St. Albert news

• Teen died of stab wound — medical examiner completes autopsy

  29-06-2017 23:58 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  A teenager killed in an early morning homicide at a northeast Edmonton rental complex last week died of a stab wound, officials said. 
  The Edmonton medical examiner confirmed the 17-year-old’s cause of death Thursday after an autopsy.
  Three people in their 30s are facing second-degree murder charges. 
  Edmonton police responded to the scene at Parkridge Estates after a resident found a body in the parking lot at around 6:45 a.m. June 23. 
  Witnesses said there was a disturbanc
  
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• Remembering "Sammy" — a fan's eye view of Edmonton Oilers' icon Dave Semenko

  29-06-2017 22:10 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  “Do you know what I used to think about? Making a perfect pass.“
  Saddened to wake up this morning to the news that Edmonton Oilers’ legend Dave Semenko has died. Cancer, just 59.
  “Oilers’ legend” is not a term one might normally associate with a forward who spent more time on the fourth line than the first, and who on some nights spent more minutes in the penalty box than he did on the ice. But I think the term applies to Semenko, a charter member of the Boys
  
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• City auditor calls for better crosswalk monitoring, finds higher number of fatalities

  29-06-2017 22:10 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Edmonton now has 2,200 crosswalk safety lights and signs but officials don’t systematically follow up to monitor how those crosswalks are working.
  That means if traffic signal wait times lead to increased jaywalking, if drivers ignore the lights, or if bushes grow up to obscure the signs, the problems can easily go unnoticed.
  City auditor David Wiun highlighted that deficiency Thursday to council’s audit committee meeting, saying the crosswalk program is generally run well but has ro
  
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• Oilers waive Benoit Pouliot to buy out his contract

  29-06-2017 22:00 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  The Edmonton Oilers are parting ways with forward Benoit Pouliot.
  On Thursday, the Oilers announced Pouliot had been placed on unconditional waivers for the purpose of buying out his contract.
  Pouliot has two years remaining on a five-year, $20-million contract signed prior to the 2014-2015 season.
  The buyout will cost the Oilers $1.33-million towards the NHL salary cap for the next four seasons.
  Selected fourth overall by the Minnesota Wild in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, the Oilers were Pouliot&r
  
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• Jones: Oilers' Semenko was one of the game's great characters

  29-06-2017 21:57 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  It was at 7:59 a.m. that the Edmonton Oilers sent out the press release.
  “It is with great sadness we announce the passing of Oilers legend Dave Semenko after a short, but courageous battle with cancer,” it began.
  “Dave will be remembered as a fierce competitor, loyal teammate, fan favourite and dear friend to so many. His legendary toughness on the ice is surpassed only by his kindness and caring for others, and his equally legendary wit and sense of humour. Our hearts go out
  
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• Islamic sisters drop off 150 gifts at Boyle Street Community Services in celebration of Canada 150

  29-06-2017 21:46 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Uplifting the spirits of 150 people as a way to celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary of Confederation, members of the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) Sisters of Edmonton dropped off 150 gift bags for Edmonton’s homeless.
  “It celebrates the spirit of Canada that we have,” said Afshan Fatima, outreach co-ordinator for ICNA Sisters Edmonton, carrying gift bags in both hands. “Sharing is caring.”
  The ICNA Sisters fundraised for their Uplift 150 for Can
  
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• Alberta's debt grew to $33.3 billion in 2016-17

  29-06-2017 21:37 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Alberta racked up a $10.8-billion deficit in the 2016-17 financial year and is now $33.3 billion in debt, according to the latest government figures released Thursday. 
  The deficit ended up being $263 million higher than forecast in Budget 2016. Revenues also increased — by around $1 billion — thanks to an unexpected spike in investment income and improved resource revenues.
  The economy saw some “green shoots” before the fiscal year end on March 31, as Finance M
  
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• Edmonton and Leduc reach deal on airport through annexation bid

  29-06-2017 21:36 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Edmonton and Leduc County are expected to finalized an annexation deal Friday that includes a new framework for managing the Edmonton International Airport.
  Officials from four jurisdictions — Edmonton, Leduc, Leduc County and the airport authority — are gathering to announce the new deal Friday morning at the airport, calling it an Inter-Jurisdiction Co-operation Accord, according to a new release sent out Thursday.
  Edmonton’s city council approved the deal after an in-camera
  
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• Benoit Pouliot wears out welcome with Edmonton Oilers, headed for buy-out

  29-06-2017 21:24 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Corsi analysts loved Pouliot signing, but it hasn’t work out for Oilers
  This in from the Edmonton Oilers, their plan to be rid of winger Benoit Pouliot: “The Oilers have placed forward Benoit Pouliot on unconditional waivers for the purpose of contract buyout.”
  Edmonton was Pouliot’s sixth stop in the NHL.
  Once hailed as Edmonton’s best ever free agent signing by Corsi analytics buffs, Pouliot’s contract now represents a blow to the future prospects of the Oil
  
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• Education minister appoints youth council

  29-06-2017 21:15 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  From Fort Chipewyan to Brooks, 32 Alberta students will have the education minister’s ear next year.
  Minister David Eggen announced Thursday he has chosen representatives to sit on his first Minister’s Youth Council during the 2017-18 school year.
  In a news release, Eggen said the junior high and high school students have varied interests, from sports and arts to the environment.
  “They volunteer for churches and mosques, community centres, animal shelters, hospitals and librari
  
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• Terms of Reference Set for St. Albert-Sturgeon County Annexation Negotiating Committee

  29-06-2017 21:07
  On June 28, 2017, the Intermunicipal Affairs Committee (IAC) approved the Terms of Reference for the Annexation Negotiating Committee, which... Read Post
  
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• Innovation Summit Generates Buzz in St. Albert

  29-06-2017 18:44
  Speakers and discussion spark imagination, inspiration and ignition of ideas St. Albert, and other communities like it, require strong innovation... Read Post
  
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• Benoit Pouliot wears out his welcome with Edmonton Oilers, headed for buy-out.

  29-06-2017 18:43 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  This in from the Edmonton Oilers, their plan to be rid of winger Benoit Pouliot: “The Oilers have placed forward Benoit Pouliot on unconditional waivers for the purpose of contract buyout.”
  Once hailed as Edmonton’s best ever free agent signing, Pouliot’s contract now represents a major blow to the future prospects of the Oilers. To buy out the remaining $8 million on his contract, Edmonton will have to pay $5.3 million over four years, $1.3 million per year, according to
  
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• Live: City auditor calls for better crosswalk monitoring, finds increased fatalities

  29-06-2017 18:40 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Edmonton now has 2,200 different crosswalk safety lights but its officials rarely follow up to monitor how those crosswalks are working.
  City auditor David Wiun highlighted that deficiency Thursday to council’s audit committee, saying the program is generally run well but has room for improvement. He called for transparent guidelines on how Edmonton decides what types of crosswalks to install.
  City officials said they will adopt all of his recommendations and have them in place before spri
  
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• Singer-songwriter Martin Kerr shares the secrets behinds his sudden change in fortune

  29-06-2017 18:02 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  If it all falls to pieces in the next few month,s Martin Kerr figures he can just go back to busking.
  For close to a decade, the Edmonton-based singer-songwriter has made a good living performing at farmers’ markets and house concerts, cranking out covers and selling CDs from his guitar case. A stint on Canadian Idol back in 2008 hadn’t boosted Kerr’s career in the way he’d hoped, and he had found a small, cosy position for himself in the local scene.
  That all began
  
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• Multi-national block party colours Canada Day weekend in varied shades of blues

  29-06-2017 18:02 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Proud Canadians can mark this Canada Day weekend with some happy blues as the Commercial Hotel’s Blues on Whyte hosts its sixth, biggest-yet block party. Fourteen acts will perform over three outdoor stages and three days.
  It kicks off Friday evening when the club hosts King Muskafa, Sweet Vintage Rides and Retrofitz in its outdoor beer garden in the parking lot to the immediate east of the hotel between 5:30 p.m. and 2 a.m.
  On Saturday, the affair expands to another stage in McIntyre Park
  
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• 10 things to do in Edmonton this week: Music, dance and Canada Day

  29-06-2017 18:02 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Feats
   Toronto’s Rhythm and Sound, the Tri-Tone Rhythm Ensemble, Taste of Flamenco and a Canada Day Dance Explosion are just a few of the events taking place at this year’s Feats Festival of Dance. Unapologetic Dance is promised at this year’s edition of the festival, with performances taking place at venues like the Sabor Restaurant, Sugar Swing Ballroom, and even along Whyte Avenue during Canada Day. Masterclasses and workshops are also promised; check the website for mo
  
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• Former Oilers enforcer Dave Semenko dies at age 59

  29-06-2017 17:47 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Dave Semenko — maybe the fiercest National Hockey League fighter of them all, the personal on-ice bodyguard of Wayne Gretzky during the Edmonton Oilers’ glory days in the 1980s — has died after a short battle with pancreatic cancer.
  “I’ve never seen a man that big taken down that fast,” said his Oilers teammate Paul Coffey, who flew in from Toronto to see Semenko this week. “He won every fight (NHL) but, unfortunately, this wasn’t his battle to win
  
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• Alberta finance minister to release 2016-17 financial results

  29-06-2017 17:25 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Finance minister Joe Ceci will give Albertans a complete look at the province’s balance sheet for 2016-17 on Thursday at 1 p.m.
  Provincial numbers projected a $10.8-billion deficit by the end of the fiscal year, as low oil prices, the Fort McMurray wildfire and coal payments continued to take their toll on Alberta’s coffers. 
  Despite multiple credit downgrades over the past two years, the government has reiterated its plan to avoid frontline cuts. 
  [email protected]
  
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• Time out: Edmonton students are suspended thousands of times each year

  29-06-2017 15:40 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Hours after she was handed a five-day suspension, 14-year-old Taytum sat on a south Edmonton patio while back at school, class carried on without her.
  After jumping down from a wall in her junior high school’s library in mid-June, the ninth grader wound up in the office having a heated discussion with the vice-principal, a school-based police officer and a child welfare worker.
  No one was hurt, she said, but it was her second suspension after just three weeks at her new school. She missed
  
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• Skipping class, talking back, misunderstood disabilities: Families say some reasons for suspensions 'ridiculous'

  29-06-2017 15:40 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Edmonton’s Catholic and public school board policies say principals can suspend students when they threaten the safety of others in school, or when time away from school will be a learning experience.
  When students are sent away from school, it’s with their best interests at heart, school district spokespeople said.
  Those who experience suspensions and expulsions can feel differently.
  Out-of-school suspensions feel like an overreaction to their behaviour, and teach them nothing, some
  
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• Leon Draisaitl's contract demands are out-of-line with other similar players

  29-06-2017 15:14 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Edmonton should pay going rate for an RFA like Draisaitl, but not more than that
  This in from TSN’s Ryan Rishaug, talking to Jason Gregor of TSN1260 about Leon Draisaitl’s contract negotiations: “It doesn’t surprise me that Draisaitl’s camp is going to play some hardball here. How hard a ball, I’m not sure. I suggested the ask was going to be north of $9 million. (TSN’s Darren) Dreger speculated it could potentially be  double digits, up round $10 m
  
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• Thursday's letters: Stop means stop, even for cyclists

  29-06-2017 14:00 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Re. “Rolling stop on the table in bicycling review,” June 26
  Lobbying for the ‘Idaho stop’ for bicycles? There’s nothing to lobby for.
  Cyclists have been doing this flagrant stop sign violation for years — thousands of violations each day. But there just aren’t enough traffic enforcement officers to deal with them all. The question arises; if a motor vehicle strikes a bicycle that just rode non-stop through a stop sign, because it’s a legal ma
  
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• Ten per cent affordable housing in all city neighbourhoods proposed as target to council

  29-06-2017 14:00 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  City officials struggling with how to build affordable housing in more well-off neighbourhoods were expected Thursday to pitch a citywide target of 10 per cent. 
  Branch manager Walter Trocenko confirmed a rumour Wednesday that’s been circulating for weeks. A 10 per cent target of affordable housing for each neighbourhood wouldn’t necessarily stop or force approval for any project on the table, but would add a clear target any time city council wrestles with a contentious project
  
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• Opinion: Police street checks based on circumstance, not race

  29-06-2017 14:00 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Some citizens have been very critical of the Edmonton Police Service’s practice of conducting “street checks.”
  We appreciate and respect the voices of groups such as Black Lives Matter – Edmonton, the Institute for the Advancement of Aboriginal Women and others whose “challenge role” helps us to be a better police service. We welcome dialogue on all policing issues; however, we believe that their stated concerns are misplaced on this issue.
  Discriminatory or r
  
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• Seven overdoses in 15 hours prompt warning from Grande Prairie RCMP, Alberta Health Services

  29-06-2017 05:42 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Drug users are being asked to exercise extreme caution when buying and using drugs after a spate of overdoses in Grande Prairie.
  Seven overdose calls in 15 hours prompted Mounties and Alberta Health Services to issue the warning Wednesday evening.
  The harm-reduction message said purity and potency are factors in overdoses.
  Street drugs are more potent, sometimes mixed with fentanyl, which creates a powerful narcotic, a news release said.
  “If you are going to use drugs, we urge you to
  
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• Edmonton council rejects first tower since 2009

  29-06-2017 05:30 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Edmonton’s city council turned down its first tower in eight years Wednesday as it sent a 28-storey proposal for Grandin back to the drawing board.
  “We do need to establish some boundaries,” said Mayor Don Iveson, before the tower re-zoning failed 8-3. “If we were to approve this, we would really be saying there are no rules, no limits.”
  The Westrich Pacific proposal would have seen a thin tower rising almost straight up from the street on just two single-family lot
  
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• Rescued baby eagle found trapped under fallen nest after storm on path to recovery

  29-06-2017 03:43 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  A six-week-old male eagle went in for an X-ray examination Wednesday after the tree its nest was in was blown over in Monday night’s storm.
  Hiker Dubravko Dobi and Ryley Corcoran, an employee with the Alberta Society for Injured Birds of Prey, rescued the young bird Tuesday evening after Dobi found it trapped under the fallen nest north of Legends Golf and Country Club between Sherwood Park and Fort Saskatchewan.
  Corcoran said it was trapped in such a way that the eagle parents would proba
  
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• Jones: Oilers fans should be excited with length of McDavid contract

  29-06-2017 03:21 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Forget the money. It’s the term.
  If the report is totally accurate and Connor McDavid has essentially agreed to a $13.25 million U.S. per season eight-year extension to his contract with the Oilers, Edmonton fans should be doing cartwheels down Jasper Avenue, over on Whyte Avenue and through the levels at West Edmonton Mall.
  Apparently, minor details remain to be completed and the deal, which wouldn’t kick in until the 2018-19 season, can’t be signed, sealed and announced until
  
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• Terry Jones: Fans should be excited with length of McDavid extension

  29-06-2017 03:18 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Forget the money. It’s the term.
  If the report is totally accurate and Connor McDavid has essentially agreed to a $13.25 million U.S. per season eight-year extension to his contract with the Oilers, Edmonton fans should be doing cartwheels down Jasper Avenue, over on Whyte Avenue and through the levels at West Edmonton Mall.
  Apparently, minor details remain to be completed and the deal, which wouldn’t kick in until the 2018-19 season, can’t be signed, sealed and announced until
  
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• Oil Spills podcast: Connor McDavid's Oilers pay day looms

  29-06-2017 03:16 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Hockey writers Jim Matheson and Robert Tychkowski join host Craig Ellingson to talk about the contract extension being negotiated between the Edmonton Oilers and star Connor McDavid, what moves the team might make during free agency and the prognosis of its 2017 NHL Draft crop of prospects.
  
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• Mill Woods graffiti target unrecognizable thanks to new mural

  29-06-2017 02:46 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  A graffiti target in Mill Woods Park has a bright new look thanks to a group of students from Holy Trinity Catholic High School.
  Visual arts teacher Patricia Milan and her students created a vibrant, multi-coloured piece of art on the park’s footbridge.
  “I hope people will walk by and think it’s a nice and happy place to be here,” Jadelyn Day, a Grade 12 student at Holy Trinity, said Wednesday.
  Milan said the students wanted to create art that had a lot of 
  
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• Name That Alley contest christens Spur Line Alley near Whyte Avenue

  29-06-2017 02:40 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Spur Line Alley is the official new name of a pedestrian-oriented section of road near Whyte Avenue.
  The alley is located north of, and perpendicular to, Whyte Avenue, between 104 and 105 streets.
  The name was chosen from 67 entries submitted to the Name That Alley contest run by the City of Edmonton.
  Tianna Albrecht and Mario Panizzo submitted the winning name.
  “A spur line is a branch line off a main railway. And this alley is a branch off Whyte Ave — hence Spur Line,” Albrec
  
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• Man charged with second-degree murder in 2014 shooting death

  29-06-2017 02:31 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Edmonton homicide detectives have laid charges in a 2014 killing following a tip to the “rewards offered for information” program, police said on Wednesday. The reward is valued at $40,000.
  David John Labelle was shot inside a home near 133 Street and 155 Avenue around 5 a.m. on Nov. 22, 2014.
  Labelle went for help to a neighbour. He was taken to hospital, where he later died.
  In 2012, Labelle was wanted on a Canada-wide warrant after he disappeared while on statutory relea
  
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• Veteran teacher hits final high note of 43-year career

  29-06-2017 01:56 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  In 1974, a cool, young teacher took the helm of Argyll School’s Grade 6 class with a piano and a smile.
  Brenda Ripley knew all the latest music, and the preteens soon ditched traditional children’s songs to learn Simon and Garfunkel melodies and The Beatles’ Maxwell’s Silver Hammer.
  “I wish more teachers could be like her,” said former student Ava Duering. “She had rock star status.”
  On Thursday, that teacher — now Brenda Bracke — will
  
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• Workers change unions at Edmonton poultry plant

  29-06-2017 01:39 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  About 400 unionized staff at Maple Leaf Foods’ Edmonton poultry plant have voted to switch to the Christian Labour Association of Canada (CLAC) from the United Food and Commercial Workers.
  The Alberta Labour Relations Board held a secret ballot June 23 in which almost three-quarters of voters supported a move to CLAC local 56, the union said in a Wednesday news release.
  A spokesperson for the United Food and Commercial Workers couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
  Negotiations
  
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• Rescued baby eagle found trapped under fallen nest after Monday storm on path to recovery

  29-06-2017 00:35 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  A six-week-old male eagle went in for an X-ray examination Wednesday after the tree its nest was in was blown over in Monday night’s storm.
  Hiker Dubravko Dobi and Ryley Corcoran, an employee with the Alberta Society for Injured Birds of Prey, rescued the young bird Tuesday evening after Dobi found it trapped under the fallen nest north of Legends Golf and Country Club between Sherwood Park and Fort Saskatchewan.
  Corcoran said it was trapped in such a way that the eagle parents would proba
  
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• Eskimos running back John White jumps out to early rushing lead

  29-06-2017 00:19 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  The Edmonton Eskimos got out of the gates, literally, ahead of the pack to open the 2017 Canadian Football League season.
  Running back John White’s 104 yards in Saturday’s 30-27 win over the B.C. Lions was the biggest ground game registered on opening week.
  “It’s cool. It’s cool for now,” said the five-foot-eight, 186-pound Utah product in his fifth CFL season. “Still, the beginning of things but I’m just taking it stride by stride and play by play
  
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• Suspect identified in daytime statue theft

  29-06-2017 00:14 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Edmonton police have identified a suspect in a daytime statue theft.
  Video footage posted online shows a woman approach the front deck of a home in Forest Heights near 101 Avenue and 82 Street on June 20 before lifting a white statue of a Chinese warrior from its base near the door and carrying it to a dark-coloured vehicle.
  The Edmonton Police Service said in a Twitter post Wednesday they had identified a suspect, and thanked the public for sending in tips.Thank you to everyone who has submitte
  
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• Sprinklers on track for all government-owned seniors lodges in Alberta

  29-06-2017 00:12 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  The province says all government-owned seniors lodges will have sprinkler systems by 2019. 
  Last year, the government identified 100 high-risk lodges and continuing care homes without systems in place, pledging $80 million to fix the problem. 
  Around 75 per cent of those buildings now have sprinklers or are being worked on, and the rest are in planning stages.
  With all of the lodges built before sprinklers became part of Alberta building codes, problems associated with aging infrastruc
  
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• Covenant Health: More than 1,300 patients urged to get tested for hepatitis

  29-06-2017 00:09 via edmontonjournal.com
  
  Alberta’s Catholic health-care organization is warning patients about a potential risk of exposure to hepatitis.
  The health provider will be mailing letters to 1,307 patients who may have been exposed to hepatitis B and C, said Dr. Owen Heisler, chief medical officer for Covenant Health, at a Wednesday morning news conference at the Grey Nuns Community Hospital in south Edmonton.  
  Potential exposures occurred between 2013 and 2016 at the Grey Nuns Community Hospital and bet
  
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