U.S. ambassador offers Canada help almost a week after Wainwright tragedy
U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra says the United States has offered to help following the deadly fire at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright in Alberta.
Four soldiers were killed and 39 injured on Oct. 17 when a fire that began during a training exercise on an anti-grenade launching range was picked up by fierce winds.
The military says the fire swept in less than a minute about a kilometre away to where a different training exercise was taking place on the base about 200 kilometres southeast of Edmonton.
Twenty-seven soldiers remain in hospital, including 13 in critical condition, many of them with severe burns.
In a social media post today almost a week after the tragedy, Hoekstra said the U.S. government has made a formal offer of assistance and resources to Canada's federal government to help support the recovery of soldiers affected by traumatic burns "should it be deemed necessary."
The military says there are three different investigations into the tragedy and could not say when more answers will be available about how the tragedy occurred.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2026.
— With files from Kyle Duggan and Nick Murray in Ottawa
By Catherine Morrison | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly wants to build an aluminum rolling mill in Canada
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly says new federal investments announced Friday are a first step toward reducing the Canadian aluminum sector's dependence on the United States.
Joly, who is also the minister responsible for economic development in Quebec, made the comments in La Baie, Que., where she announced more than $193 million in federal funding for projects at four Rio Tinto facilities in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region and at the Alouette aluminum smelter in Sept-Îles, Que.
“The aluminum industry is much more than an economic driver. It is also a strategic industry for our country and for Canadian sovereignty,” the minister said in her speech.
Citing the economic upheaval caused by tariffs and the unpredictability of the American government, Joly said that “in this new context, we must be able to produce more of what our economy needs right here in Canada.”
She also said the funding is a first step toward strengthening the Canadian aluminum supply chain.
Joly pointed out that the price of aluminum products are inflated first by tariffs when they enter the United States and a second time when that aluminum returns to Canada. The United States imposes a 50 per cent tariff on Canadian aluminum, and since Sept. 8, Canada has imposed a 50 per cent tariff on processed aluminum from the United States, resulting in a total surcharge of 100 per cent.
The Canadian tariff imposed in March 2025 was 25 per cent before Sept. 8.
Joly stressed that the government sees aluminum as a strategic sector for the Canadian economy and that she sees the importance of building rolling mills in Canada.
"It’s not normal that most of our aluminum is processed in the United States and then comes back at a higher cost to our companies," she said.
She said several sectors — including agri-food, beverages, and aerospace — need more processed aluminum and have rolling mill projects of their own.
"We want to be able to produce our aluminum cans here at home; we want to be able to produce our aircraft and aerospace parts here at home; and we also want to attract key investments in aluminum processing for our defence sector," Joly said.
On top of providing financial support to producers, she said the government also wants to work with entrepreneurs interested in developing these rolling mills and take on equity stakes.
Ottawa also wants “to be able to offer procurement contracts, certainly defence-related ones, for key components in the aerospace sector, precisely to create a business model that makes sense for a rolling mill,” Joly stated.
“Economic sovereignty isn’t something you proclaim, it’s something you build."
Canada has nine primary aluminum smelters, eight of which are located in Quebec. The other is in British Columbia.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2026.
By Pierre Saint-Arnaud | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Manitoba bans teachers from texting, messaging students on social media
The Manitoba government is banning teachers from texting with students or messaging them on social media sites.
The province says school employees will still be able to communicate with students on platforms that are monitored by school divisions or other administrators.
Education Minister Tracy Schmidt says the province's directive will help keep kids safe, set expectations for parents and give educators guidelines.
All schools will be required to share the changes with students, staff and families in their communities.
The ban comes after two educators recently lost their teaching certificates for sending inappropriate messages to students.
An investigation by Manitoba's independent education commissioner found that in one case, the teacher engaged in a years-long inappropriate relationship with a student that began in middle school and continued as the student went into high school.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2026.
Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.