EDMONTON — A deadly crash at an intersection along Highway 16A west of Edmonton has prompted residents in the area to call on the provincial government to change it to help prevent future accidents.

On Monday night, RCMP responded to a collision involving two vehicles on Highway 16A near Range Road 20 that left one man dead and a woman injured.

Keshia Korrall and her sister were some of the first people on the scene of Monday’s accident.

“The young man was pinned in the vehicle so we couldn’t pull him out or anything like that,” Korrall recalled.

“I just stayed with him,” she added. “Told him my name was Keshia and that I was there to help and just tried to keep him with me as long as I could. I told him help was on the way.”

Korrall says officers told her that Monday’s crash was the second one to happen at that same location in less than a week.

“They get multiple calls out here every year and he was visibly upset that they have to come out here all the time,” she said.

Korrall decided to start a petition to get the province to change the design of the intersection. She first posted it in an online community forum and was overwhelmed by the response.

“The amount of comments I had was over a 100 and I was like, ‘Obviously this is a problem.

“Numerous people that have reached out to me on Facebook say they completely avoid this intersection because they’re scared of it.”

Janice Neill lives near the intersection and told CTV News Edmonton she witnessed many accidents over the past decade.

“Roads aren’t marked well enough,” Neill said. “Today, when I was just coming here actually, coming home, I pulled across and looked to see and all of a sudden in my rear-view mirror there were three cars all in the same middle of the intersection.”

For Neill, there need to be lights or rumble strips installed – at minimum,

“We need something,” she said.

Korrall believes the safest option is an overpass.

Her petition has received more than 1,700 signatures.

“If I have to sit on that cement pad with a sign and fast, I will,” she said, as she laughed. “I’m done. This is enough.”

CTV News Edmonton reached out to the transportation ministry but has not received a response. 

EDMONTON — Following the release of a third-party review into the government’s response to the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the official opposition in Alberta is calling for an independent judicial review to provide accountability.

On Friday, the long-awaited external report prepared by accounting firm KPMG assessing Alberta’s handling of the first wave was released by the province. It provided five recommendations and discussed aspects of the pandemic response, including provincial communication strategies, economic supports offered by Alberta, and health care staffing shortages.

Sarah Hoffman, NDP deputy leader, said at a press conference Saturday the report was “damaging” to the United Conservative Party (UCP).

“The report contains serious concerns,” she said. “It provides very real evidence and recommendations that the government ignored entirely.

“It only covers the first wave, when we know so much heartbreak, pain, and suffering occurred as well in the second and third waves.”

The official opposition is calling for an independent inquiry into the entire response to the pandemic to provide “accountability” to Albertans, including frontline health care workers, small business owners, and those who have lost loved ones.

“At bare minimum, I think what Albertans deserve is accountability, transparency, and openness,” Hoffman said.

The member of the opposition said she was disappointed it took so long for the UCP to release the report.

“Yesterday, as most Albertans set off for their weekends, the UCP finally released the report addressing their response to the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Hoffman said.

Brett Boyden, government spokesperson, said in a statement that the government appreciates the KPMG report.

“We want to thank KPMG for their work on this report, which will help inform Alberta’s approach to widespread emergencies in the future,” Boyden said.

“The report shows Alberta was on the right track and on par with other provinces dealing with the early stages of an unprecedented global pandemic.”

STAFF SHORTAGES FELT NOW WERE WARNED ABOUT: NDP

Hoffman said the UCP did not listen to the report when it predicted health care system staffing pressures due to the pandemic.

“As KPMG was warning about staffing changes, the government continued down their path to undermine our public health system at a time when we needed it most,” she said.

“Look where we are. We are at bed shortages in hospitals, in at least 26 Alberta communities and we have whole emergency departments closing for days at a time.”

Boyden said the report showed that “significant progress” had been made toward ensuring staffing pressures were dealt with.

“Over the last year, Alberta Health Services (AHS) filled more than 1,000 vacancies for registered nurses,” he said. “In fact, AHS employs 1,700 more RNs today than in 2019.”

‘FAILED COMMUNICATION’ FLAGGED IN FIRST WAVE, NOT IMPROVED UPON

She also highlighted how the report mentioned communication with municipalities, businesses, and other stakeholders was flagged in the report as an area for improvement.

“Failed communication with businesses was flagged in the KPMG report as a concern in the first wave,” she “And then the government did an even worse job in the second and third waves.”

Throughout the first wave, small and medium-sized business supports offered by the province had an uptake that was “lower than expected,” the report said.

According to the third-party review, only 32 per cent of businesses surveyed by the province took advantage of Worker’s Compensation Board (WCB) premium deferral and used the provincial relaunch grant during the first wave.

“Alberta’s NDP put forward more than two dozen recommendations to support these businesses. Most were ignored or mocked by the premier, the minister, and their political staff.”

Hoffman added that the report highlighted that while other provinces in Canada implemented special supports for vulnerable populations, like youth, to lessen the blow the pandemic had on them, Alberta did not.

“This report highlights how terribly we failed Alberta’s youth,” she said. “B.C., Ontario, and Quebec all introduced programs to address youth unemployment during the pandemic. But Jason Kenney did nothing.

“Now we have the highest youth unemployment rate in the country.”

Read the report here:

Health Alberta Covid 19 Pandemic Response Review Final Report

EDMONTON — Canada’s women won gold Friday in a shootout to capture a long-awaited and deserved Olympic medal.

A local connection to the team is helping inspire the next generation of players.

Gerry, the father of Canadian goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé, was enjoying breakfast as he watched the game with his grandchildren.

The Stony Plain native told CTV News Edmonton he was anxious throughout the match but his nerves settled when the game went into penalty kicks.

“In Stephanie we trust,” he laughed.

“All she had to do was keep us close, and she did. Then when she got the opportunity to close the door, she did.”

Stephanie’s father Gerry Labbé wore his Canada jersey Friday morning as he watched the game live with his grandchildren (Supplied)

Stephanie played minor soccer in Spruce Grove and Mill Woods before getting a soccer scholarship kickstarting her career. She attended the 2002 U19 Women’s World Cup in Edmonton and knew playing for Team Canada was something she wanted to do.

She played with the University of Connecticut and then played with the Swedish club KIF Orebro for six years. She made her Olympic debut in Rio 2016 where she helped Canada win the bronze medal.

Sweden’s Sofia Jakobsson, left, and Canada’s goalkeeper Stephanie Labbe battle for the ball during the women’s final soccer match at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 6, 2021, in Yokohama, Japan. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

“This is massive for Canada,” Gerry said. “Absolutely massive.”

“I can only imagine what this is going to do not only for the girl’s program, but you know the boy’s program in the youth coming up.There’s some really good players that helped build and push this team to where it is now so I’m happy for those people too, cause they get to share in this.”

David McCarthy, a coach with Edmonton Scottish United Soccer Club for children aged four to 17, said for many young soccer players in Edmonton, the win meant the world.

“It’s pretty incredible right, and then that’s all anyone wanted to talk about when they came, and some of the people were showing up as things were happening,” he said.

“It just really creates this incredible buzz.”

Some avid youngsters attending soccer camps in the city woke up extra early to watch the game live.

“I do sometimes play goalie too, so it felt kinda like I could be like that when I’m older, just like her,” 10-year-old Juliana Martin said.

Aspiring soccer star Juliana Martin (CTV News Edmonton)

The aspiring soccer star said the win made her want to play even more.

“I just want to get to the best of my abilities,” she added. “I wanna show people just because I’m a girl they won’t stop me.”

EDMONTON — The federal government says Alberta is not willing to meet standards set by Ottawa to qualify for federal funding to subsidize $10-a-day child care as part of the Canada-wide early learning and child care plan.

The federal budget laid out three criteria for funding: that invested dollars would “primarily” support not-for-profit early learning centres; develop more training opportunities for child care providers to support the “quality” of the system; and money would need to reduce costs for child care to $10-a-day or less by 2026.

Mikaela Harrison, press secretary for the federal ministry of families, children, and social development, told CTV News Edmonton in a statement that Alberta had demonstrated its commitment to $10-a-day child care for the “first time” on Thursday.

Rebecca Schulz, Alberta’s minister of children’s services, said in a statement on Thursday that the agreement Quebec and the federal government reached on subsidized early learning and child care was unfair since Alberta made the same arrangement but was “rejected.”

“Apparently, one province is more equal than others,” Premier Jason Kenney said in a news conference on Friday. “It is indefensible.”

Schulz told CTV News Edmonton in an interview Friday that the deal Quebec signed was “disappointing.”

“Just the day before, we had a conversation with the federal government who said that no province would be receiving any agreement when it came to these child care funds with no conditions,” she said.

“Albertans want to see these dollars come back to Alberta,” she added. “We want to invest them in child care. We know that child care is absolutely vital.”

The minister said the province was seeking “flexibility” from Ottawa on how best to use those funds as Alberta has a combination of for-profit day homes, day cares, and relatives that provide early learning for children.

ALBERTA NOT WILLING TO MEET CRITERIA SET BY OTTAWA: HARRISON

Harrison added that “regional differences” within the child care plan were always at the core of building Canada’s early learning and child care programming.

“Of the six bilateral agreements we have already signed with provinces and territories, no two agreements are identical,” Harrison said.

According to her, what “unites” all the agreements is a “shared commitment” to an average of $10-a-day for child care or better, for all regulated spaces to guarantee affordability, building more inclusive spaces, and investments into childhood educators.

“To date, the Alberta government has not been willing to meet those demands,” Harrison said. “Despite being one of the first to sign an extension to the previous child care bilateral agreement, they have not yet presented a plan to the federal government.”

Following the federal budget unveiling in April, Schulz said the province received a letter and had a phone call meeting where they signalled Alberta wanted to negotiate.

“I’ve worked really hard to build a strong working relationship with my federal counterpart,” Schulz said.

“As we saw other provinces sign other agreements, we still hadn’t received our term sheets – which kicks off those negotiations,” she said.

The main worry for Schulz is that a federal election gets called for the fall and leaves the province without any opportunity to secure subsidized day care funding that other jurisdictions will.

Schulz provided CTV News Edmonton with two letters sent to the federal government in July where it outlined it was committed to begin negotiations to receive funding to support child care. The letters did not detail how Alberta intended to meet the targets and criteria set out by Ottawa.

“We are pleased to hear that the Alberta government is now committed to $10/day or less child care for families, as well as meeting the requirement of cutting fees by half on average by next year,” Harrison said.

“We look forward to seeing these details clearly outlined in their action plan so that we can work together and give every child in Alberta the best start in life.”

EDMONTON — Crews in Edmonton have started excavating the grounds surrounding the Charles Camsell Hospital looking for unmarked burial sites.

The former hospital is located in what is now Edmonton’s Inglewood neighbourhood and was used as a tuberculosis treatment centre for First Nations and Inuit patients.

For decades, patients from across Alberta and northern Canada were sent to the hospital for treatment. Many local Indigenous leaders recall how it was more commonly referred to as the “Indian Hospital.”

Others recall how patients sometimes were subjected to abuse, forced sterilization, and medical experiments.

Architect Gene Dub purchased the site with the intent to redevelop the area. He has now hired a company to scan the area once more, prior to any construction progress is made.

“After the shock of Kamloops we thought we better make sure there aren’t any burials that are not recorded,” Dub said.

The architect said in 2008, three reports were completed that concluded no burial sites were located at the Camsell location.

“That was just (looking at) recorded burials,” Dub said.

The new surveys identified 11 potential areas of concern.

“We are daylighting, or opening up those 11 areas, to see if there is any possibility that they are burials.”

So far, crews found debris, copper wire, concrete slabs, and other material from previous buildings located at the site.

Dub described how crews excavated each site one inch at a time to the depth the ground penetrating radar indicated.

One-third of the entire site has been surveyed and Dub says the plan is to continue surveying and searching to provide closure to Indigenous families. He hopes the remainder of the grounds can searched with the aid of federal or provincial funding.

‘IMPORTANT WORK’

Members of the Papaschase First Nation are taking part in the search efforts and observing as crews excavate.

Shiela Desjarlais, a representative from Papaschase First Nation acting as an observer at the site, said there has been oral history for generations about unmarked burial sites at the Camsell Hospital.

Desjarlais said it is “important work” being completed.

“People are now hearing us when we’ve been talking about it for so long,” she shared. “We’ve always known.

“The fact now that somebody is saying, ‘Let’s look,’” she added, “gives us that confirmation.”

“It’s very emotional.”

As an observer, Desjarlais said Indigenous community members are present, ensure ceremony is observed, and that the process is respectful.

“The fact that we get to be part of it is really helpful,” she said. “Being able to watch to see what they are finding.”

‘LOTS’ MORE TO SEARCH

Elder Fernie Marty said there’s still lots of work to be done.

He’s pleased no remains have been located to this point but recognizes there is still lots more site left to search. Marty shared how Indigenous elders have indicated that the southeast part of the site had an unmarked burial area. That part of the site is next to be searched.

“There was a lot of atrocities that went on at this hospital,” Marty said. “I know people that came to here years ago.

“All kinds of atrocities that shouldn’t have happened, happened here,” he added. “They’ve got a lot more work to do.”

Contact the Indian Residential School Survivors Society toll-free 1 (800) 721-0066 or 24-hour Crisis Line 1 (866) 925-4419 if you require further emotional support or assistance.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Touria Izri