Edmonton Daily Digest — Jan 27, 2026

Tough times for trans Albertans: Anna Murphy spent two weeks recovering after a crisis and says she nearly gave up, highlighting rising online hate and the stress of three Alberta laws targeting transgender youth. Psychologists like Joel Roos and groups such as Skipping Stone and Egale Canada warn mental-health crises are growing, and Mount Royal researchers Leah Hamilton and Corinne Mason say families and kids are already feeling immediate harms.

Have your say on Wîhkwêntôwin renewal: The city wants feedback on designs for downtown Oliver that would add green space, bike lanes and more walking areas while narrowing some roads and cutting parking. Key spots include 99th Avenue between 112th and 110th streets and 121 Street between 102 and 103 avenues; Ward O-day'min councillor Anne Stevenson says surveys and drop-in events are open now.

Edmonton plans for worse winters: Mayor Andrew Knack and Coun. Aaron Paquette pushed for a Snow and Ice Control Surge Capacity strategy and an emergency plan for extreme winter events after heavy snow in December and January. Rookie Coun. Jon Morgan wants a policy review (including a look at bringing back calcium chloride, used in a controversial 2017–18 pilot), and city officials say public engagement will guide budget choices.

Tragic highway death minutes before help arrived: Ahmed Ali, 27, was killed after his Volkswagen Passat broke down on Anthony Henday Drive around 8:30 a.m.; he was struck from behind by a Dodge Ram while a friend, Shahbaz Asif, was 1.6 km away driving to help. Ali, a Yemen exchange student-turned-asylum-seeker who worked at Edmonton International Airport and coached youth soccer, has no immediate family in Canada and a GoFundMe was launched to cover funeral and repatriation costs as EPS investigates.

Corb Lund petition gets a green light: Elections Alberta re-approved the country singer's application to collect signatures for banning new coal mining in the Rockies' eastern slopes, though Lund still needs to finish paperwork. He will have four months to gather nearly 178,000 signatures to force the legislature to consider a ban or a provincewide vote.

Auto-theft spike hits Edmonton and Calgary: The Insurance Bureau of Canada says vehicle-claim costs rose 85% in Edmonton and 73% in Calgary from 2021–2025, calling it an auto-theft crisis driven by organized crime and tech hacks like relay attacks, reprogramming and CAN-bus intrusions. The IBC urges a coordinated inter-agency enforcement team, federal Criminal Code changes have added tougher offences, and Alberta plans to move to no-fault insurance on Jan 1, 2027.

Paul Brandt stays vague on separatism: The country star would not answer yes-or-no when asked if Alberta should separate from Canada, despite a social post quoting his lyric "independence in my veins." He says many Albertans have real grievances but won’t personally make a political push to sway people.

Judges push back after premier's comments: Alberta's three chief justices (acting Chief Justice Dawn Pentelechuk, Chief Justice Kent Davidson and Chief Justice James Hunter) issued a rare statement on judicial independence after Premier Danielle Smith said she wished she could "direct" judges. The justices stressed separation of powers, recalling recent tensions over the notwithstanding clause and previous criticism of the premier's interventions.

Dozens of children fall ill after Canmore pool swim: About 30 kids showed symptoms like vomiting at Canmore Inn and Suites on Sunday, with 10 treated by paramedics and one child taken to Alberta Children’s Hospital; firefighters detected an elevated substance suspected to be chlorine. The hotel says its pool is professionally managed and Alberta Health is investigating, while many affected children were in town for a U-7 hockey tournament.

Doctor accused of global abduction denied bail: Calgary physician Muhammad Zia-Ur Rahman, 62, was denied bail as a flight risk after being arrested in Mauritius and returned to Calgary Jan 17; he is accused of abducting his son in Dec 2023 and allegedly forging documents and moving over $500,000 overseas. The boy, now seven, was reunited with his mother before Christmas and Rahman returns to court Feb 2.

Ekholm’s first hat trick makes history: In his 938th NHL game Mattias Ekholm scored a hat trick as the Edmonton Oilers beat the Anaheim Ducks 7–4, giving the Oilers back-to-back games with a defenceman hat trick after Evan Bouchard did it the night before. The win snapped Anaheim's seven-game streak and came as Edmonton sits 27–19–8 this season.