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Happy Monday, Thunder Bay! Showers this morning with a risk of a thunderstorm, clearing to cloud by afternoon — high of 21°C. In today's issue: city police break down how to spot an AI-generated scam video, Fireweed goes looking for a new owner after 42 years on Bay Street, a new job-matching platform tries to fix the Northwest's hiring gap, and Ribfest wraps a strong four days at the Speedway. Plus eight things to do over the next five days. And the Best of Thunder Bay Food & Drink ballot closes Saturday — if you haven't voted, this is the week.
In this Harbour Beat Issue…
Trivia: A hailstone that fell on Vivian, South Dakota in 2010 still holds the American record for the largest ever recovered. Was it closer to the size of a tennis ball, a grapefruit, or a volleyball? (Answer at the bottom!)
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Thunder Bay Events
A golf classic turning 25 and classic cars on Dawson Road get the week going, then a Tuesday run around Boulevard Lake, Bryan Adams alone with a guitar at the Auditorium, a cricket final at Current River, free comedy on Cumberland and live music in Westfort to finish. ✅ Monday carries showers and a risk of a thunderstorm in the morning, so check with the organizer before you head out to anything outdoors.
Monday, August 31
AUG 31 · St. Joseph's Foundation Golf Classic — from 9 a.m. · 📍 Whitewater Golf Club, 224 Hwy 130, Rosslyn · The 25th running of the tournament, raising money for St. Joseph's Care Group long-term care, hospice, rehab, addictions and mental health programs · 📅 Add to Calendar
AUG 31 · Dawson Diner Monday Night Cruise-In — 6:30–8 p.m., weather permitting · 📍 Dawson Diner, 1889 Dawson Road · The Lakehead Antique Car Club's weekly gathering — antiques, hot rods and unique builds, with BBQ, ice cream and music. Free to look, no car required · 📅 Add to Calendar
Tuesday, September 1
SEP 1 · Tuesday Group Run — 6:30–7:30 p.m., free · 📍 Boulevard Lake, meet at the Rita Street parking lot · A friendly 5K around the lake — run it, walk it, or a bit of both. Every pace welcome · 📅 Add to Calendar
Wednesday, September 2
SEP 2 · Bryan Adams — Bare Bones — 7:30 p.m. · 📍 Thunder Bay Community Auditorium, 1 Paul Shaffer Dr. · The stripped-back show — voice, guitar and piano, no rock production. Tickets through the Auditorium box office · 📅 Add to Calendar
SEP 2 · Catch the Ace at The Proz — draw at 7 p.m., $5 a ticket · 📍 Westfort Prosvita, 721 West Gore St. · Weekly progressive draw — tickets at the bar through the week, and you don't have to be there to win. Licence M880740 · 📅 Add to Calendar
Thursday, September 3
SEP 3 · Military Cup Championship Match — 5–6:30 p.m., free · 📍 Military Field, Current River Park, North Cumberland Street · The season final of Thunder Bay's cricket league — four local sides played for the cup, named for the 52nd (New Ontario) Battalion · 📅 Add to Calendar
SEP 3 · Open Mic Comedy at Campfire Comedy — doors 7 p.m., show 8–10 p.m., no cover · 📍 117 Cumberland St. N. · Touring comics and first-timers on the same stage. Sign-ups at 7:30 if you've been meaning to try it. 19+ · 📅 Add to Calendar
Friday, September 4
SEP 4 · Friday Live Music at Bar Polonia — 8–11 p.m., $10 cover · 📍 Polish Combatants' Association Branch No. 1, 209 N. Cumberland St. · A standing Friday night of live music in one of the city's older halls. Everyone welcome · 📅 Add to Calendar
🍕 Best of Thunder Bay Food & Drink 2026 — the ballot is open
Where's the best slice in town? Which counter pours the coffee worth getting out of bed for? We stopped guessing and handed the question to you. 15 categories, about two minutes, one ballot per person.
Voting closes Saturday, September 5. Winners run right here on Tuesday, September 8, with a write-up on every one.
Back the places you actually love — then go tell them you did.
✅ NO WEATHER ALERTS IN EFFECT
Environment Canada had no watches or warnings posted for Thunder Bay as of Sunday evening — though a thunderstorm is possible Monday morning. Latest alerts at Environment Canada.
🌦️ Monday, August 31 — Thunder Bay
21°C
Overnight low 10°C
Showers ending early afternoon · 40% chance of showers after · risk of a morning thunderstorm · humidex 29 · UV index 5 (moderate)
A wet start that dries out. Monday opens with showers ending early in the afternoon, then cloudy with a 40 per cent chance of more — and Environment Canada flags a risk of a thunderstorm in the morning and early afternoon, so give yourself a few extra minutes on the road. High of 21°C, humidex 29, right on the seasonal normal. UV index 5, or moderate. It clears in the evening and the overnight low drops all the way to 10°C — the first genuinely cool night in a while. Then the week turns: Tuesday is sunny and 26°C, and Wednesday through Saturday run 22–26°C with a mix of sun and cloud. Full forecast and any new alerts at Environment Canada.
Police break down how to spot an AI-generated scam video
The Thunder Bay Police Service says it has taken reports from people who lost money to AI-generated videos — typically ads pushing investment schemes, cryptocurrency or fast profits, often built around a deepfaked spokesperson or public figure. The service put out a list of tells worth keeping in your head while you scroll: mouth movements that don't match the speech or a mouth that sits unnaturally still, lighting that shifts inconsistently, and eyes that look flat or blink oddly. Also watch for blurred edges, “face wobble,” overly smooth skin, and details that fall apart on a second look — glasses, hair, teeth, or ears that don't match each other. Police say the safest move with any offer is to contact the company yourself through a source you already trust, rather than a number or link in the video. Anything suspicious goes to the service's fraud prevention unit.
After 42 years, Fireweed is looking for a new owner
You know the storefront even if you've never gone in — the bright yellow one that has anchored the Bay and Algoma block for four decades. Fireweed has been selling work by local and Canadian artists since 1984, and after 42 years the current partners are retiring and the shop is looking for a new owner. CBC's Zoe Gordon sat down with founding artist Kerrie Atkinson, her business partner Crystal Nielsen, and Nielsen's daughter Ashley Hubbell, who grew up around the store and is now its newest partner — three generations of the same room, essentially. It is worth a listen if you have eight minutes, and worth a thought if you have ever wondered what it would take to run a shop on that corner.
160 job seekers, five employers: the Northwest's hiring gap
People here are looking for work. Employers here say they have openings. Northwestern Ontario Works — a free job board and matching service launched in April by the Atikokan Economic Development Corporation, running on Toronto Metropolitan University's Magnet platform — is a bet that the problem is the connection between the two. Executive director Garry McKinnon is blunt about conventional job boards: postings go stale, filled jobs never come down, and “ghost jobs” and blanket applications clog everything up. On NOW, seekers answer questions about where they want to work and what they can do, and openings that fit get pushed to them. Community development advisor Alex Bakal — who came to Atikokan by way of Ukraine, Dublin, Winnipeg and Toronto, and used these services himself — says the software is only the engine: “The platform is just a tool.” So far: more than 160 registered job seekers and five employment partners. McKinnon calls employer sign-up the bottleneck, and chalks it up to plain human resistance to change.
🗳️ Your call: 160 people signed up looking. Five employers signed up hiring. Which end of that actually needs fixing?
A new Northwestern Ontario job-matching platform has signed up 160 job seekers — and five employers. What would actually close the region's jobs gap?
Ribfest packs the Speedway for four days
Ribfest wrapped a four-day run at Thunder City Speedway on Sunday, and Speedway president Norman Nadin says Saturday in particular was “packed.” The venue change turned out to be the story: rain pushed Wednesday's races to Thursday, the same night Ribfest opened, and the two crowds landed on top of each other. “The people that did come out for ribs have never been out to the track, so then they would venture in and check it out,” Nadin said. Ribs Royale Barbecue and Dinosaur Smokehouse handled the cooking — Ribs Royale president Gus Sakellis expected to go through a few hundred racks on Sunday alone and confirmed the tour will be back next year. Money raised goes back into the track, Nadin says, mostly the stands and visitor amenities. Next up at the Speedway: the Dirt Track Nationals, Sept. 24–26.
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Meme of the Day
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Trivia answer: A volleyball. The Vivian, South Dakota hailstone recovered on July 23, 2010 measured about 20 cm (8 inches) across and weighed nearly 0.9 kg — still the largest ever officially recorded in the United States.
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