Passing motorist finds vehicle/driver down an embankment

RCMP Alberta photo

RCMP Alberta - On September 29, 2016 at around 10:30 pm a member of the public travelling on Highway 663 near Caslan, AB noticed what they believed to be a vehicle down an embankment. Concerned, the individual contacted the Boyle RCMP who attended to investigate. Upon arrival, the RCMP member confirmed that a truck had driven off of the highway and down the embankment where it became lodged in trees. The truck was barely visible and was located approximately 50 feet from the roadway.

2016 SWJHAA Cross Country races held in Pincher Creek

2016 SWJHAA Cross Country Medalists

Pincher Creek's St. Michael's and Matthew Halton High schools hosted South Western Junior High Athletic Association (SWJHAA) 2016 cross country races on Wednesday, September 28. 71 junior high athletes participated, not including the many organizers and volunteers who were also kept running during the event. Also participating in a longer fun run were 10 athletes from local schools (MHHS, STM, LHS) Participating schools included Pincher Creek's Matthew Halton High School (MHHS) and St. Michael's (STM), Piikani Nation Secondary School (PNSS), Lundbreck's Livingstone High School (LHS), Nanton's J.T.Foster High School (JT), Claresholm's Willow Creek Composite High School (WCCHS), and Crowsnest Consolidated High School (CNP).

Fatal MVC south of High River

RCMP Alberta - At 11:55 p.m. on September 29, 2016, High River RCMP were dispatched to a serious two vehicle collision on Highway 2, approximately six kilometres south of High River.  Preliminary investigation reveals that an SUV travelling northbound collided head-on with a car travelling southbound.  The female driver of the car has been confirmed deceased, and the 32-year-old male driver of the SUV has been transported via STARS air ambulance to a Calgary Hospital.

Matthew Halton High School hosts post secondary scholastic fair

NAIT Rep. B.A. Carly Livingstone

Toni Lucas - Matthew Halton Gym was the site of a post secondary scholastic fair of Thursday, September 22. At one point in the evening there were over 150 people in the gym looking to improve their understanding of their educational future. Representatives from members of the Educational Liaison Association of Alberta were on hand to help guide anyone who was ready to look for answers to questions like:  'What happens after I graduate?' 'My interests are __, how do I make that a career?' and 'How do I apply?'.  Whether the student has already had a good understanding of which post secondary path they wish to pursue or are still searching for what they think their best career path and campus to suit them, there were recruiters from the representative campuses ready to answer questions.

Getting to and from school safely

Amanda Poll, Health Promotion Facilitator - Back to school - everything in September is focused on youth getting back into the classroom and back into routine, but it is important that we ensure that kids remain safe as they transition from summer holidays to the classroom.

Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner voter information cards are in the mail

Elections Canada - Registered electors in Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner should receive their card by Wednesday, October 5.  Elections Canada is mailing a personalized voter information card to each registered elector in Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner (Alberta). The card tells electors when and where to vote and indicates the accessibility of their polling place.

Barlow endorses Scheer for federal Conservative leadership

Andrew Scheer press conference - Scheer centre, MP Barlow far right (submitted photo)

press release - John Barlow, MP for Foothills, released the following statement today:

"I am pleased to announce today that I am supporting Andrew Scheer for leader of the Conservative Party of Canada.  Andrew is principled, bilingual, and he can unite our party. He is the clear choice to lead the federal Conservative movement.

Alberta minimum wage to increase on Oct. 1

Alberta’s general minimum wage will increase from $11.20 to $12.20 per hour effective October 1. The lower liquor server rate of $10.70 per hour will also be eliminated on that date. The increase is the second in a series designed to culminate in a $15 per hour minimum wage by 2018. The lower minimum wage for liquor servers will also be eliminated.

Alt-country songwriter Kevin Roy to perform in Twin Butte

Kevin Roy (Chris P. Bakon photo)

Toni Lucas - Winnipeg alt-country musician Kevin Roy is touring his debut album Heartworn Highways, and will be performing at the Twin Butte Store on Saturday evening, October 1. His touring band consists of Roy on vocals, guitar, and harmonica, Madeleine Roger providing harmony and guitar, and pedal steel guitar player Ian Cameron.

Grassy Mountain coal mining project update

Riversdale Resources photo of Grassy Mountain

Toni Lucas - Riversdale Resources Community Liaison Keith Bott made a presentation to Pincher Creek Town council  during council's regular meeting on Monday evening, September 26.  He was there to inform council about the progress of the Grassy Mountain Coal Project.

Be Bear Smart in Pincher Creek

Jared Thompson file photo

Town of Pincher Creek - There have been a few bear sightings this fall in Pincher, please do your part to help remove wildlife attractants.

Second pop-up health hub planned for north Lethbridge

• Residents can see a family physician, access services at one-stop event

Alberta Health Services - A second health and community services pop-up event is scheduled for Oct. 5, giving residents of north Lethbridge access health services such as home care services, a family physician, lab services, and addiction and mental health services.

Fatal Turner Valley MVC

RCMP Alberta – On September 27 at 10:06 a.m., Turner Valley RCMP responded to a single vehicle rollover southwest of Turner Valley on 208 Street West. The SUV was travelling southbound on a gravel road when it left the road, and rolled in the east ditch. There were three occupants in the SUV; two of them were ejected from the vehicle. The 20-year-old female driver was pronounced deceased on scene. The 20-year-old female and 21-year-old male passengers were transported via ground ambulance to a Calgary hospital. The RCMP will not be releasing the names of the persons involved in this collision.

Over 200 participants at second annual Moonshadow Run

Toni Lucas - Pincher Creek's second annual Moonshadow run was held on the evening of Saturday, September 17, with a full moon scheduled. The evening was a little chilly and perfect running weather. Three different runs took place: a 2.5 km run, a 5 km run, and a 10 km run. The event was timed so that runners would see the sunset in the western skies, and would have seen the full moon in the east if the cloud cover had not been so heavy.

Fentanyl awareness

RCMP Alberta - The Airdrie RCMP is reaching out to inform citizens of the negative impacts the illegal use of the drug Fentanyl is causing in their community. Statistics show in 2015 the Airdrie RCMP responded to approximately 18 calls directly related to Fentanyl, and in 2016, the stats are already on the rise, with 23 related reports as of today’s date of September 27, 2016. Occurrence types include crime prevention, mental health act, possession of controlled substance, assistance to ambulance, information files, assault, and many more. There have been two reported deaths believed to be Fentanyl related, a recent from 2016 which is still under investigation and the other from 2015 which has been confirmed as a fentanyl overdose.

Stroller damaged in Cochrane hit and run

RCMP Alberta - At approximately 12:50 PM the Cochrane RCMP received a call of a hit and run in the Wal-Mart parking lot located on Quarry Road in the town of Cochrane.  A mother had parked and set up her stroller and was in the process of getting her child out of her parked vehicle when her vehicle was struck by another vehicle. The mother quickly looked and realized that the other vehicle had also struck her stroller knocking it over and damaging it. Thankfully her child was still in the vehicle and there was no injuries to the mother or the child. The mother made eye contact with the driver and made motions for her to speak to her about the damage to the vehicle and stroller but the other driver quickly left.

September 2016 report on Pincher Creek's councils

Headlines:

Beaver Mines Trail moves forward

Regional water system intake relocation bid accepted

Town declines to cover condo infrastructure

Wandering livestock

Chamber asks Town and MD for awards night donations

Riversdale Resources update

STARS funding discussed

MD approves conservation easements

Stevick to attend Castle Management Plan Working Group

Snow stops for MD administration building

Emergency road repairs in the MD

Sartoris Road awaiting AEP approval for road realignment

Recycling Depot operations agreement renewal

Waterton Ave. sanitary pipeline project to proceed

ORRSC aerial photo project participation passed

September 30 is Orange Shirt Day in Pincher Creek

CBC tower on Town land

Oxeye daisy concern

Town AltaGas franchise fees to remain unchanged

New Town Fortis franchise fees bylaw passed

Apples

Beaver Mines potable water distribution and sanitary collection project update

Chris Davis - At their September 27 meeting council for the MD of Pincher Creek considered a recommendation by Director of Operations Leo Reedyk to authorize a contract with MPE Engineering Ltd for detailed design and tender work for the Beaver Mines Potable Water Distribution and Sanitary Collection Engineering project, with funding of $480,000 in funding to come from the Regional Water Infrastructure Reserve.

Pincher Creek Emergency Services Commission moves forward

Chris Davis - At their September 13 meeting. during an in camera session. council for the MD of Pincher Creek agreed to sign the membership agreement for establishing the Pincher Creek Emergency Services Commission.

CBSA Prairie is now on Twitter

Canada Border Services Agency - The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) Prairie Region is now live on Twitter! Subscribe to @canborderpra and stay current with local CBSA news and significant enforcement actions, travel tips and more. Be in the know on latest initiatives our officers are involved with in the community. We will provide you with the latest CBSA related content from Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories.

Pincher Creek RCMP summary for Sept. 19-25, 2016

RCMP Pincher Creek - The following is an overview of the nature of the complaints that the Pincher Creek Detachment received for the period of September 19-25, 2016. Note that the summary indicates what was reported to the police and may not have been substantiated.

Total calls for service - 42

Assaults – 2

Fraud / Forgery - 1

Uttering Threats - 1

Mischief (vandalism) - 3

Theft under $5000 - 1

Drugs - 1

Driving complaints (general) – 6

MV Collisions - 1

Liquor offences - 3

Assistance to General Public (general) - 3

Assistance to other agencies - 2

False Alarms - 3

911 calls (invalid) - 2

Animal calls - 6

Prisoners held – 5

Outlaw biker investigation in Fort McMurray (updated)

ALERT- ALERT and RCMP Wood Buffalo have conducted a joint forces investigation into outlaw motorcycle groups operating in Fort McMurray.  The investigation is in relation to an alleged conflict between the Fort McMurray chapters of the Warlocks and the Syndicate, a Hells Angels support club. Beginning in late August, there have been a number of criminal incidents believed to be linked to this conflict. Those incidents remain under active investigation.

Inappropriate access investigation prompts AHS patient notification

Alberta Health Services - Following the conclusion of a privacy investigation, Alberta Health Services (AHS) is notifying 1,309 Albertans that their health information was inappropriately accessed by a former AHS employee. An additional 11,539 individuals will also be notified that their demographic information was viewed by this same former employee. These notifications will be completed through direct-mailed letters, which will be mailed today, Monday, September 26, 2016.

In-spirited

Joyce Sasse - We get depressed when we give in to our baser nature. So many issues and problems confront us daily – issues of health, of family, of finances; issues of broken relationships, of conflict, of negativity and fear-mongering.

It happens because we are mortal beings who have to face the realities of failure, of conflict, of aging, of death … But that’s not the whole story.

Serious MVC on Hwy 22

RCMP Alberta - On September 23, 2016, at 7:19 a.m., Cochrane RCMP responded to a complaint of a serious collision on Highway 22 north of the intersection with River Heights Drive. A white Toyota SUV collided with a semi truck hauling a load of lumber. The female driver of the SUV has been identified and is a 34 year old female from Cochrane, AB. Her name will not be released at this time. This female was trapped inside her vehicle after the collision occurred. The Cochrane Fire Department removed her from the vehicle and she was transported to the Foothills Hospital via ground ambulance where she remains in serious and life threatening condition. The driver of the semi truck was not injured.

Three arrested after southern Alberta crime spree

RCMP Alberta - On September 16, 2016, the Airdrie RCMP along with assistance of the Okotoks RCMP arrested three individual responsible for a recent string of property crimes and related thefts in the Southern Alberta area. The trio were found at an Airdrie Hotel, where police located and arrested them without incident.  All three accused, 28 year old Cole McLean of High River, Alberta, 32 year old Derek Mumford of Blairmore, Alberta, and 23 year old Paige Rist of Calgary, Alberta, were charged with numerous Criminal Code offences including S. 354, Possession of Stolen Property, as well as outstanding warrants.

Chief Mountain to close for season, Wild Horse resuming normal hours

Canada Border Services Agency - The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) advises travellers that the Chief Mountain port of entry will close for the season at 6 p.m. on Friday, September 30, 2016. It will re-open for the next summer season on May 15, 2017. Chief Mountain is located along Highway 6 in Alberta.  Additionally, the Wild Horse port of entry will be resuming its regular hours (8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) on October 1, 2016. The port of Wild Horse is located 145 km (90 miles) south of Medicine Hat on Highway 41.

2016 Heritage Acres Fall Fair - upholding rural traditions

1917 Case Steam Engine

Toni Lucas - Heritage Acres hosted their fifth annual Fall Fair on Saturday, Sept. 17.  This year they had displays, demonstrations, bench exhibits, and a market with 35 vendors.  There were some new additions including a turkey shoot, a barn hunt for dogs, book readings. and other activities.

Crowsnest-Pincher Creek Landfill holds open houses about proposed incinerator project

EWS Steve Meldrum, CNPCL Emile Saindon and NSEC Cody Halleran
Photo T. Lucas, slides from CNPCL management presentation

Toni Lucas - Crowsnest-Pincher Creek Landfill (CNPCL) hosted a series of three open houses in Blairmore, Lundbreck and Pincher Creek regarding the possibility of installing and operating a two-stage combustion biomass incinerator at the landfill site from September 12-15. In total 87 people attended. CNPCL plans to apply in January, 2017 to Alberta Environment and Parks for approval to run an incinerator. CNPCL administration estimates it will take at least 2 years to get approval and start the project.

Western Feedlots to suspend operations

Christian Davis - Alberta's Western Feedlots Ltd. is a custom cattle feeder operating feedlots near Strathmore, High River, and Mossleigh. According to their website, "Western Feedlots Ltd.’s shareholders have decided to voluntarily wind down cattle ownership and cattle feeding operations. Western will continue to feed and market the existing cattle and after they are marketed, Western will be suspending feedlot operations. Western will not be hiring employees, or purchasing feed grain or feeder cattle after that time. Western will continue farming operations for the foreseeable future."

Electors in Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner have several voting options

Elections Canada - For the by-election now underway in Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner (Alberta), electors can choose the voting option that best suits their schedule.

Pincher Creek RCMP summary for Sept. 13-19, 2016

Pincher Creek RCMP - The following is an overview of the nature of the complaints that the Pincher Creek Detachment received for the period of September 13-19, 2016. Note that the summary indicates what was reported to the police and may not have been substantiated.

Total calls for service - 38

Assaults – 1

Uttering Threats - 2

Mischief (vandalism) - 3

Theft under $5000 - 3

Impaired Driving - 3

Disturbing the Peace - 3

Driving complaints general) – 2

MV Collisions - 8

Liquor offences - 4

Suspicious occurrences (general) - 2

Prisoners held – 4

Wildlife needs room in the Castle - CCWC

Castle-Crown Wilderness Coalition - Global Forest Watch Canada's September 20, 2016 report highlights how human disturbance has significantly reduced wildlife habitat in the proposed Castle Parks. The report found there is only 1.54km2 of secure Grizzly Bear habitat in the provincial park and confirms that all westslope cutthroat trout and bull trout critical habitats in both proposed parks are located in areas of high human disturbance. This level of human disturbance exceeds any acceptable thresholds for wildlife.

Conservatives demand immediate action on Energy East

Office of John Barlow, MP - Conservative Members of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources, Mark Strahl, Critic for Natural Resources, John Barlow, MP for Foothills, and Shannon Stubbs, MP for Lakeland, are calling on the Minister of Natural Resources to stand up for energy workers and immediately restart the pipeline review process for the proposed Energy East pipeline.

University of Lethbridge hits record enrollment figure

University of Lethbridge - A burgeoning research reputation, a student-centred learning experience and a continuing commitment to First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) education has resonated with students, pushing University of Lethbridge enrollment to a record high for the Fall 2016 semester.

AHS launches Academy for Tobacco Prevention

• New interactive resource another tool to help prevent tobacco use among youth 

Alberta Health Services -  Teachers across the province now have access to a new resource to support the delivery of tobacco prevention education with today’s launch of the Academy for Tobacco Prevention.

Town of Pincher Creek waives Dolphins annual swim meet fees

Toni Lucas - Council for the Town of Pincher Creek held a regular meeting on Monday evening, September 12. During this meeting they discussed a request from the Pincher Creek Dolphins Swim Club for the Town to waive the Pincher Creek Pool rental fee of $1116.20 for the annual local swim meet that was held June 10-11. Councillor Doug Thornton said he could support the motion, for one year. Mayor Don Anderberg reminded the councillors that the Dolphins rent pool time throughout their entire season, and that many of the club members and their families are pool pass holders. Councillor Duane Filipuzzi suggested they may want to see if the Dolphins would like to consider adding the annual swim meet expenditure to their joint funding application costs.  Council decided to waive the fees for 2016 on a one-time basis.

Related:

• Dolphins swim club requests a waiver of swim meet fees
• Click here for more stories from Pincher Creek's councils

Scheduled public hearing and change to procedural bylaw postponed

Toni Lucas - Council for the Town of Pincher Creek held a regular meeting on Monday evening, September 12. Two items which were scheduled for the meeting had to be postponed until a later meeting due to issues with proper notification: A scheduled public hearing for area structure plan Bylaw #1313 amendment, and procedural Bylaw #1596-16 amendment. Bylaw 1313 amendment has to do with the North Hill area rezoning on Pincher Creek's north hill. Procedural Bylaw #1596-16 amendment is to change the Town council meeting procedure. Currently this bylaw says the council will begin at 6:00 pm and will adjourn at 9:30 pm unless council passes a motion no later than 9:00 pm to extend the meeting by unanimous consent. Both these issues will be brought forward at a future meeting after proper notification has been given.

Click here for more stories from Pincher Creek's councils

Drugs and firearms bust near Pincher Creek airport

RCMP Alberta - On September 21, 2016 at approximately 10:00 pm members of the Southern Alberta Emergency Response Team and the Pincher Creek RCMP executed a search warrant on a rural property located near the Pincher Creek airport. One male was located in the home and was taken into custody without incident. On September 22 an extensive search on the property was conducted with the assistance of the RCMP Special Tactical Operation team. Police located what is believe to be crack cocaine as well as several firearms. Charges are pending against several individuals associated to the property and the investigation is ongoing.

An update will be provided when new information becomes available.

Town of Pincher Creek natural gas distribution franchise fee percentage unchanged for 2017

Toni Lucas - At their regular meeting on Monday evening, September 12, council for the Town of Pincher Creek agreed to keep the natural gas distribution franchise fee percentage unchanged for 2017.  Council reviews this fee percentage annually. The maximum gas distribution franchise fee that a municipality can charge is 35% currently the percentage is 25% and has been since 2015.

Committee of the Whole meeting rescheduled to October 13.

Toni Lucas - Council for the Town of Pincher Creek held a regular meeting on Monday evening, September 12. During that meeting council decided to change the date of the regular Committee of the Whole meeting from Wednesday, October 5, to Thursday, October 13, because of scheduling conflicts with an Alberta Urban Municipalities Association Conference in Edmonton.

Click here for more stories from Pincher Creek's councils

CBSA recovers missing children at southern Alberta border in August

Canada Border Services Agency - The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) is pleased to share a sample of August highlights from its border crossings in southern Alberta.

Mustangs Football to Sept. 19. 2016

Twin Butte area rancher's solar insight

Quentin Stevick

Quentin Stevick / Oldman Watershed Council blog - When I heard that our provincial government was interested in Green Energy, Anne and I got all excited. I have been using portable solar powered water systems since about 2002 to pump water from surface locations to our cattle to provide them with clean, fresh water and to prevent pollution of water bodies by these same livestock. I have learned many things: one of which is "Energy free does not mean labour and maintenance free".

More enforcement needed on public lands - AWA

W. Howse photo

Alberta Wilderness Association - As of August 6, 2016, enforcement officials have been able to issue tickets for some violations of the Public Lands Administration Regulation. While this is a step toward providing much-needed enforcement to protect Alberta’s public land and waters, the fines are too low and the tickets only apply to a minority of public lands. Alberta Wilderness Association (AWA) believes the Government of Alberta needs to take the next step and increase fines for serious offenses and apply violation tickets to all public lands. Specified penalties allow enforcement officials to issue on-the-spot fines.

2016 Pincher Creek and District Chamber of Commerce Trade Show

Toni Lucas - The fifth annual Pincher Creek Trade Show took place on Friday September 9, and Saturday, September 10 at the MCC Arena. "We have had a very good response", said Chamber of Commerce Board member Marie Everts, one of the event organizers for. She said over 50 vendors participated, many with multiple booths.

Taber RCMP investigate fatal motor vehicle collision

RCMP Alberta - Taber RCMP and emergency services responded to a motor vehicle collision on Highway 36 south of Highway 875 by Vauxhall on Saturday, September 17, 2016 at approximately 10:30 am.  Preliminary investigation indicated a truck was driving northbound on Highway 36 when it crossed over into the southbound lane and collided with a semi-truck. At the time of the collision, the 61-year-old driver of the truck from Calgary sustained serious life threatening injuries. He was taken to hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced deceased.

Federal by-election underway in Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner

Elections Canada - A federal by-election will be held on Monday, October 24, in the electoral district of Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner (Alberta) to fill a vacancy in the House of Commons.  Elections Canada offices in this electoral district will be opened in the next few days.

Collision with moose on Highway 3 sends driver to hospital

Toni Lucas - Crowsnest Pass RCMP, Pincher Creek Emergency Services and Lundbreck Fire responded to a single vehicle collision today, Sunday September 18 at approximately 6:30 am, one kilometre west of Lundbreck on Highway 3.  The driver of the vehicle reported they had hit a moose.  The driver was the only occupant of the vehicle and was transported to Crowsnest Pass Health Centre with minor injuries.

First time away

Joyce Sasse - Big changes happen in the lives of rural students when they leave for University.

During my first Pastorate the congregation funded me to make a fall visit with students from our region attending first year University. Over supper we talked about how their ‘digs’ were, and what was happening with their studies and the rest of their lives.

Never give up

Chris Ney - We hear this kind of term all the time, from when we were little our parents would say don’t give up you can do it. We would then get more confidence and push through whatever it was that we thought would stop us and in the end when we finished we would be better for it and stronger, it also built a bit into us that we could do anything. Then all of a sudden we hit something we couldn’t do, no matter what we did it just didn’t work, we felt like failures and couldn’t understand just what happened. I know for me when this happened I sat back and thought through everything and really wondered if I was able to do anything or should I just give up. I was fortunate growing up to have people around me to pick me up when life was like that, and to a large degree I have a lot of people around now who do the same thing. Even now we can try and try but sometimes never quite get where we expected.

Glenbow's Annora Brown collection now searchable online

Snippet of "Annora Brown" from Glenbow Museum online collection search

Glenbow Museum - We are delighted to announce that thanks to a donation and fundraising effort by Joyce Sasse, Glenbow has been able to digitize 260 Annora Brown artworks from Glenbow's collection. This digitization project adds to our ongoing effort to make Glenbow’s collection more widely accessible and available for study and reference by the public.

Annora Brown

2016 Pincher Creek High School Rodeo

Christian Davis, with notes from Catherine Mitchell and Toni Lucas - The 2016 Pincher Creek High School Rodeo was supposed to be a two-day event, but an overabundance of rain overnight and into the second day forced the cancellation of most of that day's events. The first day, Saturday September 10, was blessed with better weather, despite being overcast with fairly continuous high winds that created challenges for participants, organizers, and onlookers. Local results are near the end of this article.