There’s a growing strain on city police’s resources and they admit they need more officers.
Speaking to Council last night, Chief Sylvie Hauth explains they saw 50,000 calls for service by October this year, nearly as many as the entirety of 2018. Hauth says they are looking for a dedicated team for gangs and guns.
City police argue the number of people in the city is closer to 135,000 including its transient population, so the service is stretched thinner than Statistics Canada’s numbers suggest.
She says they can’t keep up their current level of service without more funding.
“[For] far too long, the Thunder Bay Police Service has operated under great strain, which has led to high levels of officer burnout, sick leave, and low morale throughout the service,” Hauth emphasizes. “We really need to advocate our needs as a community at the provincial and national level.”
Police are also seeing more violent crime, guns, and gang activity. As they deal with those issues, Hauth is asking residents to consider other services like Shelter House’s SOS for non-criminal matters like mental health issues. She adds the city can help the force by improving its by-law enforcement to take some of the load off of her officers.
Hauth is hoping for budget approval to set up a $1.2 million-dollar, six-officer gang unit.
Starting in the new year, city police will re-structure their departments to include new units focusing on break-ins, armed robberies, and the north and south cores.
