N.B. RCMP to maintain most COVID-19 measures despite lifting of mandatory order
The lifting of the mandatory order in New Brunswick won’t change much for the province’s RCMP.
Assistant Commissioner Larry Tremblay said the force will remain cautious for the next month or two.
“We encourage all the members who serve the public to continue wearing masks,” he said. “The cleaning measures will not change. Inside any of our offices, members will be required, or employees will be required to practice social distancing and keep their masks until we know that this is, in fact, resolved.”
On Saturday at midnight, the mandatory order in place during the last 499 days won’t be renewed. It means all of the COVID-19 restrictions will be lifted in New Brunswick, including mandatory masks and border checks.
Tremblay says the organization has been resilient during that time and it showed in the number of COVID-19 cases that affected the force.
Of the 1,300 employees within the N.B. RCMP, five came down with the virus.
However, although the province is in good shape, he’s choosing not to take any chances.
“You’ve got to look at the international situation, even what’s going on in the States right now,” he said. “We may be required to re-engage should the situation change. I think it’s expected and prudent for us to maintain our operational posture for the short-term.”
While COVID-19 changed a lot, Tremblay says his priority was the same: to ensure members who went to work, came home from work safe and healthy.
“We had one occasion in Codiac where one member, we learned after the fact, may have been in contact with a COVID-positive person. If you find out 12 hours later, that’s a whole shift,” he said. “What happened…is we isolated 30 people right away until they had a chance to have their two negative tests. Because one person infected over a week period, given the territory we had, could impact the whole police force.”
The RCMP in N.B. look after 97 per cent of its territory, and 70 per cent of its population.
Tremblay says there’s a lack of resources, both human and financial, and while he couldn’t provide an exact figure on how much the pandemic cost the force – overtime was a factor.
But along with the policies and procedures that came with the pandemic – regular policing continued on. Tremblay said the force also supported its counterparts in N.S. after the mass shooting.
He suspects there may be some celebrations once the order is lifted, but as for policing, Tremblay says he won’t be approaching this weekend any different than the last.
“I don’t see that, all of a sudden, good common sense is going to go away just because we’re past the mandatory order,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
RCMP not investigating possible foreign interference cases related to Chiu, Dong: Duheme
Canada's federal police force is not investigating any possible instances of foreign interference in the cases of former Conservative MP Kenny Chiu and Liberal-turned-Independent MP Han Dong, RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme says.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Air France flight from Paris to Seattle lands in Iqaluit after heat smell in cabin
A plane travelling from Paris to Seattle was forced to make an emergency landing in Iqaluit after there was a heat smell in the cabin during the flight.
CFL suspends Argos QB Chad Kelly at least nine games following investigation
The CFL suspended Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly for at least nine regular-season games Tuesday following its investigation into a lawsuit filed by a former strength-and-conditioning coach against both the player and club.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.
Federal government grants B.C.'s request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces
The federal government is granting British Columbia's request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces, nearly two weeks after the province asked to end its pilot project early over concerns of public drug use.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca