Three portable classrooms at Stanley Knowles School are destroyed after a fire early Wednesday morning. (SHAUN McLEOD)

An early morning fire destroyed three portable classrooms at Stanley Knowles School on Wednesday.

Firefighters were called to the scene at around 1:30 a.m., where they found two classrooms fully engulfed, and later discovered a third.

Classes are scheduled to resume at the school — which houses nursery to Grade 8 students — on September 8, but administrators say the fire won’t have any impact on classes being pushed back.

The main part of the school at 2424 King Edward Street only suffered minor smoke damage.

Damage is estimated at over $750,000.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Friday is when the 2010 season begins for the Manitoba Bison football team, as they take to the road and travel west to Regina.

Fifth year veteran running back Matt Henry has been named a captain for the third consecutive season. Henry rushed for over 600 yards last season and is now second in all time Bison rushing yards.

Watch:

Besides Henry, fourth year Stu Schollaardt, third year defensive back Teague Sherman, fourth year defensive lineman Everton Black and third year linebacker Thomas Hall were also named captains.

The battle for who will start as quarterback is still brewing, as head coach Brian Dobie still needs to make a decision between third year incumbents Khaleal Williams and Kevin Hayes.

The game can be heard on 101.5 UMFM beginning at 7:45 p.m. CT.

ChrisD.ca video

CBC Manitoba has four openings in its Winnipeg newsroom for three English reporters/editors and an associate producer.

The broadcaster posted the full-time jobs Tuesday afternoon on its website.

One of the reporter/editor positions is only temporary, while the others are of regular status.

To view the individual postings, select “Current Openings” and then choose Winnipeg from the location list on CBC.Radio-Canada.ca.

The deadline to apply is September 14, 2010.

On another note, “CBC News: Winnipeg” was nominated for a Gemini award on Tuesday in the best newscast, large market category. Reporter Sheila North-Wilson also received a nomination for a three-story series on Winnipeg’s ‘homeless hero’ Faron Hall in the category of best breaking news coverage.

The 25th annual Gemini Awards will be handed out over a period of three gala events in November.

Posted by Brian Schultz

Gary Filmon and Burton Cummings will be invested into the Order of Canada during a ceremony on Friday at Rideau Hall in Ottawa. (FLICKR / MYSPACE)

Former Manitoba Premier Gary Filmon and Winnipeg musician Burton Cummings will be invested into the Order of Canada as Officers Friday morning in Ottawa.

Governor General Michaëlle Jean will preside over the investiture ceremony at Rideau Hall to recognize a lifetime of outstanding achievement, dedication to the community and service to the nation.

Gary Filmon served as Manitoba’s 19th premier from 1988 to 1999 and improved the province’s finances and oversaw record levels of economic growth. He also introduced multicultural policies and programs, and championed sustainable development and environmental issues. Filmon also served as chair of Canada’s Security Intelligence Review Committee. In 2009, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Recent U.S. citizen Burton Cummings is being honoured for his numerous benefit concerts in support of the Canadian Cancer Society, the National Ballet of Canada and the Variety Club, as well as in support of his fellow Manitobans following the 1997 Red River flood. Cummings co-wrote many classic songs as a member of the Guess Who and as a solo artist, and was a pioneer in bringing Canadian rock music to an international audience.

The giant banana statue in Melita, Manitoba, along with the bird in its hand, need names. You can submit your choices until September 30, 2010. (MELITA AREA AND TOURISM COMMITTEE)

The town of Melita needs help naming its 30-foot-tall banana statue that represents the town’s location in southwestern Manitoba’s “Banana Belt” region.

The Melita and Area Tourism Committee launched the “Name Our Banana” contest on Tuesday to help find suitable names for the bright yellow fruit.

Also needing a name is the blue jay that sits in the banana’s right hand with the letters IBA on its shirt, which stands for “Important Bird Area.” The bird was chosen to represent the site for bird conservation in the province.

The giant statue was unveiled on August 7 at the corner of Front Street and Highway 83 as a symbol for the town’s warmer temperatures.

You can submit your choice of names until September 30, 2010.

More information on how to enter is available at MelitaMB.ca.

Posted by David Klassen

An inflatable colon similar to the one shown above will be in Winnipeg beginning Thursday at Garden City Shopping Centre. (COLORECTAL-CANCER.CA)

An interactive, educational exhibit of a giant colon will help promote the upcoming 3rd annual “Kick Butt for Colorectal Cancer” Walk/Run held in Kildonan Park on September 11.

The Giant Colon Exhibit is a 40-foot long and eight-foot high inflatable, walk-through replica of the human colon.

The exhibit will be set up at Garden City Shopping Centre from September 2 to September 5 during normal mall hours. The inside is equipped with floor lights and sensors on both sides of the structure and five short videos. Visitors will receive an educational message on the importance of screening and how individuals can prevent colorectal cancer.

The exhibit is a joint effort of the Colorectal Cancer Association of Canada (CCAC), the Province of Manitoba, CancerCare Manitoba and the Canadian Cancer Society, Manitoba Division.

A formal launch ceremony and ribbon cutting is planned for Thursday at 10:30 a.m.

A 32-year-old man from McLean, Saskatchewan died on Sunday in a workplace accident near Virden in the RM of Pipestone.

RCMP say the man was working at an oil drilling site with large metal pipes when the load shifted. The man was pinned between them before being freed by coworkers.

He was transferred to Virden Medical Center, but efforts to save him were unsuccessful and he succumbed to his injuries.

RCMP and Manitoba Workplace Health and Safety continue to investigate the fatality.

No name has been released.

Posted by Brian Schultz

Coming off their bye week, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers got back on the practice field today with two new players at their disposal.

The team signed import offensive tackle Marlon Winn and import defensive lineman Jeremy Maddox to the practice roster on Tuesday.

Winn was a three-year starter at Texas Tech and played both right tackle and left tackle. He started all 13 games as a senior and anchored an offensive line that won the Alamo Bowl against Michigan State and earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention recognition.

Maddox was named First-Team All-SWAC in his sophomore year after leading the Southwestern Athletic Conference with nine sacks. He currently sits second in school history behind current Indianapolis Colts star Robert Mathis in sacks and tackles for loss.

The Bombers face Saskatchewan on the road September 5 before returning home to go head-to-head with the Roughriders again on September 12.

Winnipeg fans of Aerosmith are eager to see the legendary rockers after numerous cancellations, but on Wednesday, September 8, the band will definitely be here.

Singer Steven Tyler and the rest of the gang are playing MTS Centre in just over a week and ChrisD.ca wants to send you to the show.

We’re giving away two pairs of tickets courtesy of True North Sports and Entertainment.

How do I enter?

Fill out the form below and include the name of your favourite Aerosmith song.

Contest closes Thursday, September 2, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. CT. We’ll draw two winners at random on Friday, September 3.

One entry per household. Manitoba residents only please. Good luck!

All personal information is handled in accordance to our Privacy Policy and then discarded once winners are notified.

A horse rears up and falls over when its handler attempts to round it up at Assiniboia Downs on Sunday, August 29, 2010. (MARC EVANS / CHRISD.CA)

This particular horse did not want to be rounded up Sunday during the yearling auction at Assiniboia Downs.

Its handler had to bring it extra help when the animal decided to fall down on its butt and create a scene. Eventually the horse was brought back to its feet, and all was well. The animal wasn’t injured.

Horse expert Trina Maus says for safety reasons it is common to lead a horse with a chain over its nose, similar to using a choke collar on a dog, but if you don’t let up on the chain they will sometimes continue to pull back to get away from the pressure.

Sunday’s yearling auction brought in sales of $146,700, an increase of $50,000 from last year. Thirty of the 45 horses offered were sold for an average of $4,890.

A group of Ukrainian dancers perform during the 38th Annual Cooks Creek Heritage Day celebration on Sunday, August 29, 2010 in Dugald, Manitoba. (TED GRANT / CHRISD.CA)

It was all about the past over the weekend as the 38th Annual Cooks Creek Heritage Day was held Sunday in the RM of Springfield.

The yearly event highlights the prominent Ukrainian settlement in Cooks Creek, and recognizes the other handful of ethnic members in the community.

The skies cleared from the dreary weather which plagued the area on Saturday, and made for a sunny afternoon for bread making in a clay oven, pioneer demonstrations, quilting by the Manitoba Prairie Quilters and a tractor show by the Springfield Tractor Club.

Volunteers with the St. Michael’s Roman Catholic Church made sure no one was running on an empty stomach and cooked up a delicious Polish meal for those who came out.

And like with any festival or event around Manitoba, Hot 103′s Ace Burpee was the emcee.

View the photo gallery below.

Posted by Tyler Sutherland

First Fridays are held on the first Friday of every month in the Exchange District and help to showcase artists and businesses in the area. (HANDOUT PHOTO)

The Exchange District BIZ held an inaugural gathering in July of local artists to bring them together for the first ever First Fridays event, and coming off of the early success, organizers are holding another one on September 3.

First Fridays take place the first Friday of every month, and is a coordinated effort between galleries, performing arts venues, retailers, artists, and restaurants to celebrate and promote the arts and cultural side of the heritage district.

Participating retailers will display a logo in front of their businesses.

The event runs from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. More details are available at FirstFridaysWinnipeg.org.