast and crossed the dividing line, thus striking the police vehicle.
The 16-year-old female driver from Brandon and the RCMP officer both ended up with non-life-threatening injuries and were transported to hospital.
Both of them have since been released and an investigation is underway with the assistance of an RCMP forensic collision reconstructionist and the RCMP Criminal Collision Investigative Team.
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- Contributed by Nicholas Iatropoulos
Love is love. That was the message that was in full display on Saturday in Winnipegosis.
For the first time, members of the community hosted a Pride event as the town gathered to celebrate its LGBTQ community.
Starting the day with hot dog carts, face painting and tattoos, a parade took centre stage with floats later in the afternoon. Then at night, the Mossey River Inn hosted a dinner with 101 tickets being sold and 97 people showing up for the dinner. Following that, a drag show concluded the evening, one that will go down as one to remember.
Many of the people that attended the event were from Winnipegosis; however, many came in from Dauphin even Brandon. Jordan Hucaluk, vice president of the planning committee, says he's grateful that people from other communities across Manitoba showed interest.
"It was absolutely amazing, I couldn't ask for anything more," said Hucaluk. "There were so many new faces and that was great to see. It was such a special day and I'm so glad that we decided to make it happen."
Preparations for the day began about six months ago and the executive committee included Cyndie Blythe who moved to the area alongside her wife Alison Carleton five years ago from the United States.
Jordan himself came out as openly gay not long ago after holding it a secret for more than 22 years. He says no one should have to hold that in.
"I was scared for 22 years but the day that I came out, it was like a gravel truck was driven off my chest, I could breathe better," said Hucaluk. "You may think you're alone but that is not the case, we are here and you're loved and will be supported."
Jordan has even said if you are struggling, you can get in touch with him on Facebook. Hucaluk also confirmed that another Pride event will be held next year and he can't wait to begin planning.
"We will be back to share the love, that's a guarantee," ended Hucaluk.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
The Pine Creek First Nation has asked the RCMP to investigate after 14 anomalies were discovered a metre below the earth.
The site of the former residential school site was searched last month by AltoMaxx, a British Columbia-based company. Results were received by the First Nation on August 2.
Six other anomalies were found by AltoMaxx prior and were shared with the community in June, bringing the total to 20 anomalies. Now the 20 anomalies aren't guaranteed to be those of unmarked graves, that's why Nepinak is wanting a more thorough search.
Anomalies in the soil are said to be between three-to-four feet in length. They are; however, consistent with other ground searches of unmarked burials in Canada and elsewhere.
AltoMaxx has since returned to the site to do a broader search and further reports are expected in the coming weeks.
We've reached out to Chief Nepinak for comment, this is a developing story.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
A major infrastructure announcement was made today regarding upgrades and an expansion to Dauphin's lagoon and wastewater treatment facility.
The money will come from the provincial and federal governments and is part of $34,400,000 in funds that will go to 10 wastewater and waste management projects in Manitoba.
The work to be done will include constructing and upgrading a lagoon reactor system, building a new sewage treatment facility, and installing new pipes.
"This kind of infrastructure is fundamental to the community, to the city... this has been sought after for a number of years already, but again, this kind of infrastructure paves the way for growth and development, population growth. It's important to have these investments put in place to attract business and to attract investment in our region and our city", said MLA for Dauphin, Brad Michaleski.
Dauphin's Mayor Christian Laughland was also at the announcement, “This is a great day for the City of Dauphin. We identified the need to expand our lagoon over a decade ago, so we are excited to see this investment through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) for the project. Completion of the lagoon expansion will allow Dauphin to grow our population and industry. We are grateful to our partners, the Government of Canada and the Province of Manitoba, for supporting this initiative.”
In total, $9,100,000 will be provided for the project from the Manitoba and federal governments.
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- Contributed by Alec Woolston
A 41-year-old man has been arrested and faces several charges after a drug bust in Dauphin.
On August 4, the Manitoba West District Crime Reduction Enforcement Support Team (CREST) unit conducted a traffic spot on Kerr Avenue in Dauphin.
Officers arrested Sean Stacey Bouchie for Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking. A backpack belonging to him had 61 grams of methamphetamine, 7 grams of cocaine, a small quantity of purple down, cash and gift cards in it, all of which were seized.
He has been charged with Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking x2, Possession of Property Obtained by Crime and Possession of Proceeds of Crime. He will appear in court on November 15.
RCMP urges anyone who may have any information regarding drugs or any other criminal activity, to please contact your local police agency or call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or submit a secure tip online at Crime Stoppers.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
Two floors were evacuated after a fire started burning in the laundry room at Parkview Lodge on 2nd Ave. N.E. yesterday morning.
It started with the Dauphin Fire Department responding to a report of general fire alarms sounding at the building just before 1 a.m.
When fire crews got there, they were met by occupants of the building and security who said that someone had pulled a pull station, thus activating the alarm system. However, a quick check of the alarm panel revealed that a heat detector on the tenth floor was activated.
They then went to the tenth floor, where they saw the fire in the laundry room with heavy smoke entering the hallway.
Firefighters evacuated the tenth and eleventh floors while they put out the blaze.
After putting it out, they inspected the remaining floors to make sure the building was safe.
According to the Dauphin Fire Dept., the cause of the fire remains under investigation and nobody was injured.
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- Contributed by Nicholas Iatropoulos
17-year-old Adam Cochrane from Bacon Ridge in the R.M. of Alonsa was reported missing.
He is described as 5-foot-8, 115 lbs, with brown eyes and a slender build.
There is a chance that he may be in Winnipeg.
Anyone with information is being asked to call the Ste. Rose du Lac RCMP at 204-447-2513.
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- Contributed by Nicholas Iatropoulos
The Ukrainian Patriot was started just five days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Since then, they've been able to collect countless non-lethal military supplies for those on the front lines.
Lana Niland was originally from Saskatoon but has been living in Ukraine for years. She was at Canada's National Ukrainian Festival and spoke about everything the fund has been doing.
"At this moment I would say that our biggest focus is making sure that we have IFACK's which are individual first aids kits for anybody who's really quite close to the front line. In that includes things like tourniquets, hemostatic, bandages, gauze, anything that would keep someone alive if they were to receive some hit of some kind, to get them to the first level of care, get them stabilized, get them to second level, and so on and so forth."
Niland says they've also been able to supply assistance to people trying to flee areas of conflict.
"We are also making sure that anybody who needs an evacuation out of these really hard hit areas is able to get one. So we have drivers and we've established a small fleet of vehicles actually that not just brings aid into and distributes throughout the country, but is also going into these really really hot areas to bring people out and then get them to safety as well."
Ukrainian Patriot is still taking donations through their website to make sure they're able to continue helping people on the ground in Ukraine.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
