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UPDATE: Ocean Stevenson has been found safe and sound. The Yorkton RCMP would like to thank the public for their help.
Yesterday Yorkton RCMP received reports of a missing 22-year-old female.
Ocean Stevenson was last seen on Saturday January 22 in Yorkton and is described as approximately 5’8” and 180 lbs with medium-length brown hair and brown eyes.
She also has a nose piercing and a triangle tattoo on her finger. She was last seen wearing black sweatpants, a green jacket with fur on the hood and had a duffle bag with her.
The RCMP says Ocean has connections to the Saskatoon, Regina and Cote First Nation areas.
If anyone has information on Ocean's whereabouts, contact the Yorkton RCMP at 306-786-2400 or by calling Crime Stoppers anonymously by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or submitting a tip online here.
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- Contributed by Eric Fawx
Dauphin RCMP received a missing person report for Luc Desruisseaux on January 23rd. The 71-year-old from Fork River Manitoba was last seen in October 2021. His family says it's not unusual for him to be out of touch for periods of time, but nobody can reach him and he has not returned to his home since he was last seen.
Desruisseaux was driving a red extended cab Ford F-250 with lots of rust around the rear wheel wells. He has family in the Edmonton, Alberta area and friends in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of Quebec.
Desruisseaux is described as Caucasian, 5’8” tall, 215 pounds, with brown eyes and long brown hair.
If you have information, please call Dauphin RCMP at 204-622-5020, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or secure tip online here.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
A decrease in the primary gas rate for Manitobans has been approved by the Public Utilities Board and will come into effect next week. The change is expected to cut the typical residential customers bill down by 14.2 percent, which amounts to about $121 a year
The gas rates will be reviewed again on May first of this year according to the Public Utilities Board.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
Manitoba Ag Days are now planning towards 2023.
On Tuesday, the show announced it would be cancelled this year because of restrictions put in place and the unknown of when those restrictions would be lessened.
"It's just one of those things that we don't know what the future holds," said Kristen Phillips, Ag Days GM. "There is no handbook when it comes to the re-opening plan and such. We didn't want to but we had to make this decision."
They worked with the Keystone Centre to try and find an alternate date in February or March but were unable to find one that would work to host their traditional three-day show.
Next year's show will take place from January 17 to 19 at the Keystone Centre in Brandon.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
The Chief and council of Minegoziibe Anishinabe (formerly Pine Creek First Nation) filed a lawsuit in the Court of Queen’s Bench to stop the logging being done by Louisiana Pacific within their traditional lands which includes Duck Mountain Provincial Park and Provincial Forest.
The lawsuit is happening until the Government of Manitoba will conduct consultations with indigenous people after it hasn’t been consulted about the forest management rights for over 15 years.
Minegoziibe Anishinabe, which is 110 kilometres north of Dauphin, filed the lawsuit on behalf of the 4,000 Anishinaabeg members.
The group says the logging has been a long-standing issue with concerns about the decreasing population of animals such as moose across the area since 1995 which caused the province to no longer allow moose hunting in the area since 2011.
Right now Duck Mountain is the only provincial park that allows commercial timber harvesting with the first Forest Management Plan for the area being authorized back in 1996 and was supposed to be revisited after 10 years.
During that time Louisiana-Pacific submitted a plan for an additional 20 years which wasn’t approved by the province but in 2012 the Lieutenant Governor authorized Manitoba and their conservation minister to extend the term of the original contract which happened multiple times until the most recent one at the end of 2021.
The lawsuit wants the court to stop the current extension and wants Louisiana-Pacific to not be allowed to continue logging until they have consulted with the First Nation directly.
The case will be in front of a judge on February 8 and we will continue to have more updates as they are released.
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- Contributed by Eric Fawx
James Flatfoot, 34 of Pine Creek, has died while in custody at Stoney Mountain Institution. Flatfoot was sentenced to five years, three months, and 22 days on December 16, 2021. Flatfoot was charged with robbery, possession and use of a firearm, and flight from a peace officer.
Correctional Service Canada is investigating the circumstances around the death, as it does in all cases involving the death of an inmate.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
If you're wanting to take part in the 'Freedom Convoy' and you're in Dauphin or the area, you can have that chance. Dustin Taylor made a post on Facebook Monday night that a group is planning to meet at Walmart in Dauphin between 7:30 and 7:45 in Dauphin on Tuesday morning.
The convoy is expected to reach Brandon at around noon. The group from Dauphin will first head to Neepawa before heading to Brandon.
Dustin said he has $500 pre-paid fuel cards for up to 20 trucks that are willing to make the trip.
"I feel like a farmer, we need to support something where there is some unity again," said Taylor.
The post from Dustin has garnered a ton of support from locals.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
The Manitoba Farmer Wellness Program is being introduced in the province and if you're a farmer and are struggling with mental health, it could be for you.
The program is aimed at providing mental health support for farmers and their families. It's been designed to provide one-on-one counselling sessions from professional counsellors with a background in agriculture to farmers and their families.
Gerry Friesen is a board member with the program.
"It's been something that has been talked about for a number of years," said Friesen. "Finally about a year ago, a group of us came together and came up with what we have today."
Farmers and their immediate family members can access six free, confidential (one hour) counselling sessions with a registered and skilled counsellor with a background in agriculture, funded by the Manitoba Farmer Wellness Program. Services will be available during the day, evenings or on weekends to accommodate farmers' schedules and can be in person, on the phone or video chat depending on the farmer's preference.
"It's pretty simple, a farm wouldn't be a farm without farmers," said Friesen. "As someone that has battled mental health problems, this is a much-needed service and I'm glad that it's going to be offered."
Services will officially begin being offered in March and if you're interested in these services, head to Manitoba Wellness Farmers Program.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
This evening Dauphin City Council met for their second meeting of the month at City Hall with some of the council in person and a few live on zoom due to COVID-19 restrictions in place for distancing.
The highlights from this meeting included the appointment of Devin Shtykalo as the 2022 Deputy Mayor who will be taking over at the position after it was previously held by councillor Rodney Juba. Mayor Christian Laughland thanked councilor Juba for all his input, hard work and assistance as the Deputy Mayor.
The council also discussed the following throughout this meeting:
- The City of Dauphin proclaimed that Wednesday January 26th will be Bell Let’s Talk Day. This Wednesday marks the 12th annual Bell Let’s Talk Day which brings to light the importance of mental health resources that are available. The city encourages residents of the city to join the conversation through #BellLetsTalk calls, texts, and social media posts to help drive Bells donations to mental health above the commitment of 155 million dollars.
- The City of Dauphin proclaims February 2022 as Heart Month in recognition of Heart & Stroke’s mission to prevent heart disease, save lives and promote recovery from heart and stroke diseases. The council commends the thousands of volunteers, staff, and researchers of Heart & Stroke for all their commitment and dedication and wishes them continued success in fundraising throughout the month of February in a different way than usual due to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.
- The council recognizes the Inter-Mountain Watershed District (IMWD) and the environmental benefits that trees provide and that the IMWD will offer young tree seedlings at minimal cost to landowners within the district’s boundaries. Applications can be found on the IMWD website or from their office in Ethelbert and Ste. Rose. You can find the website here.
- The council also discussed a letter of support for a grant application through the provincial Building Sustainable Communities fund for the Dauphin Neighbourhood Renewal Corps pilot project that would last 2 months which would include:
- Accessible rides (Van) for residents of Dauphin
- Transit type pickups (one pass through the community in the morning and one in the afternoon)
- Transportation (free or for a small fee) to low-income families and seniors for medical appointments and shopping.
During the councillor privileges, councillor Juba mentioned the progress that Habitat for Humanity’s Dauphin chapter has had over the month of January and all the hard work the committee has put in with the Meaning of Home initiative that helps students raise money for the local build. Councilor Juba also mentioned that they hope to be able to commence the build in March.
On top of this, all the councillors mentioned the importance of Bell Let’s Talk Day and mental health support as well as the hard work that the Dauphin Health Auxiliary Board put in to help the community over the 120+ years it was around before it disbanded.
Youth Council member Katherine Kowalchuk also had a chance to give an update on what she has been up to over the past month which includes volunteering at the Parkland Humane Society on Mondays, working on schoolwork as she nears the end of the first semester of Grade 12, teaching swimming lessons to kids aged 5-13 over the Christmas holidays and continuing to be a lifeguard at Dauphin Recreation Services.
The next scheduled city council meeting will be at Dauphin City Hall on Monday February 14 at 5 pm and can be viewed on the live stream on the City of Dauphin YouTube page here.
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- Contributed by Eric Fawx
Steve Shand, the man charged with transporting or attempting to transport illegal immigrants, in connection to the four bodies found by the Canada-U.S. border in Manitoba last week, has been released from custody with conditions.
Per the conditions of his release, Shand will have to surrender all of his travel documents, refrain from obtaining any others, and stay in the district of Florida where he lives with the exception of attending court. He also needs to report any interactions with police, refrain from committing any crimes, and not be in possession of any weapons.
Shand was arrested on January 19th, 2022, by U.S. Border Patrol, when they stopped a 15-person van that he was driving. Inside the van were two passengers who did not have documentation.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell
The Manitoba government is getting its 2022 budget ready and they want input from the public. Finance Minister, Cameron Friesen, is hosting virtual events to get public feedback about this year's provincial budget.
The virtual public engagement event for Rural Manitoba is Tomorrow at 6:30 pm, you can register online here, or on the phone by calling 1-866-626-4862.
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- Contributed by Sam Brownell