‘Come From Away’ opens tonight

In her directorial debut for Mecca Productions, Tiana Vasconcelos wants to tell a Canadian story that stems from tragedy — and with 14 chairs and a prop suitcase or two, she hopes audiences feel the community, love and support at the core of the musical.

“Come From Away,” which opens tonight at the Western Manitoba Centennial Auditorium in Brandon, takes place in Gander, N.L., on one of the most tragic days in recent memory — Sept. 11, 2001.

Following the attacks, the small, isolated town suddenly became an international host for 38 planes that were diverted to the local airstrip.

“It’s all about what happened when the airspace was closed during 9/11 and what Canada’s partnership in that event was, what it meant to them and how we supported people from away,” Vasconcelos said Wednesday.

Volunteers key to Operation Red Nose success

More volunteers will have to sign up this year in order to make Operation Red Nose Brandon a success, an official with the non-profit said on Wednesday.

There were only a “handful” of volunteers and calls for service in 2023, the last year the program operated.

Organizers officially announced the return of the program after its two-year hiatus at an event on the front steps of the Dome Building Wednesday afternoon.

“Operation Red Nose was placed in neutral, and ultimately parked because of declining volunteer participation (and) reduced demand for the services as well,” Frank McGwire, social media co-ordinator for the group, told about 20 attendees during the press conference.

No-contact order; drugs and stolen bike

INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE

Brandon police arrested a man on Tuesday afternoon, alleging he was in violation of an order not to contact his partner.

The family of the 35-year-old woman requested police conduct a well-being check on her after she was allegedly assaulted by a man the previous evening and couldn’t be reached, police said in a news release on Wednesday.

Police confirmed a man had been arrested in connection with an assault against the woman and was released earlier that day on a court order.

Call for justice

» Matt Goerzen/The Brandon Sun

Former MP Mike Morrice the only candidate left in Green Party leadership race

OTTAWA - Former MP Mike Morrice is the only candidate left in the race for the leadership of the federal Green Party — but he'll still have to make his pitch to the party's membership before he gets the job.

Nira Dookeran announced Tuesday she was withdrawing from the contest "after much soul-searching," citing personal and family reasons.

The two were the only candidates to come out of the nomination process to replace Elizabeth May earlier this summer.

"I want to express my best wishes to Mike Morrice, my fellow candidate in the leadership contest," Dookeran said in her statement.

Winter to wait on the sidelines as El Nino extends fall: The Weather Network outlook

It's shaping up to be a mild fall across much of Canada, The Weather Network's forecast suggests, with a potentially historic El Nino expected to prolong the season and delay winter's arrival.

September and October will still bring the usual swings between warm spells and bursts of chilly, stormy weather, the network's three-month outlook says. But the balance is expected to trend milder and, in many regions, drier than normal as the season progresses, said senior meteorologist Doug Gillham.

"Winter is probably going to wait on the sidelines for a while," he said in an interview.

The main reason is El Nino, the climate phenomenon tied to shifting patches of warm water in the Pacific Ocean, Gillham said.

U.S. moves to ban imports of some Canadian products, exempt others from tariffs

WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump plans to ban a range of Canadian exports and shuffle tariffs on others as Ottawa and Washington trade accusations over which side is responsible for the escalating trade war.

Most imports of Canadian-made liquor and a handful of dairy products will be banned from the United States at the end of September, but dozens of other products are getting a tariff reprieve.

Trump on Tuesday signed new executive orders ramping up retaliation after Canada imposed its latest set of counter tariffs on the United States.

The five new orders, which take effect later this month, will completely bar imports of certain Canadian goods, including motorcycles, some dairy products like whey and cheese, and molasses.

25 years ago, Canada faced a ‘dramatic change’ as it headed for war in Afghanistan

OTTAWA - A quarter of a century ago, the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, forced Canadians to quickly wake up to a world that had changed overnight — and to confront a new war which would change everything for Canada's military.

The Afghanistan war, Canada's longest armed conflict, taught harsh lessons — some that Canada learned, others it did not.

Soon after the attacks on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon, Canada stepped out of the quiet decade after the Cold War into the global fight on terror, and soon found itself at war with a Taliban insurgency halfway around the world.

"Who would have dreamt the day before that, Canadian troops in their thousands would be serving in Afghanistan — Afghanistan, for God's sake, of all places. It was a dramatic change," said retired general Rick Hillier, who led a multinational force of NATO nations in Kabul and would become Canada’s best-known chief of defence staff.

Labour board ends one-day Dynacare strike

WINNIPEG — The Manitoba Labour Board has cut short a strike by 350 lab workers employed by Dynacare who administer blood and urine tests for patients in Winnipeg, Brandon and surrounding communities.

The board ruled late Tuesday afternoon that the workers, who hit the picket line at 6 a.m., must return to work today.

Jason Linklater, president of their union, the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals, slammed the board’s decision.

“The Manitoba Labour Board is doing exactly what the government asked them to do: they are taking away our members’ right to fight for fairness,” he said in a statement.