The Government of Saskatchewan says a recent decision by the Rate Review Panel balances the financial health of SGI with affordability concerns for drivers.

The 3.75 per cent rate increase was implemented on an interim basis on June 1.

In late July, the Saskatchewan Rate Review Panel issued its decision on the province’s proposed two-year rate increase program, recommending a 3.75 per cent rate increase for 2026 but not the same increase for 2027 – arguing that decision should be made in the usual fashion next year when it will be supported by a financial forecast and other data.

Minister Responsible for SGI Jeremy Harrison spoke to reporters in Saskatoon on Friday, responding to the decision. The minister highlighted the fiscal pressures currently being felt by the insurer thanks to a record setting year in damage claims.

“The panel’s recommendations recognize that claim costs and inflation are putting significant financial pressure on the Rate Stabilization Reserve and overall Auto Fund sustainability,” Harrison said. “Our government’s response balances those financial realities with our commitment to affordability for Saskatchewan drivers.”

The rate hike amounts to about $38 annually or $3 per month for drivers, depending on the make, model and year of their vehicle.

The Saskatchewan Auto Fund is the province’s compulsory auto insurance program, which is designed to break even over time and be self-sustaining.

That objective has recently been challenged as inflation and advanced technology in newer vehicles are causing increases of about 25 per cent in the cost of vehicle repairs over the last four years, according to SGI CEO Kent Campbell.

When claim payouts exceed premiums, SGI dips into its rate stabilization reserve, which is designed to protect customers from unexpected spikes to absorb those costs.

The province has had to dip into the rate stabilization reserve four years in a row.

“The result is it’s putting pressure on the overall financial situation and long-term sustainability of the auto fund,” Campbell said Friday.

Despite the announced hikes and the incoming deductibles for most vehicles increasing from $700 to $950 on Jan. 1, 2027, reserves are losing money.

At the end of the 2024 fiscal year, the reserve held $924.9 million. It dropped to $726.9 million in 2025. SGI said the reserve is around $660 million as of Friday.

“We are looking at every option such that we don’t need to go back to the rate base,” the minister responsible for SGI, Jeremy Harrison said.

While SGI looks to increase revenue through its investments, internal cost savings and encouraging body shops to reuse parts, it admits more than rate hikes are needed.

The Saskatchewan Rate Review Panel report was released in July, outlining its recommendations.

In the report, the panel’s consultants found insolvency risk to be an increasing concern for the auto fund.

“The panel does not interpret the evidence as indicating that (Saskatchewan Auto Fund) is immediately insolvent, but the evidence shows that (Saskatchewan Auto Fund’s) financial cushion is being depleted at a rate that creates a serious risk if corrective action is delayed,” the report said.

Harrison rejected the idea of the auto fund being at risk.

“There’s no path in front of us is going to lead to insolvency,” he said. “The government will never allow the auto fund to become insolvent.”

In 2022, there was $1.13 billion in the reserve. That spring, due to the low number of claims during COVID-19 and the strong financial position of the auto fund, SGI customers received a $100 rebate for each vehicle they had registered.

“A number of outside influences are really not predictable, which have driven some of the ups and downs within the rate stabilization reserve, so we’re not going to overreact,” Harrison said.

The review panel did not recommend a 2027 rate increase and instead called for a 6.5 per cent capital margin increase.

SGI says that would apply equally across all vehicle classes rather than SGI’s rate-setting approach, which aligns rates with the anticipated claim costs of each vehicle class.

Harrison said this would have upped the rate by 10.25 per cent, which he could not support.

A tornado occurred in Saskatchewan on Aug. 30, with three others in Manitoba on the same day, the Northern Tornadoes Project (NTP) confirmed.

Around 3:56 p.m., a witness captured video of a tornado southeast of Maryfield, Sask. NTP says a ground and drone survey team searched for damage in the area but didn’t find anything.

An EF0-Default rating was assigned. It’s unknown what the maximum wind speed was, but the NTP said a satellite imagery review is pending.

On the same day, three tornadoes occurred in Manitoba, close to the Saskatchewan / Manitoba border.

Around 5:30 p.m., a tornado was reported in Kola, Man. Damage to barns at a farm property north of the community was reported. An NTP ground survey documented the reported damage and found more damage to trees and crops.

The NTP assessed the tornado as EF1, with an estimated maximum wind speed of 140 kilometres per hour (km/h,) track length of 2.53 kilometres (km) and maximum path width of 270 metres (m.)

Two tornadoes were reported in the Elkhorn, Man. area. Around 6:35 p.m., witnesses caught video of a rain-wrapped tornado in the area.

Damage to barns, farm outbuildings, grain bins, homes, trees and crops were reported, the NTP said.

The reported damage was documented through an NTP ground survey. The damage was assessed as an EF1 tornado, with an estimated maximum wind speed of 155 km/h, track length of 11.9 km and maximum path width of 820 metres.

A second tornado developed around 6:50 p.m. north of Elkhorn but was rated as an EF0. Tree damage was reported. Following a ground survey, additional damage to farm outbuildings and bins was discovered.

The tornado saw an estimated maximum wind speed of 125 km/h, track length of 4.91 km and maximum path width of 260 m.

No injuries were reported from any of the tornadoes.

Saskatchewan’s top court has dismissed an appeal from SaskEnergy, in a case which saw employees take issue with the Crown corporation over how it imposed its drug and alcohol testing after two workplace accidents.

The case centres on two separate and unrelated workplace incidents in July 2019 and March 2020.

The July 2019 incident saw a five-person crew hit a natural gas line with a trenching machine while working on an acreage near Moose Jaw – which caused a release of natural gas under pressure.

The second incident in March 2020 saw another five-person crew strike a natural gas line with an excavator while installing natural gas services to three homes on White Bear First Nation.

No one was injured in either of the incidents.

In both cases, SaskEnergy ordered the employees to undergo drug and alcohol testing. All tested negative.

The workers involved filed grievances in response to the decision mandating the testing. The employee’s union argued the required prerequisites were not met for testing under SaskEnergy’s drug and alcohol testing policy. Put simply, the union argued SaskEnergy had no reason to believe drugs or alcohol were contributing factors to either incident.

In the 2019 incident, an arbitrator determined SaskEnergy required its employees to submit to testing not because they may have been impaired but rather as a “deterrent” to ensure the employees would be “more cognizant of safety rules in the future.”

According to the decision, the crew had trouble finding the gas line as it had not been marked properly with flags prior to the operation.

Additionally, the members of the crew looking for the line did not communicate with the worker operating the trenching machine – failing to warn him the line was unaccounted for and was therefore at risk of being struck.

Similarly, in the 2020 incident, the arbitrator found no evidence that should have led SaskEnergy to suspect alcohol or drug impairment – as the reasons for the incident were determined to have been caused by:

• The lack of a hydrovac system at the site – which would have uncovered the buried line safely using pressurized water; and
• The buried line had unexpectedly deviated a foot and a half both vertically and horizontally into the path of the excavator – which was unknown to the group.

The arbitrator upheld the grievances and declared SaskEnergy had improperly required its employees to submit to testing. SaskEnergy was also ordered to pay $1,500 to four of the employees and $2,000 to the remaining man.

A Court of King’s Bench found the arbitrator’s decision and awards were reasonable and dismissed the Crown corporation’s application for a judicial review.

SaskEnergy’s latest appeal, arguing the court was wrong to dismiss both its request for a judicial review and its attempt to file affidavits from two employees to strengthen its case for the review, was similarly dismissed by the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal.

A storm in west central Saskatchewan Friday night led to reports of damage in the Kindersley area.

At around 9 p.m. Friday, reports of damage in Kindersley were shared over social media.

Photos and videos of downed power lines, broken tree branches, heavy rain and hail covering the ground giving the illusion of snowfall.

As of Saturday morning, no power outages existed in the Kindersley area.

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) had not issued any storm summary data as of 2 p.m. Saturday.

Storm chaser Jenny Hagan told CTV News she was tracking several systems in the area, which produced golf ball to nickel-sized hail, before the storm made its way to Kindersley.

“It dumped down a copious amount of rain and some heavier wind gusts in there that took down power lines, trees and caused flash flooding off Highway 7 right overtop of the service road and up to the doors of the businesses on that road,” she explained.

Hagan estimated around an inch to an inch and a half of rain fell in Kindersley.

The storm system continued tracking north producing hail and heavy rain for Biggar before tracking just north of Saskatoon.

The forecast for much of south and central Saskatchewan shows plenty of rain for the remainder of the Labour Day weekend into next week.

Hagan believes she’ll be busy over the next couple of days.

“We’re going to see some stronger storms likely move into that southwest corner of Saskatchewan. And behind that is going to carry some heavy rainfall that’s going to swirl and its going to move over to that east side of the province and definitely dump some of those flooding rains that portion of the province,” she explained.

“It’s not an area that needs an excess of rainfall. They’ve seen so much this year and when the ground is that saturated it does not soak up the moisture … so flash flooding will definitely be a concern.”

ATHENS, Greece — A Greek air force jet crashed at an air show north of Athens on Saturday, killing the two pilots, officials said, as thousands of people were in attendance at the event.

The crash of the twin-seat Phantom F4 jet occurred during a low-altitude manoeuvre. A fire after the crash sent up large plumes of black smoke. There were no injuries among the spectators.

“The sense of grief is widespread, and our thoughts are with the families of the two pilots we lost,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said. “It is a reminder of the daily danger faced by Greece’s aviators, who remain on constant standby to protect Greece’s skies.”

Air force officials in Greece said the bodies of the two pilots were located during a rescue operation, hampered in the early stages by the fire on the grounds of Tanagra air force base, 60 kilometres north of Athens.

Eleven water-dropping planes and helicopters assisted 85 firefighters to contain the blaze, which remained at some distance from the viewing area at Athens Flying Week, an annual air show.

Organizers cancelled remaining events planned over the weekend, while the fire prompted an evacuation order in an area near the base.

Video footage of the crash showed a plume of smoke rising from the point of the impact followed by a larger, second explosion that occurred nearby as the plane broke apart.

Cyprus’ Defence Minister Vasilis Palmas said that he had called his Greek counterpart, Nikos Dendias, to express the condolences of his government.

“It is with deep sadness that I learned of the death of the two officers of the Hellenic Air Force, who lost their lives in the tragic accident that occurred during the air show at Tanagra Air Base,” Palmas wrote in an online post.

The air force declared three days of mourning following the crash.

 U.S. forces struck three Iranian oil tankers after navy warships were targeted with ballistic missiles, the American military said Saturday, warning that it would “if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet.” Experts called it a dangerous escalation after Iran’s previous attacks at sea targeted commercial shipping.

The strikes -- a day after U.S. President Donald Trump sought to minimize the conflict as “small potatoes” -- keep up a new tilt back toward fighting after six months of on-again, off-again war that began with U.S. and Israeli attacks on the country on Feb. 28. Both sides have sought to inflict both military and economic pain, and negotiations have collapsed.

The military’s statement said an American aircraft carrier and a destroyer evaded “multiple unprovoked Iranian attacks” while patrolling in the region and no U.S. personnel were hurt. It wasn’t clear when the Iranian missiles were fired. The statement said that two Iranian oil carriers were “permanently disabled” and the third, unladen one, was destroyed.

The U.S. statement called the tankers part of a shadow network helping to fund Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard and its armed proxies in the region.

Iran says it struck back in response

Iran’s state broadcaster said later Saturday that Iran targeted three oil tankers and three American vessels in response to the U.S. strikes. This couldn’t be immediately confirmed.

A spokesperson with Iran’s joint military command warned that strikes against U.S. military ships would be more severe if the U.S. continues to interfere with Iranian shipping, the state broadcaster reported.

That Iran targeted a U.S. aircraft carrier with a ballistic missile “indicates that Tehran is becoming increasingly willing to accept risks it previously sought to avoid, including directly threatening some of the most important U.S. military assets in the region,” Danny Citrinowicz, an Iran expert at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies, said on X.

Earlier, Iranian state television had said that four U.S. missiles struck a tanker about 10 kilometres from Kharg Island, home to a terminal through which the country exports most of its oil. Kharg Island has been repeatedly targeted during the war, including in U.S. strikes on military sites there in March.

The U.S. said that one tanker was struck off Kharg Island and another was struck near Jask, east of the Strait of Hormuz. The unladen tanker was hit in the Gulf of Oman, and the U.S. said its crew had been “directed to abandon ship.” The statement shared what it called video footage of the strikes.

After the U.S. statement, Iran’s state broadcaster reported the attack of the two other tankers, saying their crews had evacuated.

“We will not hesitate to defend American forces, and if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet,” said Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of U.S. Central Command.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry called the attacks a war crime, and said that the consequences for continued U.S. aggression, including “economic warfare,” would rest with Washington and its allies.

Between the war and the disabling of ships during the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports, it’s not immediately clear how many Iranian oil tankers have been targeted. On May 8, the U.S. military said that it fired “precision munitions” into the smokestacks of two Iranian oil tankers, both unladen.

Strikes come a week after fighting resumed

The latest strikes came nearly a week after the U.S. and Iran resumed attacks following a month of relative calm, with the Strait of Hormuz, and Iranian communities along it again, being targeted. At least five people were killed earlier in the week during a U.S. bombardment of southern Iran. One strike hit a wedding.

Masoumeh Zarei, 13, was wounded in the attack. She spoke to The Associated Press at a hospital while being treated for injuries to her abdomen.

She said the wedding celebration had already begun when she set out to join it. She never made it there. She was knocked unconscious when a telecommunications tower was struck. Her next memory was of waking up in a hospital.

“The party had just started, and we wanted to go there,” Zarei said, her voice hoarse. “I had made my nails really pretty for the party, but everything changed.”

Her friend, 14-year-old Kiana Karimi, also was wounded and in intensive care. She told the AP that she heard five explosions.

“The first three explosions at the telecommunications tower threw us to the ground,” Karimi said. “I quickly got up to pick my brothers up off the ground. Then there were two more explosions, and after that I don’t remember anything.”

U.S. had tried to turn to economic pressure

The Trump administration appears to have adopted a dual-prong approach to the conflict, responding militarily to attacks on the strait while going after foreign financial institutions that handle Iran’s money. U.S. Vice-President JD Vance on Thursday said that there was no prospect for renewed talks as long as Iran goes after ships, while noting that major military operations ended in July.

But Tehran’s hard-line new senior leaders have signalled the willingness to dig in after weathering decades of sanctions. The elected government of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, however, has said that it favors a negotiated end to the war.

Iran has found ways over the years to circumvent sanctions -- and now the U.S. blockade -- and get its oil to buyers to help ease growing economic pressures. That relies in part on a shadow fleet transporting its oil.

Meanwhile, the issue that helped lead to the war -- Iran’s nuclear program -- was meant to be addressed in negotiations that fell apart soon after the U.S. and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding in mid-June. Now diplomats say the U.S., Britain, France and Germany seek to refer Iran to the UN Security Council for failure to comply with its nuclear non-proliferation obligations.

Instead, Tehran’s new leverage focuses on the strait that is crucial to global oil and natural gas shipments and was seen as an international waterway before the war began.

The U.S. military has been helping to guide ships through the strait as Tehran asserts control and targets some vessels, but overall traffic remains low.

A disruptive passenger was restrained with flexible handcuffs and duct-taped to a seat as his flight was diverted to make an emergency landing in Baltimore Thursday night, photos and video from other passengers showed.

Richard Olenick and Juan Mejia were more than halfway through the flight when a man two rows behind them in the first-class section started to become belligerent, Olenick said.

American Airlines Flight 618 was traveling from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport to Newark when the crew reported the passenger disturbance, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.

A flight attendant tried to control the situation but the man got increasingly agitated, started to hit the passenger next to him and then hit a woman who tried to intervene, Olenick said.

Upon seeing things turn physical, Mejia, who is a retired New Jersey police officer, got up and Olenick followed.

“He was starting to become abusive and started using profanity,” Olenick said. The man also used “racial and homophobic slurs,” according to both Olenick and Mejia.

A flight attendant gave Olenick, Mejia and a third person a ziptie, which they used to restrain the man’s wrists as he told them to “Get off me.”

The man then bit Mejia and attempted to bite Olenick, which prompted the three men to start using duct tape from a flight attendant to restrain him, both men said. Following Mejia’s advice, Olenick said they made sure not to put tape over the man’s mouth so he wouldn’t have issues breathing.

“Physically it lessened his ability to move for sure, but it did not solve the issue. He was still pushing and resisting and trying to get up,” Olenick said.

“The safety ​and ​security ​of our customers ​and team members ​is our top ​priority and ​we ​do not ​tolerate violence,” American Airlines said in a statement. “We thank our ​team members for ​their ​professionalism ​and ​our customers ​for ​their ​understanding.”

For the next 15 minutes, Olenick sat on the restrained passenger’s lap until the plane made its emergency landing in Maryland. Olenick attempted to sit back in his seat at one point, but he had to quickly return “because the man started acting up again,” Olenick said.

The 25th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks next week was already on both of their minds, Olenick said, making the situation even more concerning.

“Juan being a being a cop, he lost people. I was probably three miles from it when it happened, so it’s a very sensitive time and then this guy starts, you know, pulling this stuff,” Olenick said.

The Maryland Transportation Authority Police met the plane after it safely landed at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport and arrested one man on state charges, an FBI statement said. Officials did not name the man.

After the passenger was removed, the flight continued on its way to Newark, Olenick said.

“We don’t know exactly what happened, what triggered it,” Olenick added. “But whatever it was, it was pretty intense.”

Duct tape and flexible handcuffs are found on many commercial planes for use in restraining violent or disruptive passengers.

In 2024, a passenger who tried to force open a door and injured a flight attendant while flying from Milwaukee to Dallas was duct-taped to his seat.

There have been more than 1,160 unruly passenger incidents reported so far this year, according to the FAA.

Besides criminal penalties, the agency can pursue fines of more than $43,000 against any passenger who “assaults, threatens, intimidates, or interferes with airline crew members.”

One person is in hospital with serious injuries following an early morning apartment fire in Regina Thursday morning.

Emergency crews were called to an apartment fire at 2200 Smith Street at around 6:40 a.m.

They arrived to find a fire in a main floor suite.

Regina Fire and Protective Services (RFPS) rescued one person from the blaze. They were treated by paramedics, before being taken to hospital in serious condition.

There were no other injuries to report. The fire has been extinguished and is under investigation.

EVO Radio Network – Scheduled Maintenance Notice

EVO Radio will be conducting a network-wide server migration and infrastructure update beginning Saturday, January 17, 2026 at 3:00 AM, with work expected to be completed by Sunday, January 18, 2026 at 8:00 PM.

During this maintenance window, the following services may be temporarily offline or intermittently inaccessible at various points:

Websites

• https://z1035.evoradio.ca/

• https://979thecowboy.evoradio.ca/

• https://101therockhound.evoradio.ca/

• https://887thegoat.evoradio.ca/

• https://advertiseraccess.evoradio.ca/

• https://vipclub.evoradio.ca/

• https://evomcorp.com/

• https://djspinderella.evomcorp.com/

Live Broadcasting

• Z103.5

• 979 The Cowboy

• 101 The Rockhound

• Classic 88.7 The Goat

Stream Relay Network

• All Stream Relay services will be unavailable during the migration.

Because this update involves server transfers, database installations, and name server changes, exact downtime periods cannot be guaranteed. Individual service interruptions may vary, with some components taking up to several hours to complete.

Our support and technical teams will work to keep all stations and websites online for as long as possible and will restore services immediately as each system becomes available. Broadcast services and station websites will be prioritized, followed by additional network services.

We appreciate your patience and understanding as we complete these upgrades, which are designed to improve performance, reliability, and long-term stability across the EVO Radio Network.

Thank you for your continued support,
EVO Radio Network

🎉 Update Completed Successfully! 🎉

We are thrilled to announce that our scheduled network update has been completed without any issues! 🚀 All our broadcast stations, streams, and websites are now fully operational and running better than ever.

What’s New?

Here’s what you can expect from this update:
✅ Improved Audio Player – No more interruptions or cutting off! Enjoy seamless streaming on our websites.
✅ Enhanced Stream Stability – Our radio streams are now more reliable than ever.
✅ Upgraded Security & Quality – Improved protection and enhanced broadcast quality for an unmatched listening experience.

Fully Operational Services:

🎵 Stations:

• Z103.5 – https://z1035.evoradio.ca/
• 979 The Cowboy – https://979thecowboy.evoradio.ca/
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🌐 Websites:

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• EVO Media Corporation – https://evomcorp.com/
• DJ Spinderella – https://djspinderella.evomcorp.com/

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Thank you for your patience and understanding during this process. We’re committed to providing you with the best listening experience possible and appreciate your support!

🎧 Happy Listening!
The EVO Radio & EVO Media Corporation Team