SUNDRE — The last hurrah of the camping season was largely quiet.
Following the Sept. 2-5 Labour Day long weekend, both the Sundre RCMP detachment as well as the Sundre Fire Department reported a relatively low number of incidents; none of which were serious in nature.
Fire Chief Ross Clews told the Albertan on Sept. 6 that his department responded to five calls – three medical assists, a motor vehicle collision involving a dirt bike, and an outdoor pit fire that was lit just outside of town after Mountain View County imposed a county-wide fire ban.
When fire crews arrived to inform the property’s owners about the fire ban, the couple said they had been unaware and promptly complied by putting out the fire.
There were otherwise no major collisions or fires reported.
“We had a quiet weekend,” he said. It was actually really nice.”
And although local Mounties were a bit more busy, even the Sundre RCMP detachment experienced a much lower call volume than last year.
“From Friday to Monday, we had 21 calls,” reported Sgt. Trent Sperlie, the detachment’s commander.
During the same timeframe in 2021, members had recorded 44 complaints, Sperlie told the Albertan on Sept. 6.
And while the Sundre detachment has in the past requisitioned additional police resources to lighten the law enforcement load for long weekends, the sergeant said he took a different approach this year since the past summer’s camping season has not proved onerously problematic.
“What we’ve done is re-diverted that resourcing into the property crime that was happening in the area,” he said.
Among this year’s files that were logged over the Labour Day weekend were an assault, property complaint, three mischiefs, as well as a death investigation that did not deem the circumstances suspicious, the sergeant said, adding the deceased was in their 80s.
“We investigate these just about every week,” he said.
There was also a report of identity theft fraud in excess of $5,000, which involved a victim’s credit line being taken over, he said.
Among the mischief complaints were two disputes wherein individuals were disrupting the lawful enjoyment of property. Fortunately, neither incident escalated and were taken care of without charges being laid, he said.
Members also investigated at about 10:15 p.m. on Sept. 3 a complaint about fireworks being discharged in town, which falls under the municipality’s bylaws.
Officers were able to determine who set off the pyrotechnic devices, issued a warning, and proceeded to seize and dispose of the remaining fireworks, he said.
Mounties also attended on the afternoon of Sept. 4 the scene of an off-highway vehicle (OHV) crash west of Sundre on a private property along Rge. Rd. 55. EMS also attended to provide care, and although the sergeant could not immediately confirm the patient’s status, said the injuries sustained were reportedly non-life threatening.
In another area along Twp. Rd. 331, he said police also responded to traffic violations involving OHVs being unlawfully operated on the road.
“[Members] gave some people some education about where they can and can’t ride OHVs,” he said, adding there wasn’t enough evidence to lay charges.
An abandoned vehicle left on private property was also called in, he said.
“If it isn’t involved in a crime or stolen, then we tell the property owner they do have the right to tow that off of their property, but it is [at] their expense,” he said. “Obviously, if it is stolen or we believe it to be involved in a crime, we do seize it [as] part of the investigation.”
In this case, he said the vehicle was determined not to have been stolen or used in the commission of a crime.
Additionally, a collision on Sept. 2 along Second Avenue NW in town involving a vehicle that rear-ended another as the lead driver was turning into the Aquaplex parking lot, resulted in both vehicle becoming inoperable.
“They couldn’t be driven from the scene,” he said, adding that no one was hurt and that the investigation was as of the time he spoke with the Albertan still ongoing.
Although there were also three reports of suspicious persons or vehicles reported, the tips did not yield anything, he said.
“That doesn’t mean that those calls aren’t valuable, because there’s always that one that comes in that turns out to be a golden nugget,” he said, adding people are always encouraged to report suspicious activity that seems out of place for their area and that police will pending other priorities attend to assess the situation.
Comparing this year’s stats with 2021, the sergeant said, “Traffic and property crimes are pretty much what set the difference between the numbers last year and this year.”
Overall, Sperlie said the last long weekend of the camping season went well.
In light of an incident members investigated wherein a sizeable group of individuals were out joy riding quads and bikes when they strayed onto private property, he reminds recreational land users to be aware of where they are at all times.
“There was a bunch of people trespassing on a person’s private land,” he said. “They ended up going from Crown land, where it was lawful, onto private land.”
The land owner was upset by the intrusion, “and I don’t blame him,” he said.
However, when officers attended and found a group of people at the scene, he said police were unable to beyond reasonable doubt confirm they were the offending group.
“Under the circumstances, there just wasn’t enough evidence to lay any trespassing charges,” he said, adding officers instead spoke with the group with an emphasis on education.
