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A high school in Saint-Jérôme, Que., suspends 78 students following disruptions
Dozens of students suspended in Quebec high school
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz
A high school about 40 kilometres north of Montreal has suspended 78 students after disruptions on school grounds on Friday.
The school board told The Canadian Press that the school in Saint-Jérôme, Que., was closed Monday as the administration worked to shed light on the event.
The school administration told parents in a letter Friday that these incidents happened after a call to action by students.
Classes resumed on Tuesday, but several parents said on social media that their children felt unsafe at the thought of returning to school.
The administration told parents in a subsequent letter about new security measures for Monday, including hiring security guards and increased police presence.
The school has more than 3,400 students and approximately 330 staff members.
Videos of the disruptions Friday show students crowding the halls, with some pushing through the group and others throwing a garbage can in the air.
On Monday, school staff reviewed video recordings to identify the students “who instigated or participated in Friday’s events,” Nadyne Brochu, spokesperson for the Rivière-du-Nord school board, said in an email.
“The consequences for each student will be determined based on the severity of their actions," Brochu wrote.
“Parents will need to be involved in the process and work with the school staff,” she added.
The school also said that it has adjusted the its staff's schedules "to ensure maximum adult supervision."
In a letter sent to parents on Monday, school director Nathalie Flamand said further disruption could lead to serious consequences.
"No gathering or behaviour that could compromise the safety or the proper functioning of the school will be tolerated," she wrote.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 20, 2026.
— With files from Mathieu Paquette and Frédéric Lacroix-Couture
Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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'Perfect storm': Extreme weather fuelled Wainwright military base fire, expert says
Extreme weather fuelled deadly Wainwright fire
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov
A wildfire expert says powerful winds with shifting directions and dry weather contributed to rapid expansion of the fire at a military base in Wainwright, Alta., that left four soldiers dead and 39 others wounded.
Environment and Climate Change Canada had issued a severe weather alert for swaths of Alberta on Saturday, warning of powerful wind gusts of up to 90 kilometres per hour in the region where the base is located, 200 kilometres southeast of Edmonton.
The agency said a strong cold front also passed through the area at the time of the windstorm.
Jen Beverly, an associate professor of wildland fire at the University of Alberta, says that weather combination created a “perfect storm” for the deadly fire to spread at a staggering speed and engulf the military training ground.
Defence officials have said that 84 members of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry were in a training area when strong winds spread the flames from a nearby grass fire that was initially considered sufficiently under control.
The military said the fire burning about a kilometre away reached the training ground in less than one minute, and Beverly says that could be “the fastest recorded observation of wildfire spread in Canada” if confirmed after the investigation.
Beverly says people working near a wildland fire should have access to information about any severe weather conditions, including extreme winds.
She says the military's investigation needs to find out whether such information was communicated and if any decisions made about the training were based on it on the day of the fire.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 20, 2026.
Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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New lawsuit filed challenging Trump's tariffs on Canada
Lawsuit filed over Trump's tariffs on Canada
A lawsuit challenging U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs targeting Canada has been filed in the United States Court of International Trade.
The lawsuit, filed today by the non-profit Liberty Justice Center on behalf of U.S. food importer Gellert Global Group, argues Trump's use of a Depression-era trade statute exceeds his power as president.
Trump used Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 to slap an array of Canadian goods with a 50 per cent levy after trade talks broke down in August.
The same statute was used the following month to ban the import of other Canadian goods, including motorcycles and some alcohol and dairy products.
Liberty Justice Center CEO Sara Albrecht says in a news release that no president should have the power to pull a dormant statute off the shelf and use it to impose sweeping tariffs or import bans.
The lawsuit asks the court to declare the tariffs unlawful and order a refund.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 20, 2026.
By Kelly Geraldine Malone | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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