Good morning Border Region, it’s Monday, Feb. 2, Groundhog Day and this is your Border Brief. On the groundhog note, Wiarton Willy didn’t see his shadow, which he predicts an early spring. The snowfall overnight has slowed people down today. Our roadways vary from covered to partially covered. More details on that shortly.
Now your headlines:
Quick work by firefighters limited the damage of a structure fire to only the one building at Nelson Lumbers yard along Highway 16. At one point, 7 trucks and over two dozen firefighters battled the blaze. It took over two hours to put it out. No injuries were reported, the cause is under investigation, but not considered to be suspicious.
If you missed it, Pierre Poilievre was renamed the Conservative Party leader Friday night with an over 89 per cent mandate.
More on these stories at borderpulse.ca
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Commodities
Commodities
March spring wheat closed at $5.38 per bushel, down about 3 cents on the day.
March canola closed at $647.20 per tonne, slipping slightly.
March feeder cattle closed at $360.28 per hundredweight, down nearly $5.
March oats closed at $3.07 per bushel, higher on the session.
Feed barley is trading around $242.50 per tonne in central Alberta, according to the latest Alberta Agriculture weekly crop market review.
Yellow peas are trading around $280 per tonne for No. 2 large yellows, based on the same report.
Energy Stocks
Western Canadian Select crude was trading at US$ 50.36 per barrel, continuing to climb.
West Texas Intermediate crude was trading around US$ 62.55 per barrel, also higher.
Shares of Cenovus Energy finished .
Shares of Strathcona Resources also closed slightly higher.
Traffic: Highways across the region this morning are slow.
Highway 17 north and south is Covered to partially covered
Highway 16 Between Edmonton and Lloydminster is deemed mostly partially covered, however, there are longer stretches marked covered this morning. Then on to Saskatoon, covered on to Maidstone, partially covered beyond that.
Roadways in and around Turtleford and St. Walburg are partially covered. Visibility in the area appears to be not too bad on those roadways.
The issue at Deer Creek Bridge on Highway 3 is ongoing.
Weather:
Today is expected to be with mainly cloudy with a 60 per cent chance of snow this morning, clearing this afternoon with a high of -1. As of 6 a.m. it is -9 feeling like -16 at the airport and snowing with winds coming out of the SSE at 15 km/h.
*This is a summary of the most up to date information you can find at Saskatchewan Highway Hotlines, Alberta 511 and Environment Canada.
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Upcoming Events:
City Council:
Lloydminster City Council is today at 1:30. You can watch it online or go in person to City Hall.
Donut Campaign
Mother Teresa with the support of Sobeys is launching their fifth annual donut campaign with a goal of raising more than $10,000. The money all goes back into the community.
Athletes Public Speaking:
Geek on the peak is underway. You can donate at the scaffolding at City Hall or online at Geekonthepeak.com. The money stays in the community in support of Telemiracle.
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Sports:
The Edmonton Oilers have placed goalie Calvin Pickard on waivers yesterday. They play the Maple Leafs Tuesday.
The Flames take on the Maple Leafs tonight at 8 p.m. at home.
The Bandits maintained their league leadership with a 2 win weekend including a thumping of Vegreville 12-0 on Saturday.
The Bobcats remain in a tie for third before heading off to face league leaders Whitecourt Wolverines, Friday.
That’s your Border Brief for Feb. 2, enjoy the rest of your day.
