An ancient log, zombie fires and the election
Plus watch drone footage of an ice road
Hello readers, this is Emily, Cabin Radio’s assistant editor with another week of news from the Northwest Territories.
Across Canada and the North, candidates are hitting the campaign trail ahead of the April 28 election.
Four candidates are running to be the NWT’s next Member of Parliament: Rebecca Alty for the Liberal Party, Kimberly Fairman for the Conservative Party, Kelvin Kotchilea for the New Democratic Party and Rainbow Eyes (Angela Davidson) for the Green Party. You can follow all of our election coverage here.
Also in the news this week, we looked into the discovery of a 50-million-year-old log at a diamond mine and new research on zombie fires.
IN THIS NEWSLETTER
Our best stories
The Dettah ice road
What we’re reading
Stories to catch up on
1. Overwintering ‘zombie fires’ aren’t doing what we thought they’d do
A major new study of NWT wildfires that smoulder through the winter surprised the scientists involved and has some lessons for the territory's firefighters.
2. NWT mother searching for answers following son’s death
Shirley King was told her son had died at the Edmonton Remand Centre in December 2024. Months later, she says she has no confirmation of what happened to him.
3. Why do 50-million-year-old trees turn up in NWT diamond mines?
Thousands of people are marvelling at a diamond mine's discovery of an ancient, well-preserved log. Here's why old trees turn up far below ground at NWT mines.
4. Is Yellowknife’s Centre Square Mall entering a new era?
A troubled downtown Yellowknife mall is suddenly welcoming a raft of new businesses. Is this the start of a long-awaited turnaround or are things more complex?
5. ‘We go in and deal with problems but don’t get to deal with our own’
Yellowknife firefighter Seann May has spent 20 years recovering from a tragedy. Listen to him describe what happened and how he eventually found help.
6. Northlore blends live action, animation to tell northern stories
Northlore, an exploration of the connection between people and northern nature, features NWT artist Casey Koyczan's animation at its heart. It's streaming now.
7. Alarm grows over wastage of caribou, deaths of pregnant cows
"We all need to do better." Dozens of caribou have been wasted this winter road season. The killing of pregnant cows, vital to herd strength, is also a concern.
8. YK councillors allow mayor to miss meetings during election
Yellowknife council agreed to let Rebecca Alty miss meetings as she takes unpaid leave from the role of mayor to run for MP. One councillor voiced an objection.
9. In pictures: Plunging into frozen Great Slave Lake for charity
Yellowknifers hurling themselves into a hole in Great Slave Lake raised tens of thousands of dollars for Special Olympics NWT. See some of the best shots.
10. Man, 71, departs on solo ski to ‘finish off’ past journey
For years, John Dunn has been waiting to finish off a 200-km stretch of NWT skiing that completes a much bigger trip. Now is his chance.
The Dettah ice road
As the weather gets warmer, the ice road season is nearing its end. The operators of the Tibbitt-Contwoyto winter road have said it will close this weekend.
Before the ice road between Yellowknife and Dettah is no longer safe to drive, Cabin Radio went out and took some drone photos and video. Take a look.
What we’re watching
Strong People, Strong Communities
Yellowknives Dene First Nation filmmaker Morgan Tsetta directed, edited and produced this documentary about the Strong People, Strong Communities mural project in the NWT.
The War in the Arctic
In this video, Al Jazeera’s Sandra Gathmann breaks down what’s going on in the Arctic geopolitically and how real the threat of war in the region is.