CALGARY ? Calgary police say they won?t issue a ban barring people from local rivers when water levels are treacherously high because, with only one boat, they don?t have the tools to enforce it.
The comment comes a day after city emergency officials called for such powers in the wake of Monday?s drowning near Harvie Passage, prompting Transport Canada to say Calgary police have had the authority to issue a ban all along.
According to Transport Canada, the Calgary Police Service has ?delegated authority? to prevent movement on rivers in hazardous conditions.
?On the Bow River, the Calgary police department enforces safe boating regulations on behalf of Transport Canada. Under the Vessel Operating Restriction Regulations of the Canada Shipping Act, 2001, the Calgary police department has the delegated authority to prohibit the movement of vessels whenever it deems there is a hazard,? Transport Canada spokeswoman Glyniss Hutchings said in an e-mail.
This seemed surprising after some city officials expressed frustration over not being able to keep boaters off the swollen river and prevent the drowning death of 44-year-old Calgarian Brad Kuhl.
Calgary fire Chief Bruce Burrell told reporters Tuesday that enacting a ban on boating on local rivers is federal jurisdiction.
But Transport Canada said city police possess ?delegated authority,? which would allow officers to close the river to boating the same way police can close roads or highways temporarily.
Hutchings was clear that it is police only ? and not the Calgary Fire Department ? who could choose to temporarily ban boating on the Bow and Elbow rivers as a safety precaution.
Kevin Brookwell of the Calgary Police Service clarified Wednesday that it?s its understanding that the city can request Transport Canada issue a restricted use of waterways for various reasons, such as water flowing higher and faster than usual.
Once approved by Transport Canada, police can then enforce this restriction.
?The authority to enforce something like that, and us actually doing that, are two different things,? Brookwell said. ?There is no intention on the police service?s part of actually restricting Calgarians from using that waterway. We will continue to do our best, both proactively and reactively, to educate Calgarians.?
One reason police are focusing on educating people not to enter the water, versus hauling them off the river, is resources.
The police marine unit has access to one boat. The Calgary Fire Department has an additional three water rescue boats at its disposal.
With a city of 1.1 million people, Brookwell said it?s not feasible to take everyone off the water who won?t listen to repeated warnings through the media or ignore the advice from police and bylaw officers trying to stop them before entering the water.
?We are not going to babysit Calgarians,? Brookwell said. ?We cannot legislate recreational activities. Hiking is dangerous. People have been killed in hiking. Does that mean we are going to shut down the national parks? Motorcycles are dangerous. People get killed. Are we going to stop motorcycling?
?I think it?s our responsibility as a (police) service to do our best to educate Calgarians and to give them the information they need both proactively and reactively. Ultimately, they can?t absolve themselves of all responsibility. If you choose to, after all of that, enter that river, you do so at your own peril,? Brookwell said.
Mayor Naheed Nenshi ?s office said he was unavailable for comment.
A fire department spokesman said Burrell was also unable to speak at this time, referring all questions about river bans to the police department.
But Ald. Gian-Carlo Carra, whose ward includes Harvie Passage ? a revamped weir on the Bow River ? said enforcing boating bans on behalf of Transport Canada is a tricky power to have downloaded to the municipality.
?Having the ability to enforce is only half of the problem. Having the capacity to enforce is part of the problem also,? he said.
He did say the city should now reconsider its approach to boating education as well as enforcement in light of recent events and the new perception of the weir.
?The Harvie Passage has converted the weir from a death trap to a dangerous spot of river. The fact that it?s more accessible means that more people are going to be shooting the rapids,? he said.
?I don?t know exactly how to deal with it, but I know we need a conversation.?
Even without a fleet of police boats, Calgary police have enforced safe boating procedures.
This past weekend alone, police issued 119 tickets for failure to have proper safety equipment or drinking while boating.
With files from Jason Markusoff, Calgary Herald
smcginnis@calgaryherald.com
Source: http://feeds.canada.com/~r/canwest/F233/~3/UH54ztj3tY4/story.html
tony nominations dark knight trailer dallas mavericks washington capitals elizabeth warren delmon young amare stoudemire
কোন মন্তব্য নেই:
একটি মন্তব্য পোস্ট করুন