Kamsack's RCMP Detachment hosted a Town Hall meeting at the Ukrainian Catholic Hall on October 11. Residents and stakeholders from Kamsack and the surrounding area were encouraged to attend.
鈥淭his Town Hall is an opportunity for our Detachment to engage directly with the public around local policing priorities and public safety,鈥� said information which was published prior to the event.
鈥淲e were a bit disappointed with the turnout of only 22 persons who attended the Town Hall,鈥� said Sgt. Meagan Stringfellow, a prime organizer of the event.
Some of the information shared at the meeting included:
- Resourcing: the Kamsack Detachment is currently one position short but will be welcoming two new members, one on October 22 and one on December 6.
- Area: Detachment area covers 1,800 square miles: northern boundary is in the provincial forest, eastern boundary is the Manitoba border, southern boundary is one mile north of Wroxton and the western boundary is one mile west of Hyas.
- Statistics: From January 1 to October 10 the RCMP responded to 2551 calls; 1103 in the Town of Kamsack, 743 on the three surrounding First Nations of Cote, Keeseekoose and The Key, and 705 in the remainder of the rural areas which includes seven RMs and 11 communities.
Breakdown of statistics for the Town of Kamsack as follows:
-12 traffic collisions
-73 provincial traffic offences
-13 impaired driving offenses
-96 crimes against persons (including assaults, sexual assaults, assaults with a weapon, uttering threats, harassment)
-295 crimes against property (including mischief, theft, break and enter)
-138 other calls which included sudden death, mental health acts, 911 calls and assistance to other organizations (such as social services, town bylaw enforcement)
-18 drug-related calls
Of the calls to which the RCMP responded, the fact that only 18 were drug-related has the members of the Detachment somewhat concerned that citizens are not calling in when they suspect drug-related activity.
鈥淚f someone in the community becomes aware of drug-related or suspicious activity, we encourage them to call the RCMP,鈥� said Sgt. Stringfellow. 鈥淚t assists the Detachment with making decisions as to how and where to deploy our resources.
鈥淲e can鈥檛 allocate resources to address a problem which we don鈥檛 know exists. If we are going to be successful at crime prevention we need community engagement and support,鈥� she said.
