As 2021 draws to a close, it’s time to look back at the Alberta news that Global News readers found most interesting over the past year.
While politics and COVID-19 once again dominated the headlines in 2021, there were also some lighter topics that grab readers’ attention this year.
Here’s a look back at the stories that caught the most attention from Global News’ online audience in Alberta in 2021.
In early May, a wildfire in Parkland County forced several residents to flee their homes west of Edmonton.
The wildfire broke out on the afternoon of May 6 near the rural community of Tomahawk, south of Lake Wabamun.
The residents were allowed to return to their homes a couple of days later. The wildfire was 100% contained on May 19.
The fire had grown to some 2,220 hectares before being classified as stopped.
This January story focused on a Calgary man who came forward with security concerns after discovering a website featuring live security camera footage from around the world.
After installing a camera on the doorbell, he was curious if anyone else could see his broadcast. After doing some research online, he found a website that was streaming live streams of people’s front steps, workspaces, and private homes.
Global News reached out to the website for comment, but did not receive a response.
On the website, it is stated that a private or unethical camera will be removed immediately after an email complaint. The other option is for people to reset the default password on their camera.
In a poignant story in mid-April, Global News readers learned of a message in a bottle that resurfaced nearly 30 years after being dumped in a lake in Leduc.
Michelle Schwengler discovered the bottle in Telford Lake. He opened it and found a note written by a young woman 28 years ago.
“I don’t know you, but I would like to know who you are and maybe you could visit me,” said the first part of the message. “You can visit me on Saturday June 19, 1993.”
Schwengler called the number on the note and left a voicemail, but no one returned his call. Thanks to the power of social media, she ended up connected with Daryl-Anne Steffen.
Steffen admitted that he doesn’t really remember writing the note, but said he was eight years old at the time. Feeling excited and nostalgic, Steffen read the letter and laughed at the vague memory.
Amid severe heat in early July, a thunderstorm struck the Calgary area on July 2, bringing heavy rain, hail, thunder and lightning.
Approximately 23 millimeters of rain fell between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. A funnel-shaped cloud was also seen over Calgary shortly after 5 p.m., remaining in view for nearly an hour, according to Environment Canada.
The storm came after days of temperatures in the mid-30s.
The opening of a couple of discount stores in Alberta’s two largest cities drew hundreds of people in the spring.
Calgary’s Krazy Binz store opened in April, while Edmonton’s opened in June. The store is part of a chain that started in the US but now has multiple locations in Canada.
Everything from electronics and toys, to household items and tools, can be found in long wooden containers that stretch the length of the room. Many of the products are items that have been returned to the online retail giant Amazon.
Both store openings found people lining up for hours to get the discounts.
In February, Aliyah Ramirez-Bernard, 21, and her 13-month-old daughter, Ember, were seriously injured after being hit by a pickup truck on the Macleod Trail near Glenmore Trail SW in Calgary.
Ramírez-Bernard’s boyfriend, Blade Crow, 21, was killed in the collision.
Speaking from his hospital bed, Ramírez-Bernard worried about whether his daughter would recover.
In October, Ramírez-Bernard told Global News that he is still in pain from his injuries, but added that the mental trauma is worse. He was in Calgary prior to the defendant’s court appearance in connection with the collision.
Twenty-nine-year-old Damon Wilson faces six charges, including dangerous operation of a motor vehicle that caused death and failure to stop at the scene of an accident that resulted in death.
On December 31, 2020, Calgary Police Sgt. Andrew Harnett died in a hit and run.
Police have said that Harnett, who was 37, tried to stop a pickup truck when he noticed its license plate did not match the registration, and was hit and dragged before falling and another car.
Two people were charged with first degree murder in the case. The passenger of the vehicle, Amir Abdulrahman, has since pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charge of involuntary manslaughter. He is scheduled to be sentenced on January 28, 2022.
The alleged driver of the vehicle, who cannot be identified under the Juvenile Criminal Justice Act, is charged with first degree murder. He is now 18 years old and is scheduled to go to trial on January 31.
During Abdulrahman’s court appearance earlier this month, Harnett’s family detailed the grief they have been through in the past year.
His widow, Chelsea, was 15 weeks pregnant when Harnett was killed. He said the couple were about to share the news of the pregnancy with their family and friends.
“Now I was a pregnant widow at 32 … I was left alone to live one of the most precious experiences in life,” she said. “The loneliness of being a father without Andrew is almost paralyzing.”
Edmonton and Calgary elected new mayors in October, when municipal elections were held in Alberta.
The news coverage leading up to Election Day on October 18, as well as the live coverage of the results on Election Night, was very popular with Global News readers.
In Edmonton, former Member of Parliament and city councilor Amarjeet Sohi won with 45 percent of the vote. In Calgary, Mayor Jyoti Gondek also won with 45 percent of the vote.
Both elections were historic for Edmonton and Calgary, with both cities electing their first mayors of color. Gondek is also the first woman to become Calgary’s mayor.
COVID-19 continued to dominate the headlines in 2021 – a year that began with hope for the vaccine’s rollout and ended with a spike in cases in December, driven by the Omicron variant.
From daily to weekly provincial updates and the announcement of a vaccine lottery in Alberta, to a shift to an endemic response in the summer followed by a crushing fourth wave, COVID-19 was a major news driver and will likely continue to be how we are heading. . in 2022.
The federal elections in September attracted the most attention from readers visiting the Global News website in 2021.
The live election results on Election Night September 20 were particularly popular with our online audience.
The elections saw Justin Trudeau’s Liberals form a minority government.
© 2021 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Reference-globalnews.ca