News

zmason@medicinehatnews.com A Calgary high school teacher launched a citizen initiative this week that would ask if the province should end its policy of allocating public funds to accredited independent schools. The approval of the petition by Alberta’s chief electoral officer this week coincides with the largest labour disruption in Alberta’s history, as teachers across the [...] Read More »

newsdesk@medicinehatnews.com On Friday afternoon at approximately 3 p.m. Cypress Country announced fire crews were at the scene of a fire in the Elkwater/Cypress Hill Provincial Park, south of the townsite. The fire was contained by responding crews from four county fire stations, Alberta Wildfire air and land crews, and additional wildfire crews from Calgary. At [...] Read More »

asmith@medicinehatnews.com Lovers of arts and ecology alike gathered at the Esplanade on Thursday to celebrate the beauty and resilience of the prairies. Built around the exhibition of Colin Starkevich’s work, titled “Forever Grasslands,” the E-talk featured a series of five panelists with different connections to the natural world that surrounds Medicine Hat and covers much [...] Read More »

newsdesk@medicinehatnews.com Medicine Hat city council unanimously passed a motion Friday to officially terminate the employment of city manager Ann Mitchell and remove her off the pay role. At the conclusion of a 50-minute closed session, a motion brought forward by Coun. Alison Van Dyke said that Mitchell, the former CAO, was found in violation of [...] Read More »

newsdesk@medicinehatnews.com City councillors unanimously passed a motion this week to establish a Southeast Alberta Economic Opportunity Strategy (SAEOS) Advocacy Committee, which will work in collaboration with five other municipalities in a five-year regional initiative. Back in 2023, Medicine Hat, in partnership with Foremost, Bow Island, Redcliff, County of Forty Mile and Cypress County, received a [...] Read More »

AMMAN — Three Newfoundland and Labrador activists have been released from Israeli detention and are en route home to Canada. Sadie Mees, Devony Ellis, and Nikita Stapleton were part of a flotilla of nine ships aiming to bring medical aid to Gaza, and break the Israeli naval blockade. According to the Gaza Freedom Flotilla group, [...] Read More »

VANCOUVER — A “beautiful experience” isn’t a term often used for a trip to an outhouse, but researchers at the University of British Columbia say the description fits for their mushroom-powered waterless toilet. It’s described as the world’s first such toilet, turning human waste into compost using mycelia, the root network of mushrooms. The MycoToilet, [...] Read More »

WINNIPEG — Governments and non-profit groups are taking time to review this year’s wildfire season and the unprecedented challenges posed by evacuating tens of thousands of people across wide swaths of the country. The Canadian Red Cross registered 52,000 people across the Prairies, Ontario and Atlantic Canada, making it the agency’s largest domestic operation in [...] Read More »

OTTAWA — The Liberal government’s efforts to revise Canada’s national security strategy hit a snag when it became clear earlier this year that many of the assumptions underlying the work were “no longer valid,” a newly released memo reveals. John Hannaford, the Privy Council clerk at the time, told Prime Minister Mark Carney in the [...] Read More »

OTTAWA — A Quebec senator says she was never told by her doctor that a surgical procedure she went through in 2005 would render her unable to have children, and hopes her story can advance a broader reckoning on systemic racism in Canada. Sen. Amina Gerba told her story to her colleagues on the floor [...] Read More »

Over 200 Blood Tribe members took part in The Blood Tribe Resource Fair Thursday in Standoff. The event was the first of its kind, says Levi Little Moustache, Director of Blood Tribe Employment and Skills Training (BTEST). “The event today was a collaboration of all the HR departments (including) all the departments under Blood Tribe, [...] Read More »

LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com Misconduct allegations from more than five years ago finally culminated in a disciplinary hearing for Lethbridge Police Service Chief Shahin Mehdizadeh this week. The Lethbridge Police Commission held the hearing Thursday at City Hall to address misconduct allegations against Mehdizadeh regarding an incident that took place in March 2021. The allegations were made [...] Read More »

LETHBRIDGE HERALDjmanio@lethbridgeherald.com A perpetual challenge for not-for-profit organizations is funding for their charitable work. In support of its continuing mission, Lethbridge Family Services (LFS) is hosting an inaugural gala called “Spring to Light” on April 25 at the Agri-Food Hub and Trade Center, featuring Canadian comedian, television personality, political satirist, and author Rick Mercer. “This [...] Read More »

LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com The Alberta NDP and Friends of Medicare advocacy organization have raised alarms about the provincial government’s proposed legislation that will allow people suffering from addictions and mental illness who are deemed a threat to themselves or others to be treated against their will. On Tuesday, the government introduced Bill 53, the Compassionate Intervention [...] Read More »

Some Lethbridge homeowners might be surprised to see an almost 14 per cent increase in their education taxes when they get their property tax bill this spring. According to the Government of Alberta website, education property taxes are increasing for 2025-2026 after being frozen in 2024-2025. For Lethbridge residents, this will amount to a 13.8 [...] Read More »