LITTLE CURRENT–During the holiday weekend, from Friday, July 31 to Monday, August 3, Manitoulin Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officers were busy responding for calls for service. Over the three-day weekend OPP responded to 89 calls for service, reports Constable Allan Boyd, Community Services Officer with the Manitoulin OPP.
“The Civic Holiday weekend is our busiest time of the year and the amount of people attending the Island reflects the needs for police assistance and response. Out of the 123 calls Island-wide, 89 were in the Little Current area during the Haweater Weekend festivities, which is a decrease of 21 calls for service from 2014. Haweater draws crowds of upwards of three to five thousand people with all the great events that weekend has to offer. With this amount of people the calls for service definitely increases from the rest of the year, however I am pleased to report that no major incidents took place and we had no alcohol related motor vehicle collisions.” The OPP is also pleased to report that there were no disturbance calls at any of the venues.
S/Sgt. Kevin Webb, detachment commander for the Manitoulin OPP, thanked the organizers, the Little Current Lions Club, and all the volunteers with the Haweater event. “Their efforts made this Haweater Weekend a success. Police presence is an extremely important function insuring everyone has a safe and enjoyable weekend. It also shows anyone intending to cause any problems that the OPP is ready to respond. Strict enforcement has ensured that families attending these functions feel safe and makes it enjoyable for everyone. We had a reduction in officers this year due to the decrease of problems from previous years, however we made sure that each officer on duty was visible in the communities. I am pleased to report this has paid off making this Haweater Weekend a quiet and safe one. We will continue to take an analytical approach to the level of response needed for this event, with a strategic response to public safety within our communities and on our roadways, waterways and trails.”
The following is a breakdown of total patrol hours for the four-day weekend by all officers: cruiser patrol, 150.75 hours; ATV patrol, 24.75 hours; bicycle patrol, 12.50 hours; and foot patrol, 17.50 hours.
The following charges were laid over the weekend: Highway Traffic Act, 26 charges (up one from 2014); Criminal Code Charges, eight charges (down four from 2014); Controlled Drug and Substance Act, four charges (up 2 from 2014); Liquor Licence Act, 49 charges (down 6 from 2014); and prisoner lockups, 10 people taken into custody.
The following is a break down for the calls for service: unwanted persons, one call; alarms, five calls; noise complaints, two calls; sexual assault, one call; motor vehicle collisions, four calls; threatening, one call; marine, two calls; suspicious persons, one call; traffic complaints, five calls; trouble with youth, one call; police assistance, six calls; assaults, one call; 911 calls, one call; trespass to property, one call; Liquor Licence Act, 49 calls; mischief, five calls; bail violations, one call; drugs, four calls; voyeurism, one call; Mental Health Act, one call; other, 30 calls.
Total calls for service 123 over a 72 hour period.
