Former Alberta Premier Ralph Klein seriously ill in hospital

Reports indicate that former Alberta Premier Ralph Klein, 70, is seriously ill.

Details, at this point are sparse but news outlets have stated that Klein — who suffers from a serious form of dementia — remains at the Calgary senior's medical facility that has been his home since 2011.

CTV's Don Martin who is in contact with the Klein family, tweeted this on Wednesday afternoon:

In an interview with CTV News Calgary, Martin said that Klein is in "grave condition."

"He’s been sleeping an awful lot. He’s lost a lot of weight," he said.

"He knows fewer and fewer people. It is definitely a sad state of affairs and he is in very grave condition."

Klein exemplified Alberta politics in the 1980s and 90s serving as Calgary's mayor for nearly a decade before serving four terms as Alberta's premier from 1992 to 2006.

[ Related: Alberta PC leader’s comments anger Ralph Klein’s wife, friends ]

He was a staunch fiscal and social conservative who eliminated the province's deficit and inspired the Jean Chrétien Liberals to strive for a balancing of the nation's books.

He was also a controversial politician; he certainly had his foibles.

As chronicled in a recent article in the Globe and Mail, Klein once walked out of an event in Ottawa and tossed money at a man in a homeless shelter while telling him to get a job.

[ Related: ‘Rough around the edges’ former Alberta Premier Ralph Klein gets his long-deserved Order of Canada ]

Last Fall, Klein received the Order of Canada at a short ceremony at Calgary City Hall. His wife, Colleen Klein, accepted the honour on his behalf.

Klein's last major public appearance was in June 2011 when he attended the opening of a Calgary park named after him.

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