Local

Traffic backs up in the northbound lane of 18th Street as emergency crews check the damage to one of two vehicles involved in a collision at the Park Avenue and 18th Street intersection on Friday during the noon hour. Airbags are clearly visible on the passenger side of the vehicle, though Brandon police indicated later Friday afternoon that there were no known injuries as a result of the collision. (Matt Goerzen/The Brandon Sun)

Noon-hour collision

Traffic backs up in the northbound lane of 18th Street as emergency crews check the damage to one of two vehicles involved in a collision at the Park Avenue and 18th Street intersection on Friday during the noon hour. Airbags are clearly visible on the passenger side of the vehicle, though Brandon police indicated later Friday afternoon that there were no known injuries as a result of the collision. (Matt Goerzen/The Brandon Sun)

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Local

Damage to the Wheat City Golf Course caused by recent flooding is seen from the air on Thursday. (Tim Smith/The Brandon Sun)

Wheat City close to reopening front nine

By Alex Lambert 4 minute read Preview

Wheat City close to reopening front nine

By Alex Lambert 4 minute read 10:51 PM CDT

The head pro of Brandon’s Wheat City Golf Course is hoping the club will be operating with a full 18 holes as early as Monday.

The course has mainly been operating with only the back nine since flooding last month ravaged the first seven holes closest to the Assiniboine River.

“The water’s been receding, just not at a high rate — that’s the problem,” head pro Dave Scinocca said on Friday.

“We’re very close to getting the front nine back open, we’re hopeful for Monday or Tuesday next week.”

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10:51 PM CDT

Local

Oakland-Wawanesa eyeing ways to manage beavers

By Connor McDowellLocal Journalism Initiative 2 minute read 10:50 PM CDT

The Municipality of Oakland-Wawanesa is researching methods to deal with beaver populations and dams in order to improve water flow through the region.

Council decided last month to investigate ways that other municipalities handle the large rodent, which blocks waterways to build ponds for protection and food security.

Head of council Dave Kreklewich said Friday that the problem with water blockages pops up in various parts of the municipality, and a common complaint is that beavers prevent water from draining off farmers’ land.

“They block a lot of waterways and create a lot of havoc for stuff like culverts,” Kreklewich said. “With spring runoff, it doesn’t allow it to flow through.

Local

The Brandon Police Service crest. (File)

Ont. man busted in Brandon with 1 kg brick of cocaine: police

2 minute read Preview

Ont. man busted in Brandon with 1 kg brick of cocaine: police

2 minute read 10:48 PM CDT

A 29-year-old Ontario man is facing multiple charges after Brandon police claim he was in possession of an estimated one-kilogram brick of cocaine and smaller packages of an unidentified substance early Friday morning.

Police initiated a traffic stop around 3:45 a.m. for a vehicle on Kasiurak Bay, police said in a news release on Friday.

The passenger in the vehicle, which was operating as an Uber from Winnipeg, initially gave officers a false name, police said.

Officers developed grounds to detain the man.

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10:48 PM CDT

Local

Laura Nash from Maple Ridge, B.C., inspects the harness of her Arabian horse Sakaris Silver Amirah during competition on Friday afternoon at the Keystone Centre’s Assiniboine Credit Union Agricultural Centre. (Matt Goerzen/The Brandon Sun)

Arabian show a boon for city’s economy

Connor McDowell Local Journalism Initiative 3 minute read Preview

Arabian show a boon for city’s economy

Connor McDowell Local Journalism Initiative 3 minute read 10:45 PM CDT

The city will gain hundreds of thousands of dollars in economic activity this month because of Canada’s National Arabian Championship, a representative from a destination marketing organization said.

Jenn Watson, executive director of Brandon First, said the horse show currently underway at the Keystone Centre will provide benefits to numerous businesses in town not directly connected to the event.

“It’s huge, any time that a large event like this comes,” Watson said. “When there’s a big event on, especially something like this, people are staying in the hotels, people are eating in the restaurants, people are out shopping, people are taking in the things that there are to do here.”

Beyond the immediate benefits, the stage is also set for continued momentum in Brandon, Watson said.

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10:45 PM CDT

Local

Pharmacists who have taken the training can issue several prescription contraceptives, the province has announced. (The Canadian Press files)

Pharmacists allowed to prescribe birth control

By Maggie Macintosh Local Journalism Initiative 3 minute read Preview

Pharmacists allowed to prescribe birth control

By Maggie Macintosh Local Journalism Initiative 3 minute read 10:41 PM CDT

WINNIPEG — Manitoba pharmacists have new powers to assess for, prescribe and administer birth control.

Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara announced an expanded scope of practice — although limitations on the profession remain the strictest in Canada — during a news conference Friday.

“This means that people will be able to access contraception more quickly, more conveniently and closer to home,” Asagwara told reporters inside the legislature.

The minister touted the regulatory changes, which came into effect Tuesday, as an expansion of the province’s free birth control initiative.

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10:41 PM CDT

Local

First responders stand at the scene of a fatal multi-vehicle crash involving a Conquer Transportation truck at the intersection of Highway 110 and Richmond Avenue East in Brandon on May 27. (Alex Lambert/The Brandon Sun files)

Trucking firm in fatal crash shut down

By Alex Lambert 5 minute read Preview

Trucking firm in fatal crash shut down

By Alex Lambert 5 minute read 10:40 PM CDT

The Alberta government has shut down the trucking company at the centre of a crash in Brandon in May that claimed the life of a 49-year-old woman.

Alberta Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen on Friday said that Conquer Transportation was shut down after an investigation found that it was non-compliant in a variety of categories, including safety and maintenance, and the company was charged with “obstructing and hindering” an investigator.

The company was fined $16,500 and its safety fitness rating was downgraded to unsatisfactory, essentially shutting it down.

“There are these bad actors that really do give a black eye to the industry,” Dreeshen told the Sun Friday about Conquer and similar companies.

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10:40 PM CDT

Local

The Manitoba RCMP seized approximately $970,000 during a traffic stop on July 31 near Brandon. Police have charged Ahmad Ahmadi, 44 from Stouffville, Ont. and Alireza Haghgoo, 22, from Toronto, Ont. with possession of property obtained by crime for the purpose of drug trafficking. (Photo submitted by RCMP)

Traffic stop outside city nets nearly $1M in cash

By Tessa Adamski 4 minute read Preview

Traffic stop outside city nets nearly $1M in cash

By Tessa Adamski 4 minute read 10:38 PM CDT

RCMP seized nearly $1 million in cash and arrested two Ontario men during a traffic stop just outside Brandon late last week.

Both men were charged with possession of property obtained by crime for the purpose of drug trafficking.

Ahmad Ahmadi, 44, from Stouffville, Ont. was released on bail in a Brandon provincial court on Tuesday with an order not to possess any illegal drugs, weapons or contact the co-accused, and pay a cash deposit of $1,000 and $11,000 surety.

Judge Shauna Hewitt-Michta reserved her decision on the bail application for co-accused Alireza Haghgoo, 22, of Toronto until Monday.

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10:38 PM CDT

Local

Bell signage is seen at BCE Inc., headquarters in Montreal in May 7, 2025. (The Canadian Press files)

No adverse outcomes from 911 outage, Bell says in report

By Erik Pindera 4 minute read Preview

No adverse outcomes from 911 outage, Bell says in report

By Erik Pindera 4 minute read 10:37 PM CDT

WINNIPEG — The telecommunications outage that prevented Manitobans outside Winnipeg from contacting 911 for several hours last month did not result in “critical incidents or adverse public safety outcomes,” Bell Canada says.

Bell, which runs Manitoba’s 911 network, issued its post-incident report on the July 22 outage to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission on Thursday.

In total, calls to 911 made by 84 people from 11:40 a.m. to 3:25 p.m. could not be routed to the public safety call centre in Brandon. That facility answers 911 calls for most of the province outside Winnipeg.

Officials at the 911 call centre in Brandon advised Bell that, as of Thursday, there had been no reported critical incidents or public-safety issues as a result of the missed calls, the telecom company said in its report.

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10:37 PM CDT

Local

From left, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif pose after signing a trilateral defense agreement in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (Saudi Press Agency via AP)

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan have signed a key defense agreement

Suzan Fraser And Munir Ahmed, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan have signed a key defense agreement

Suzan Fraser And Munir Ahmed, The Associated Press 6 minute read Updated: 1:53 PM CDT

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan signed a defense agreement on Friday that would treat an attack on one as an attack on all three, officials said, solidifying cooperation between the three regional powers at a time of growing security concerns.

The agreement was signed in the Saudi holy city of Mecca by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, according to statements from all three countries.

The so-called “Mecca Joint Defense Agreement” between the three Sunni Muslim-majority states brings together oil-rich Saudi Arabia and nuclear power Pakistan as well as Turkey, which has NATO’s second-largest army and a rapidly growing defense industry. It would increase cooperation and deterrence at a time of increased regional uncertainty and threats from the war in Iran.

Commitment to joint deterrence

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Updated: 1:53 PM CDT

Business

Signage marks the Statistics Canada offices in Ottawa on July 21, 2010. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

‘Not yet strong’: Canada adds surprise 75,000 jobs in July but recovery still ongoing

Nick Murray, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Preview

‘Not yet strong’: Canada adds surprise 75,000 jobs in July but recovery still ongoing

Nick Murray, The Canadian Press 3 minute read Updated: 11:07 AM CDT

OTTAWA - Canada's job market took a leap toward recovery in July, adding 75,000 jobs, but economists say there's still a long road ahead before the Bank of Canada considers tightening policy.

Statistics Canada said on Friday the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in two years to 6.4 per cent.

Economists in a Reuters poll ahead of the release predicted a modest 15,000-job gain. 

July's job growth was split between full- and part-time work, with Ontario adding 52,000 jobs.

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Updated: 11:07 AM CDT

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