Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - November 25, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba ASSINIBOINE PARK ZOO NOV 21–JAN 1 Light Up Your Holidays! Celebrate the season with laughter, festive cheer, and the beauty of more than a million lights. GET 50% OFF NOVEMBER DATES assiniboinepark.ca A bright and joyful experience for all ages. Help reimagine hospital rooms for kids like Ella. c o u n t l e s s n i g h t s i n h o s p it a l . E l l a ’ s c a n c e r t r e a t m e n t s me a n t Donate now at goodbear.ca YOUR DONATION MATCHED DONATION Double your impact today. Thank you to Talbot Family Foundation and K + P Talbot Community Fund for matching donations! MANITOBA’S worst wildfire season in 30 years isn’t finished despite the onset of freezing temperatures and snow, and there’s a fear some blazes could smoulder underground and resurface next spring. The Manitoba Wildfire Service’s latest situation report said 66 fires — mostly in the North and none posing a danger to communities — were still burning as of Sunday. “To have this many active (in late November) is unusual,” said Mike Flan- nigan, a wildfire scientist at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, B.C. “Most of (them) will be smouldering. They’re not posing a threat other than the potential for some of them to sur- vive through winter.” The active fires were classified as under control or being monitored. Some are in areas that were blanketed by snow in October. Colder tempera- tures and snow typically help to extin- guish any remaining hot spots. “The mild temperatures and limited precipitation will have slowed the natural extinguishing process,” a provincial spokesperson wrote in an email to the Free Press. The spokesperson said a “decent” snowfall should extinguish many of the remaining fires, but it’s possible some may overwinter, particularly if they’re burning deep underground where moisture from rain and snow will have less of an impact. The fires could flare up when conditions dry out in the spring, the spokesperson said. They said the wildfire service will carefully monitor winter conditions to know which areas may be at higher risk in the spring and respond quickly if fires re-emerge. The phenomenon of overwintering fires that burn underground — also known as zombie or holdover fires — has gained more attention recently due to dozens of examples in Alberta and B.C. The fires resurface when temperatures rise and snow melts. A NORTH End church is fighting for permission to install a secur- ity fence after coping with van- dalism, theft and encampments, along with threats of arson and violence. St. John Cantius Church, at 846 Bur- rows Ave., applied for a city variance to build a nine-foot (2.74-metre) chain- link fence with barbed wire around its property. “Through the years, we always had vandalism and trespassers. Some are people who use drugs and then some are just kids partying,” Delvina Tabing, a trustee of the parish, said Monday. “They climb up the roof and then they party up there. They use the premises of the church as their hotel and sometimes as toilets.” Tabing said greater security is need- ed to protect vulnerable parishioners, including many older adults, as well as catechism students. She said the church feels increasing- ly less safe as incidents pile up — an air conditioner was stolen, items were burned outside the church and people, at times, have camped on the property. In one incident, a staff member was threatened with a machete, she said. “A lot of times (the people doing this) are not in the right state of mind, they are under the influence of liquor or drugs,” said Tabing. SERVING MANITOBA SINCE 1872 PROUDLY CANADIAN TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2025 TODAY’S WEATHER MAINLY CLOUDY. HIGH -2 — LOW -7 LEGAL FIGHT MÉTIS SUE OTTAWA, MANITOBA / A3 JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS SHINING STARS AT THE LEAF William and his sister, Brooklyn, skip through Christmas lights Monday at the new Luminous display at the Leaf at Assiniboine Park. TYLER SEARLE A LOCAL author, beloved by her church and community, has died after a motor- ist struck her while she was crossing the street in Osborne Village Friday afternoon. Rosalie Tennison, 67, was hospital- ized after the collision and was await- ing surgery on broken bones in her leg. She had an unexpected medical event and died early Saturday, her sister Lynette Tennison told the Free Press. She is the ninth pedestrian killed on Winnipeg streets this year, and the 16th person killed in a vehicle collision, the Winnipeg Police Service said in a news release. “Rosalie was a person who was al- ways thoughtful of people’s challenges, always thinking about the other (per- son) first,” said Dolores Tjart, a close friend who is president of the condo board at the Roslyn Road building where she lived. Police said the collision occurred at the intersection of Roslyn Road and Osborne Street around 1:20 p.m. The victim was crossing Osborne when she was hit by a 2014 Ford Fusion that was travelling west on Roslyn. She was tak- en to the hospital in stable condition, the release said. Police have not indicated whether criminal charges are being considered. The 32-year-old man who was driving the vehicle remained at the scene. The investigation continues. News about the tragedy shocked those who knew and loved Tennison, said Susan Roe-Finlay, reverend dea- con at the Parish Church of St. Luke on Nassau Street North, where Tennison was a member. The close-knit congregation of about 50 people learned about her death Sat- urday night and dedicated the Sunday morning church service to her. “At church yesterday, they were just reeling; people were just overwhelmed. We were encouraging them at coffee to share, and I think some of them — they just couldn’t put words together,” Roe-Finlay said. “She is very much part of the fabric of our church. She is amazing.” Roe-Finlay said Tennison joined the church around six years ago, where she quickly developed a reputation for being “welcoming and warm.” Tennison was an active member of the congregation who participated in services by reading, taking collection and greeting parishioners. “She’s been part of our fundraisers. She often appeared at church with crafts and things that she would sell. She loved books and reading. She just seemed to be able to latch on to what people would like or need,” Roe-Finlay said. Local author dies after being hit by car in Osborne Village Ninth pedestrian to die on city streets in 2025 ● PEDESTRIAN, CONTINUED ON A2 JOYANNE PURSAGA North End church says prayer for fence Parish fights city for nine-foot gates amid vandalism, theft, encampments ● FENCE, CONTINUED ON A3 CHRIS KITCHING Wildfire officials say underground fires could re-emerge in spring ● WILDFIRES, CONTINUED ON A2 ;