By Maya Ekman
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
NWOnewswatch.com

THUNDER BAY — In its first week running a veterinary field hospital in Thunder Bay, Vets Around the Corner has also made two trips to Whitesand First Nation and Armstrong to rescue pets left behind during evacuations from the wildfires in the region. Vets Around the Corner (VAC) came to […]

By Carl Clutchey
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The Chronicle-Journal

It’s a veritable landslide — of candidates. The number of names vying to become Neebing’s next mayor in the Oct. 26 municipal election has reached nearly half a dozen. The list, which includes a combination of council veterans and newcomers, was numbered at five as of Monday, according to the […]

By Jon Thompson,
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Riccochet

Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government insists it is improving communications with First Nations fleeing forest fires in the northwest, following heavy criticism last week. Chiefs, however, say little has changed.  Thunder Bay-Atikokan MPP Kevin Holland claimed “there has been improved communication” in an interview published on Friday by TBnewswatch.com. Holland mentioned Kiashke Zaaging […]

By Carl Clutchey,
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The Chronicle-Journal

Though big dumps of rain aren’t part of the showery forecast for Thunder Bay and areas near the city this weekend, farmers will take every drop they can get as one of the driest and hottest summers in memory continues. “I definitely wouldn’t mind a few more days of rain,” Jason Reid, who […]

By Maggie Macintosh
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Winnipeg Free Press

A selfie of a high school football coach grinning beside a Free Press front-page story about the investigation into his professional conduct has become part of the case. Doug Kovacs, a resource teacher at Grant Park High School who runs the Pirates football program, was put on leave in the […]

By Ken Kellar
kkellar@fortfrances.com

The Kiwanis Club of Fort Frances is celebrating a longtime member and lifelong volunteer next week and is inviting everyone to celebrate with them. In honour of Dr. Bob Lidkea, a fixture of both the Fort Frances community and local Kiwanis Club, the club will be holding a free memorial […]

By Allan Bradbury
abradbury@fortfrances.com

For years, they’ve been the house band backing performers in Quest for the Best champions in their pursuit of the title, playing one show a year. But more recently, the local legends who once walked the halls of the town’s schools have had more time to show up at different […]

By Pam Fedack
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Kenora Miner & News

The president of the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association (NOMA) says the federal government’s decision to designate the Nuclear Waste Management Organization’s (NWMO) proposed Deep Geological Repository (DGR) as a project of national interest is good news for the region, but it also underscores the need for safer highways. In an […]

By Sandi Krasowski
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The Chronicle-Journal

Days before U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to slap higher tariffs on Canada because smoke from Canadian wildfires annoyed U.S. citizens, Ontario Premier Doug Ford visited evacuees staying in Thunder Bay who have lost everything. “I find it a shame the administration in the U.S. and Congress people writing these […]

By Jon Thompson
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Ricochet

As wildfires swallow swaths of northern Ontario, in what is already the worst wildfire season in the province’s history, the union representing forest firefighters is sounding the alarm over what he calls “government mismanagement at the highest levels.” Noah Freedman, vice president of Local 703 with the Ontario Public Service […]

By Allan Bradbury and Ken Kellar
abradbury@fortfrances.com
kkellar@fortfrances.com

Another Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship is in the books, and this year saw its top team extend their winning streak to a third year. Motei Demers and Ian Waterer are the 2026 FFCBC champs, marking the third consecutive year they have emerged at the top of the field following […]