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‘The fireman grabbed me… and pulled me out’

‘The fireman grabbed me… and pulled me out’

Survivor recounts horror of losing granddaughter, cousin; within four minutes, small West End fire became fatal inferno

Chris Kitching 5 minute read Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026

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‘Thought it was the flu’: more sick after eating at hotel buffet

Kevin Rollason 2 minute read Friday, Feb. 6, 2026

More possible victims of a case of suspected food poisoning at a prominent hotel have come forward.

A provincial government spokeswoman said two more reports came in on Friday after an article was published in the Free Press.

It brings the official total to 17 people who have complained they got sick after eating at a buffet at the Victoria Inn Hotel and Convention Centre at 1808 Wellington Ave., last weekend.

However, the Free Press heard from others who got sick but didn’t report it.

Local

Mark Blinch / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Air Canada announced it halted flights to Cuba due to the ongoing shortage of aviation fuel on the island, saying current projections will exhaust the supply of commercial fuel by Feb. 10.

Manitobans in Cuba stay calm as airlines cancel trips owing to fuel shortage

Tyler Searle 5 minute read Preview

Manitobans in Cuba stay calm as airlines cancel trips owing to fuel shortage

Tyler Searle 5 minute read Monday, Feb. 9, 2026

As he basked in the sunshine in Varadero, Cuba, on Monday, it was hard for Manitoban Geof Langen to imagine anything might interrupt his vacation — but when news broke that Air Canada had cancelled international flights to the island nation, it gave him pause.

“It’s kind of been the talk of today amongst Canadians. We’re a pretty large group down here, and everyone right now seems pretty calm,” Langen said by phone.

“Mostly, we’re enjoying Cuba and the incredibly gracious and hospitable people and great weather. It hasn’t at this point brought a damper or a sense of concern, beyond just paying attention to what’s going on.”

Air Canada decided to suspend service to Cuba days after Langen arrived in Varadero aboard a WestJet flight late Saturday. He and his partner are staying at a resort with friends, and were expecting a third couple from Manitoba to join them on Monday.

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Monday, Feb. 9, 2026

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Business

JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS FILES Taiv Inc. CEO Noah Palansky (left) and chief technology officer Jordan Davis.

Winnipeg-based tech firm Taiv closes US$13M growth round

Aaron Epp 3 minute read Preview

Winnipeg-based tech firm Taiv closes US$13M growth round

Aaron Epp 3 minute read Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026

Taiv Inc. may rely on AI, but there’s nothing artificial about the Winnipeg company’s progression.

The tech company has closed a US$13 million growth round fewer than nine months after raising US$10.5 million in series A financing.

The latest round is a combination of debt and equity, and brings the total capital raised to more than US$30 million. The company’s latest valuation is just under US$100 million, said Taiv co-founder and CEO Noah Palansky.

“This is really a growth round,” he said. “It’s about hiring people and really investing in our product. We want to make something that’s amazing.”

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Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026

Legislature

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Rebecca Schneider worked at the Health Sciences Centre between 2009 and 2014.

Health-care ‘frustration’ keeps Manitoba nurse away

Nicole Buffie 5 minute read Preview

Health-care ‘frustration’ keeps Manitoba nurse away

Nicole Buffie 5 minute read Monday, Feb. 9, 2026

A former Manitoba nurse working in Minnesota says despite political turmoil she won’t return home to practise due to the state of the province’s health-care system.

Rebecca Schneider has considered moving back to Manitoba since November 2024, when Donald Trump was re-elected.

As the U.S. has stepped up immigration enforcement raids to seek out undocumented immigrants, Schneider said she feels unsafe in her own city.

“I have felt more unsafe in the last month with all the (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) activity in Minneapolis than I ever felt during COVID, during the riots with George Floyd’s incident in 2020,” she told the Free Press, referencing the Black man murdered by a white police officer. “There’s areas of the city you just can’t go anymore.”

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Monday, Feb. 9, 2026

Local

SUPPLIED Julie Regner loves to see Canadians tackle the slopes or après-ski at North Dakota’s Frost Fire Park.

Manitobans continue to draw line in sand, choose not to cross once-neighbourly line on land

Chris Kitching 6 minute read Preview

Manitobans continue to draw line in sand, choose not to cross once-neighbourly line on land

Chris Kitching 6 minute read Monday, Feb. 23, 2026

Julie Regner loves to see Canadians tackle the slopes or après-ski at North Dakota’s Frost Fire Park, which has drawn skiers and snowboarders across the border for decades.

While there hasn’t been an official tally of visitors this season, the park’s general manager doesn’t think she’s seeing as many Manitobans amid the steep decline in Canadians venturing south.

“I would say it’s maybe decreased some from last year. They’re definitely still coming down to ski,” Regner said from the park, which is close to Walhalla, just 10 kilometres south of the border.

“We just love having them come down. They’re super nice people.”

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Monday, Feb. 23, 2026

Local

JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS FILES City council’s community services committee is set to revisit fireworks restrictions next March.

Councillors push decision on new fireworks restrictions to next spring

Malak Abas 4 minute read Preview

Councillors push decision on new fireworks restrictions to next spring

Malak Abas 4 minute read Tuesday, Apr. 14, 2026

Fire prevention officers will meet with cultural groups and fireworks sellers to talk about conducting safe celebrations, but the city won’t impose any bans or create new bylaws before next year.

City council’s community services committee heard from the Winnipeg Fire and Paramedic Service Tuesday and from speakers arguing both for and against additional fines, enforcement or restrictions around the sale and use of fireworks.

The committee was split on how to approach new fireworks bylaws and eventually voted to revisit the issue next March, promising to create a working group to explore the issue further, in the meantime.

“I think it’s a very complicated file, and it’s important that we’re able to hear from the councillors on what direction they want this to take for the city,” Lisa Gilmour, the WFPS’ assistant chief of community risk reduction, said after Tuesday’s meeting.

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Tuesday, Apr. 14, 2026

Winnipeg Jets

CHARLES KRUPA / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck slides the puck out of the net after the Boston Bruins fifth goal Thursday night.

Lopsided loss not as damaging as it could have been for the Jets

Mike McIntyre 6 minute read Preview

Lopsided loss not as damaging as it could have been for the Jets

Mike McIntyre 6 minute read Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

PITTSBURGH — There once was a time in the National Hockey League when a putrid performance like the one the Winnipeg Jets delivered Thursday night in Boston would have carried some painful consequences.

Namely, a next-day practice filled with skating, skating and more skating — and perhaps nary a puck in sight.

But those “old-school” days are long gone, which is why Friday was all about rest and recovery for the Jets. Only a handful of players took part in an optional skate, while the majority stayed back at the team hotel for workouts and video sessions.

“Just reset. That’s a big thing. Do what everybody feels like they need to do today in order to be ready for tomorrow,” said rookie forward Isak Rosen, who was one of the few to hit the ice.

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Friday, Mar. 20, 2026

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Canadians from coast to coast are finding and displaying patriotic pride

TIM SMITH / THE BRANDON SUN FILES A Canadian flag is see affixed to the side of a barn along Grand Valley Road west of Brandon on Thursday. In the wake of U.S. tariffs against Canada and comments by President Donald Trump about Canada becoming the 51st state, Canadian flags and other displays of patriotism have been much more visible in Brandon and across the country. (Tim Smith/The Brandon Sun)

The week that was: July 12-18

The week that was: July 12-18

Listen: Niigaan and the Lone Ranger podcast

Niigaan and the Lone Ranger podcast

Old barn reconstructed in Lego, brick by brick

JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The Jets salute the crowd after the final game at Winnipeg Arena, a 4-1 loss to Detroit. Norm MacIver scored the final Jets 1.0 goal.

Festive feast of children’s books sure to please young readers

JESSICA LEE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Alexander Heather, 7, (left) and his nine-year-old brother Stewart get into the holiday spirit while poring through some of this year’s books for younger readers.

Business

BROOK JONES/FREE PRESS Princess Auto will open its new 105,000-square-foot retail store at 500 Panet Rd. to the public on June 2. The new location will include spots for shoppers to try out new equipment and educational opportunities for schools.

Princess Auto to unveil vision with new Panet Road flagship

Malak Abas 3 minute read Preview

Princess Auto to unveil vision with new Panet Road flagship

Malak Abas 3 minute read Yesterday at 8:00 PM CDT

Princess Auto’s newest retail location in Winnipeg — a 105,000-square-foot “community-driven” flagship store — will open its doors June 2.

The 500 Panet Rd. store will include a workshop station where customers can try out tools, a space for people to come in and learn about machinery they may have not typically purchased, and educational opportunities for schools.

It’s a “pretty new retail experience” for the massive Winnipeg-based company, said Kim Leadbeater, Princess Auto’s vice-president of marketing.

“This location is a bit of a pilot for the future of our retail experience, this is more than just a standard shopping opportunity,” she said Wednesday.

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Yesterday at 8:00 PM CDT

Local

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES Premier Wab Kinew said the social media ban for children under 16 would be an entirely new law, not an amendment to an existing law.

Kinew says watchdog could enforce proposed social media ban

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Preview

Kinew says watchdog could enforce proposed social media ban

Gabrielle Piché 4 minute read Yesterday at 6:23 PM CDT

Premier Wab Kinew floated the possibility of using a regulator or commissioner to enforce his proposed ban on social media and artificial intelligence chatbot use for kids.

“I think what you could potentially see is a regulator-commissioner type who would have the ability to say ‘You’re out of compliance with law in Manitoba. Let’s talk about how you get back into compliance,’” Kinew told reporters Wednesday.

“Then of course, if that doesn’t happen, you have the avenue of fines and other remedial actions.”

Kinew pledged a ban on social media use for children under 16 during an address last month.

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Yesterday at 6:23 PM CDT

Local

MARTIN LUSSIER / CRNM Deb Elias delivers an apology on behalf of the College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba at a ceremony Wednesday morning.

College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba apologizes to Indigenous people

Tyler Searle 4 minute read Preview

College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba apologizes to Indigenous people

Tyler Searle 4 minute read Yesterday at 5:31 PM CDT

The regulatory body that oversees registered nurses in Manitoba has issued a formal apology to acknowledge its role in racism against Indigenous people and pledged to do better.

“This apology is long overdue,” Deb Elias, registrar of the College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba, told a crowd of health care providers and dignitaries from First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities who gathered to witness the apology.

“As the largest health-care profession in Manitoba, registered nurses have been part of the problem and must be part of the solution in ensuring safe care for everyone.”

The announcement coincided with National Nurses week, which began Monday and will conclude May 17.

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Yesterday at 5:31 PM CDT

Local

JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS FILES Randy Jensen disposed of two cats he had killed underneath the Summit Road bridge.

Man admits to killing three cats, dumping two under bridge

Dean Pritchard 3 minute read Preview

Man admits to killing three cats, dumping two under bridge

Dean Pritchard 3 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 6:10 PM CDT

A Winnipeg man whose arrest last year sparked outrage in the city’s animal-welfare community has admitted to strangling three cats to death and dumping two of their carcasses under a bridge.

Randy Jensen, 25, pleaded guilty Wednesday to one count of wilfully causing suffering or injury to the animals in December 2024.

Court heard Jensen was in the area of his home in west Winnipeg when he approached one cat, motioning as if to pet it, when he grabbed the animal and choked it to death.

On another occasion, Jensen was driving near his home when he lured a cat into his car with a cat treat. Jensen bound the cat’s paws with duct tape and strangled it with an electrical cord.

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Updated: Yesterday at 6:10 PM CDT

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Homes for Sale: 18 Sunset Boulevard

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