The Alberta government says it is changing how it tests people for COVID-19. Starting next week, Albertans who need a PCR test to inform their medical treatment must have a referral from a health-care professional. Clinicians are to determine the best testing option for their patients. Self-referrals will still be available to people with symptoms who live or work in isolated Indigenous communities and workers in certain high-risk settings, such as health care, continuing care and correctional facilities. Health Minister Jason Copping says in a statement that the changes would allow the provi

The Edmonton Police Commission has announced an independent review of what led a man accused in two murders to be dropped off in the city three days earlier, despite court-ordered conditions that he not be there. Justin Bone faces second-degree murder charges in the deaths of Ban Phuc Hoang and Hung Trang in May. The investigation is to look at how and when police interacted with Bone, examine police policies and review reports from the R-C-M-P, probation officers and other court processes. Mayor Amarjeet Sohi (am-ahr-JEET' SOH'-hee) welcomed the probe and says the public must know the details

A peacock on the loose for days in the western Alberta mountain town of Jasper has been euthanized. Parks Canada says its staff and town residents first saw the domestic peafowl last Saturday. The agency has said it isn't aware of how the peacock came to Jasper National Park or whether it was accidentally or deliberately released. Parks Canada says it consulted with experts outside the agency and, after six days of trying to capture and remove the peacock from the area, a decision was made to euthanize it on Thursday. The agency says the release of foreign species and domestic animals into

Mounties say a hiker has died after he slipped on a patch of snow and ice in Banff National Park. Police, fire rescue and Parks Canada responded to a call shortly before noon Saturday about a man who had fallen from Mount Temple near Lake Louise, Alta. They say the man was with a group of experienced hikers when he lost his footing. With the help of a Parks Canada helicopter, police say the man was located about 1,000 metres from the initial site of his fall. Mount Temple, a well-known peak above Lake Louise village, is described on the Parks Canada website as a technical route up the main fac

A candidate vying to lead Alberta’s United Conservatives has brought on a high-profile former federal politician as campaign chair. Rebecca Schulz says Rona Ambrose, the former Conservative Opposition leader, knows what it takes to unite and lead a party. In a video posted to social media, Ambrose says she has a ton of respect and confidence in Schulz, who had been provincial children’s services minister before stepping down to seek the leadership. Ambrose calls Schulz, the legislature member for Calgary-Shaw, a principled conservative and a compassionate Albertan. Schulz says in the video

CALGARY - The City of Calgary wants three dogs that mauled a senior last month to be euthanized. The 86-year-old woman who was attacked by the dogs on June 5 later died in hospital of her injuries. The city says in a release Thursday that it has submitted an application under the Dangerous Dogs Act asking the Court of Queen's Bench to order the animals to be humanely destroyed. Community peace officers seized the dogs after the attack and they are being held pending the outcome of the application. The city says police and Calgary Community Standards continue to investigate the dog attack. Afte

SUNDRE, Alta. - RCMP say a tornado has significantly damaged up to nine homes in west-central Alberta. Cpl. Gina Slaney says no one was seriously hurt. She says the tornado tore through the rural area around 3 p.m. Thursday. Pictures show damaged homes, wrecked outbuildings, uprooted trees and damaged power lines. Slaney says police from Sundre, Airdrie, Olds and Didsbury, and a fire crew from Cremona went door to door to check on people where the tornado hit. She says some roads were temporarily closed due to fallen trees and debris but have since reopened and crews were working to restore po

Mounties are looking for the driver of a car that struck and killed a cyclist last night in central Alberta. The 45-year-old woman was on her bike near Blackfalds when she was hit. Police say the car fled, and the woman died at the scene. Officers are looking for a dark-coloured sedan, possibly a B-M-W, with significant damage to the front. Police said in a news release it’s likely there would be “significant front-end damage, specifically to the windshield.”

City officials in Calgary say two more downtown buildings will see vacant office space repurposed into residential housing. It is part of a program announced last summer that aims to infuse life into largely emptyor underutilized office buildings in the downtown core. The area has the greatest amount of empty office space in Calgary's downtown and three similar projects were announced in April. It is part of Calgary's Downtown Calgary Development Incentive Program. The Downtown Calgary Incentive Program is a critical part of our revitalization strategy,” said Mayor Jyoti Gondek in a release.