Rural Roundup — Jan. 30, 2025

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This article was published 30/01/2025 (310 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Killarney

A court in Killarney sentenced a former teacher from the Turtle Mountain School Division to jail in January following a guilty plea on charges of sexual exploitation of a teenage student dating back to 2010.

The male teacher, whose name is being withheld to protect the identity of the victim, was sentenced in provincial court to six months of jail time and 18 months of supervised probation. The teacher pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation — defined as an act where a person in a position of authority or trust touches or invites a young person to touch for a sexual purpose.

The teacher was teaching Grade 9 to Grade 12 classes in the rural school division when he committed the offence and had taught the student and mentored her on a project.

The teacher and student relationship turned inappropriate as the then-17-year-old student and 30-year-old teacher began to meet privately and kissed on several occasions. The student also sent the teacher a sexually explicit photograph of herself in underwear.

» Brandon Sun

Manitoba

Bad weather led to a string of car crashes across the province in January, including a 20-plus car pile-up on Highway 12 between Blumenort and Ste. Anne described by witnesses.

Ian Plett said he was driving through the area around 9:45 a.m., and said he hit a stretch where he could see less than three metres in front of his bumper. The crash came as the province put out an emergency alert and closed highways due to the weather conditions.

“Suddenly, I was seeing numerous vehicles in the centre median, and up on the northbound highway parked,” he said, adding about 30 vehicles were there, some of them damaged.

Once he got out of the whiteout, he said northbound traffic was doing about 70 to 80 km/h, but that didn’t mean smooth driving.

“One car pulled out to pass a delivery truck that was parked in the northbound right lane, and they disappeared into the white, and I heard a loud crunch. It’s pretty obvious what happened with that one,” he said.

Gabriel from Steinbach said he knows some people that are caught in the pile-up that Plett initially passed.

“It’s really bad; 20 cars,” he said, adding RCMP are on site, “but you can’t really see them until you’re pretty much there. Everybody’s driving, and they can’t see. Really, people shouldn’t be on the road today.”

» Discover Westman

Dauphin

A traffic stop in January resulted in several charges against a Dauphin woman.

In the early morning hours of Jan. 4, while on patrol, Dauphin RCMP stopped a vehicle on Main Street. While the lone female driver was being asked to produce a license, the officer observed empty cans of alcohol in the vehicle.

The driver was asked to provide a breath sample, which she failed. She was also not able to provide a license.

Officers searched the vehicle and seized a number of illicit drugs, including methamphetamine, cocaine and various prescription medicine.

A 29-year-old woman was arrested for impaired operation of a conveyance, possession of property obtained by crime and four counts of possession for the purpose of trafficking, along with several tickets under the Highway Traffic Act totalling over $1,400.

The investigation continues.

» Dauphin Herald

Shoal Lake

Widespread paramedic shortages that have hit towns leading a local MLA to call on the provincial government to do something ab out it.

The decline in paramedics has raised questions about 911 response times.

Recent data highlights the under-staffing in key Emergency Medical Services stations. Shoal Lake has only one paramedic for 13 available positions, Virden often fills just nine out of 17, Russel can staff only five out of 13 and Erickson struggles to operate with four out of eight vacancies.

“These shortages and closures aren’t just numbers — they’re real threats to rural Manitobans’ safety,” Riding Mountain MLA Greg Nesbitt said. “The NDP must act now before a tragedy happens and lives are lost.”

According to the most recent available data, response times for EMS in rural Manitoba are substantially longer than provincial guidelines state — often 30 minutes longer.

» Minnedosa Tribune

Virden

Changes are comig to the Border Regional Library in the coming months, its head librarian Laranda Bailey says.

The entrance will be updated to meet current accessibility standards, and to accomodate a community information area and interior book return box. The washrooms will also be modernized and updated for accessibility.

The library is adding a multi-purpose room to the main floor that will provide space for programs separate from the library. The space will also be used by other organizations, or individuals in search of a quiet space for activites such as studying, meetings and presentations.

The library is applying for grants and encouraging donations, which can be made at the branch or through the library’s website.

» Virden Empire Advance

Neepawa

Neepawa’s historic Kerr Block building is being upgraded. Renovations are underway at the site in downtown Neepawa as new windows were installed and materials removed from inside.

An effort to clean up the building has been ongoing since last fall as a parade of dumpsters have been coming and going from the building. Long a feature of Neepawa’s historic architecture, the Kerr Block building was built in the 1890s.

The building was once a Royal Bank, a department store, several retail outlets and a gymnasium. The upper level was converted to five suites in the 1930s.

Residential tentants were later required to vacate the building after it was closed due to safety hazards. It appears that the new owners are taking the renovations seriously.

» Neepawa Banner & Press