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3d ago

Alberta Faces Health System Anger and Edmonton Parking Ban After Record December Snow

Opinion pages sharpen accountability demands on Premier Danielle Smith's government.

Sledders make fresh tracks in the snow covering Mission Hill in St. Albert despite the temperatures below -20 C on Saturday, December 20, 2025
Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, gets a very personal greeting from puppy Jonsie and Chantel Bender with the Pacific Assistance Dogs Society at Spruce Meadows on Sept. 7, 2025. The Duchess spent several days in Calgary and at Spruce Meadows for the 50th-anniversary ‘Masters’ tournament in her role as the venue’s Royal Patron.
Few Calgarians ventured outside on Saturday, Dec. 27, 2025, with windchill in the -30 C range. But those that did bundled up as these two did while having some fun on the ice at Prince’s Island.
An Edmonton man died after waiting eight hours at the Grey Nuns Hospital emergency room this past Monday, Dec. 22, 2025.

Overview

  • Letters in the Edmonton Journal and Edmonton Sun fault the UCP for retreating from vaccine promotion and policy choices they say left hospitals overwhelmed, citing a reported ER hallway death on Christmas Eve.
  • Writers criticize the newly passed Alberta Disability Assistance Program as echoing Britain’s work‑capability assessments and warn it could burden patients and produce harmful outcomes for disabled people.
  • Edmonton declared a Phase 1 parking ban starting 7 a.m. Sunday to clear arterial, collector and business routes, with officials expecting the restrictions to last three to five days and warning of tickets and towing.
  • Environment Canada–sourced data show Edmonton International Airport recorded 48.2 cm of snow as of Boxing Day, described by a local weather analyst as the snowiest December on record for that station.
  • In sports, the Calgary Flames beat the Edmonton Oilers 3–2 with coach Kris Knoblauch noting Calgary had “a little more spirit,” and Oilers forward David Tomasek opted to return to Sweden to log heavy minutes ahead of the 2026 Olympics.