Latest news with #WinnipegFolkFestival
Winnipeg Free Press
6 days ago
- Health
- Winnipeg Free Press
Nurse wants paramedics stationed at folk fest in wake of asthma attack
A Winnipeg Folk Festival attendee is calling for better on-site medical services after she had a life-threatening asthma attack during the outdoor event at Birds Hill Provincial Park last week. 'I almost died; I'm very thankful the ambulance arrived when it did,' Freya Martin said, fighting back tears. Martin, a Winnipeg intensive care unit nurse, was looking forward to enjoying the opening night of the festival with her family on July 10 when she started feeling a familiar tightness in her lungs. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS The festival reported a record-breaking attendance of more than 79,000 people at the four-day event, with a daily front-of-house capacity of roughly 15,000 people. A lifelong asthma sufferer, she felt no symptoms prior to around 8 p.m. and suspects the attack was triggered by poor air quality owing to wildfire smoke, which had begun to worsen overnight Thursday and prompted Environment Canada to issue air quality warnings for Manitoba. Martin used her Ventolin inhaler but felt no relief and was escorted to the first aid tent, where she recalls being assessed by volunteers but was alarmed to learn there was no supplemental oxygen or advanced respiratory support available. She lost consciousness before an ambulance arrived and woke up at Selkirk Regional Health Centre, located roughly 25 kilometres north of the park. Martin learned her oxygen saturation levels had dropped dangerously low by the time paramedics arrived, reportedly 25 minutes after 911 was called. 'I'm still shocked at the fact they don't have an ambulance at least on the perimeter of the park for a festival of this calibre,' said the avid folk fester, who's been attending for the past 15 years. 'I thought that if I was ever having an emergency that I would be able to receive timely care at folk fest.' The festival reported a record-breaking attendance of more than 79,000 people at the four-day event, with a daily front-of-house capacity of roughly 15,000 people. There were two first aid tents stationed at the festival site and campground staffed by a volunteer crew of medical professionals and skilled first aiders, the organization's website says. The festival offers standard first aid care, said festival executive director Valerie Shantz via email — a certification that includes training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation training and minor injury care. 'While first aid is generally sufficient for the types of incidents we see at folk fest, when patrons need a higher level of medical care, we call in local EMS services to provide care,' Shantz said, adding oxygen is beyond the scope of standard first aid. Freya Martin with her daughter at a past folk festival. (Supplied) When asked this week if there were any medical emergencies that required an ambulance, festival staff didn't disclose the July 10 EMS visit involving Martin. Every Second Friday The latest on food and drink in Winnipeg and beyond from arts writers Ben Sigurdson and Eva Wasney. The incident has left Martin shaken. It took a week to physically recover from the asthma attack and she's since reached out to the festival with her concerns. 'I feel like I have to do my due diligence and follow up and see if it's possible to make changes for next time. I would love to go to folk fest (again) but I'm obviously feeling sort of traumatized,' Martin said. She hopes the festival will review its emergency medical policies, specifically for high-acuity cases, prior to the 2026 event. She hopes supplemental oxygen and paramedics will be available at the festival in the future. Shantz said the organization reviews all incident reports annually 'to assess whether adjustments to our practices are needed. This will occur this year as well.' Eva WasneyReporter Eva Wasney has been a reporter with the Free Press Arts & Life department since 2019. Read more about Eva. Every piece of reporting Eva produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
CTV News
7 days ago
- CTV News
Cybertruck vandalized at Winnipeg Folk Fest; RCMP searching for suspect
Manitoba RCMP released two images of a woman accused of vandalizing a Tesla Cybertruck parked at Birds Hill Provincial Park on July 14, 2025. (Manitoba RCMP) Manitoba RCMP are asking for the public's help after a Tesla Cybertruck was vandalized at the Winnipeg Folk Festival over the weekend. According to RCMP, Mounties received a complaint on Sunday at 9:53 a.m. The investigation determined a woman had allegedly written profanity on the truck's driver side back panel with a marker. The truck was parked at Birds Hill Provincial Park for the festival. A photo of the suspect was released. Anyone with information is asked to call RCMP at 204-444-3847 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
Global News
7 days ago
- Global News
Manitoba RCMP seek suspect in Folk Fest Cybertruck vandalism
Manitoba RCMP say they're looking for a suspect after a Tesla Cybertruck was vandalized while parked at Birds Hil Park for the Winnipeg Folk Festival. Officers were called Monday about the incident, in which a woman allegedly wrote profanity on the truck with a marker. Police are looking for the public's help in identifying the suspect. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Anyone with information is asked to call Oakbank RCMP at 204-444-3847 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477.
Winnipeg Free Press
16-07-2025
- Health
- Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipeg Folk Festival ends 50th anniversary on a high note
There were no serious medical emergencies or major incidents at this year's Winnipeg Folk Festival, which ran from July 10 to 13 at Birds Hill Provincial Park. 'Overall, folk fest was a huge success this year,' RCMP Cpl. Melanie Roussel said Tuesday via email. Officers patrolling the festival site on foot and by vehicle made one arrest over the weekend involving an individual who was on drugs, Roussel said. That person was later released with no charges. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Longtime folk fest attendee Greg Docker enjoys a spritz of water at the site last week. On Saturday, the festival put out an alert regarding a substance that was circulating in gel-cap mushrooms causing adverse reactions, such as fainting. The issue was noted by the festival's on-site safety and first aid crews, which treated 12 people with symptoms on Thursday and Friday. 'No one was hospitalized, and after the alert was issued, we received no further reports of similar incidents,' said festival marketing and communications manager Lee-Anne Van Buekenhout via email. The organization doesn't offer drug-checking services at the festival and its website advises patrons to test substances before arriving at the event. Security and first aid volunteers carry naloxone kits. The air-quality health index was above or near 10 for most of the weekend, owing to smoke from local wildfires — a level at which the federal government recommends strenuous outdoor activities be reduced or rescheduled for the general public, and that people at risk, such as seniors, children and those with respiratory issues, avoid being outdoors at all. The festival sent out an advisory via its app on Saturday morning advising attendees travelling from the city to come prepared with masks. Festival staff are reviewing the weekend's incidents and, on Tuesday, had no formal reports listing smoke as a factor. 'We follow government regulations and will continue to communicate with our audience to ensure they come prepared and make their own decisions on what is best for them,' Van Buekenhout said. 'Climate change is affecting all outdoor events, and we continue to assess and adjust our processes in response.' Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. The festival reported a record-breaking attendance of 79,000 ticketholders, including volunteers, artists, donors, vendors and sponsors, over the 50th anniversary weekend. The 50th anniversary had an average front-of-house capacity of 15,171 paid visitors per day, not including volunteers and artists. Single-day tickets sold out on Friday and Saturday. Four-day passes, with and without camping, sold out prior to the festival. Headliners included Americana artist Jason Isbell, Canadian roots artist Allison Russell, singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco, R&B legend Mavis Staples, Vancouver indie-pop band Peach Pit and Winnipeg vocal powerhouse Begonia. The 51st Winnipeg Folk Festival will take place July 9-12, 2026. — staff
Winnipeg Free Press
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
Plenty of daylight to find amid sea of humanity at Birds Hill Park
Opinion 'Got to kick at the darkness till it bleeds daylight' — Lovers in a Dangerous Time, Bruce Cockburn 'The line between us is so thin, I might as well be you' JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS It's hard not to leave the folk festival feeling a bit better about humanity. — Chinese Bones, Robyn Hitchcock A couple of choice lyric lines stuck out as I baked under a smoke-filled sky at the Winnipeg Folk Festival's Big Bluestem stage this weekend. That first one earned an affirmative roar from the packed-to-bursting audience at Cockburn's Saturday afternoon performance. The second slipped by almost unnoticed during Hitchcock's Sunday workshop with his Nashville neighbours and Americana icons Gillian Welch and David Rawlings. Both speak to what makes the now 51-year-old festival such a treasured gift to the tens of thousands of people who make the pilgrimage to Birds Hill Provincial Park every year. I don't need to tell you there is a lot of darkness out there, but for four days Birds Hill was bleeding daylight. Through alchemy both calculated and sublime, the regular rules of engagement were suspended: walls fell away, boundaries softened or dissolved (in a good way) and strangers who might otherwise look at each other with wariness found friendship on common ground. Call it the Folk Fest Effect. Walking into the beer tent Saturday afternoon, I caught the eye of a judge and said hi. She quickly reached over and put a hand on my shoulder then just as quickly pulled it away, laughing as she said: 'I was going to give you a hug, but that probably wouldn't be professional.' Probably not, and she might have been joking about the hug, but had that hug landed I would not have been shocked. Hugs are so reflexive at folk fest the odd slip is easily forgiven. Earlier that day, I heard someone call my name. It was a college classmate I hadn't seen in over 30 years. We didn't hang out much back then and we were by no means close, but we fell into a warm, lengthy chat, touching on matters both light and dark and our concerns for the future. The conversation was winding down when my friend paused to hesitantly ask: 'Soo, should we… hug?' We looked at each other and the answer was obvious. 'Of course, it's folk fest.' We hugged. And then we talked some more. We could have bumped into each other in a coffee shop and had a perfectly pleasant conversation, but it wouldn't have been the same. There's something about folk fest and its sense of community that invites a desire for connection. For years, no visit to the festival was complete until I saw Dancing Woman. I never knew her name or where she was from, but every year I could count on seeing her leaping, gliding and swaying by a workshop stage in rhythmic communion with the music. Seeing her always made me smile. Then one year she wasn't there. She was absent the next year too, and the one after that. She was back this year, back like she'd never been gone, still grooving, still dancing like it was the only thing that mattered. Between workshops, I told her it was good to see her again. Explaining her absence, she said she was from Minnesota and had moved to the East Coast for a few years. Our interaction was brief and we didn't exchange names, but I'm glad I talked to her. I hope she was, too. Back in the beer tent Sunday, my wife and I shared a table with an American scientist who apologized for their 'piece of shit president' and the damage he has done to the relationship between our two countries. We shared gripes and laughs, reminding each other that we're not so different. Don't get me wrong, the festival isn't perfect. Despite the folk ethos of inclusivity and a truly diverse musical lineup, the audience remains overwhelmingly white and largely privileged, but that's more likely a societal issue, not one of the festival's own making, and a topic for another column. Still, it's hard not to leave the festival feeling better about humanity and just a wee bit more optimistic about the future. Wednesdays Columnist Jen Zoratti looks at what's next in arts, life and pop culture. Every year the festival ends with an audience sing-along of The Mary Ellen Carter, Wild Mountain Thyme and Amazing Grace. It's a tradition I have generally eschewed, too cool for school, choosing instead to ditch the fest for a quick getaway. The older I get, the more I feel my resistance weakening. I want to feel connected to other people. It is just 358 days until the 51st Winnipeg Folk Festival. Dean PritchardCourts reporter Dean Pritchard is courts reporter for the Free Press. He has covered the justice system since 1999, working for the Brandon Sun and Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 2019. Read more about Dean. Every piece of reporting Dean produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
