Tara Clow is a multi-award-winning news anchor and reporter with more than 30 years of experience at radio stations across Canada. She is a graduate of the Radio and TV Arts program at Toronto Metropolitan University and the Humber College radio broadcasting program. She is based in Moncton and covers stories across Canada. Contact Tara at clow.tara@radioabl.ca.
An annual blood drive to honour Becca Schofield’s legacy continues in New Brunswick.
This year, it launches on December 22 and expands to include both Moncton and Saint John.
The Riverview teen inspired the world to give back and help others through her #Beccatoldmeto campaign.
Rebecca lost her battle to cancer in 2018.
The campaign runs until January 2, which is a challenging time for Canadian Blood Services to collect blood and plasma donations, because everyone is busy.
The public is encouraged to donate in Becca’s honour.
A new partnership that will create jobs and tourism opportunities for the community of St. Stephen.
The municipality is teaming up with Amsterdam Inn and Suites for the development of a new hotel.
The DeWinter brothers represent the third generation of a family whose entrepreneurial legacy has become deeply woven into the fabric of New Brunswick’s hospitality landscape.
Their parents and grandparents first arrived from the Netherlands in 1952 and later established the Amsterdam Inn & Suites.
“We couldn’t be more excited to bring a new state-of-the-art hotel to St. Stephen,” said John DeWinter. “This community has an incredible spirit, and we’re thrilled to invest in its future.”
The property on Budd Avenue where the new hotel will be built has been empty since 2022.
Previously, another hotel was expected to be built there.
“This project represents another important step in building a vibrant and prosperous St. Stephen,” said Mayor Allan MacEachern. “A new hotel not only supports our tourism and hospitality sectors, but also provides the necessary infrastructure to attract more events, conferences, and visitors to our community.”
A late‑night fire in Norton has displaced about a dozen residents and damaged several buildings on Perkins Drive.
Valley Waters Mayor Randy McKnight said a house, garage, shed, and a four‑unit apartment building were destroyed in the fire Thursday night.
He said a second apartment building is still standing but has been vacated while it is checked for smoke and possible structural damage.
McKnight said the displaced group includes adults, children and several pets. He said no injuries were reported and everyone was able to get out safely.
Photos: Fire in Norton (December 2025) (Images: Courtesy of Mike and Ginny Sherwood)
Eight fire departments responded, with an estimated 60 firefighters on scene.
McKnight said crews drew water from the Kennebecasis River and worked in strong winds that made the fire difficult to control.
He said an excavator was also brought in to pull collapsing structures away from the building that was saved.
Photos: Fire in Norton (December 2025) (Images: Courtesy of Mike and Ginny Sherwood)
The mayor said the municipality is working with the landlord to identify what each displaced resident needs.
Donations are being collected at the Valley Waters municipal office and at a store in Sussex owned by the landlord.
McKnight said community groups, local businesses and residents from across the region have already stepped in to help.
Photos: Fire in Norton (December 2025) (Images: Courtesy of Mike and Ginny Sherwood)
He said the long‑term challenge will be finding housing, as the apartments that burned were older and more affordable.
Fire investigators and the fire marshal’s office are still working to determine the cause.
In Nova Scotia, regular self-serve ranges from $1.31 to $1.35 per litre, while diesel is selling for between $1.62 and $1.66 per litre.
On Prince Edward Island, the price for regular self-serve is around $1.39 per litre, diesel costs around $1.71 per litre, and home heating oil is selling for a maximum of $1.19 per litre.
Meantime, in a bit of deja vu, the provincial government says motorists will see even more price decreases at the pumps next week. This is due to amended regulations under the Petroleum Products Pricing Act.
E10, a fuel blend of ethanol and gasoline, will start being used to determine the benchmark price for regular gasoline in New Brunswick.
This move is expected to save New Brunswickers up to seven cents a litre next week, based on market conditions.
“We promised we would look at every option to make life more affordable for New Brunswickers, and this is one more way we’re delivering real savings for families,” said Premier Susan Holt.
There’s messy weather on the way to parts of the province for Wednesday night.
Environment Canada has issued special weather statements for areas including Northern Charlotte County, Oromocto and Sunbury County, Grand Lake and Queens County.
Five to 10 centimetres of snow could fall overnight tonight and tomorrow morning.
Slippery conditions could follow, with the potential for three to six hours of freezing rain mixed in.
Central and northern regions, including Fredericton, Grand Falls. Miramichi and Bathurst are under snowfall warnings.
“A good portion of the north and central areas are going to see heavy snow. We are looking at snowfall amounts of 15 to 20 centimetres, with local amounts higher. Through the central areas, Fredericton through Miramichi, this is where we will see mixed precipitation. It will start as snow and then eventually turn over to rain,” Environment Canada Meteorologist Jill Maepea said.
You’ll need to plan for travel and get the salt ready.
As for the areas to the south, Maepea says precipitation will fall, mostly as rain.
Operations with Air Transat are returning to normal after a tentative deal was reached with the union representing its pilots.
The airline says the agreement marks an important milestone in the process, and it lifts the risk of a strike.
It is expected to be submitted for ratification by union members in the coming days.
“We are pleased to have finally reached a tentative agreement with the union representing our pilots, marking a complete overhaul of their collective agreement,” said Annick Guérard, President and Chief Executive Officer of Transat, in a news release. “Our priority now is to quickly restore our operations.”
The Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA), the union representing the pilots, says this comes following more than 11 months of intensive negotiations.
“Our pilots have been frustrated flying under a decade-old, outdated collective agreement,” said Captain Bradley Small, chair of the Air Transat ALPA Master Executive Council (MEC).
Some flights were cancelled today in anticipation of a potential walkout on Wednesday, which is when the union had threatened strike action if a deal wasn’t reached.
