El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Elementary school teacher Hanni Shahatto remembers the last time he saw his former student, 15-year-old Yumnah Afzaal.
Just before Ontario was set to enter into lockdown again in April, Yumnah had paid a visit to her old Grade 7 and 8 teacher at the elementary school she had graduated from the previous year.
"She said, 'Mr. Hanni, I wanted to come today, because I feel like today's probably the last time, I'm going to see you for a long time.’ And that was the last time I saw her," he told CTV National News in London, Ont.
On Sunday, Yumnah was killed along with her parents and her grandmother in a vehicle attack that police believe was fuelled by anti-Muslim hate.
Shahatto, who had taught Yumnah geography, history and English at London Islamic School, is remembering her as an "extremely talented, extremely intelligent, warm-hearted" student, brimming with potential.
"She's unique and beyond her years, and all the attributes I just mentioned, her intelligence, her talents, her emotional intelligence," said Shahatto.
"She had such an eye for the arts, such an ability in academics. Socially, (she was) everybody's friend. She was just excellent in everything."
Shahatto had known Yumnah since she was a young child, when he had filled in for her Grade 2 teacher.
"Yumnah, since she was a little kid, she just has this... sparkling personality. You'll notice a kid like that in any classroom," he added.
Yumnah also had a passion for art, something that didn't go unnoticed by Shahatto. After seeing her talent, he offered her the opportunity to paint a wall-to-ceiling mural at the school.
"She jumped at this opportunity. She had a deep love for the school. She wanted to give back. She wanted to leave her legacy," said Shahatto.
While Yumnah would spend her weekends with Shahatto working on the mural, they were often joined by Yumnah's parents, Salman Afzaal and Mediha Salman, who he calls "beautiful examples of people."
"They cared about Yumnah so much, they made the time to be with her for every minute that we were working on a mural, supporting her," Shahatto said.
Shahatto says he's "not 100-per-cent shocked" that such an attack took place, given that he's felt "like I needed to be on guard" ever since the 9/11 attacks, which led to a rise in anti-Muslim violence across North America.
"(The attack) kind of validates feelings I've had for a long time that I need to be on guard, no matter what security systems are in place," he said.
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
The Maple Leafs battled back from a 3-1 series deficit against the Boston Bruins with consecutive 2-1 victories - including one that required extra time - in their first-round playoff series to push the club's Original Six rival to the limit before suffering a devastating Game 7 overtime loss.
Amid scientists' warnings that nations need to transition away from fossil fuels to limit climate change, Canadians are still lukewarm on electric vehicles, according to a study conducted by Nanos Research for CTV News.
Three people have died and two have been hospitalized after a speeding car struck a tree and landed on another vehicle in Fredericton Sunday morning.
A Montreal man is warning Tesla drivers about using the Smart Summon feature after his vehicle hit another in a parking lot.
Madonna put on a free concert on Copacabana beach Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro's vast stretch of sand into an enormous dance floor teeming with a multitude of her fans.
Thieves killed two Australians and an American on a surfing trip to Mexico in order to steal their truck, particularly because they wanted the tires, authorities said Sunday.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.