Summer time shenanigans are abundant and the RCMP can’t catch everything. That’s where you come in. Citizens on Patrol is in search of volunteers for July and August.
The program has three components: patrol, speed watch and marine patrol. Volunteers patrol the town in pairs looking for problems and suspicious situations to report to RCMP, while speed watch volunteers record information on traffic with specialized equipment.
Time commitment is low as volunteers are only asked to commit four hours per month.
Marine patrol volunteers need a boat and can monitor whenever they are on the lake with no minimum hours required. They can simply log whatever they see, from boating activity to dead heads that need to be flagged, says co-ordinator Terry Sinton.
“It’s very easy to participate in any of them but we really need volunteers,” said Sinton. “All three provide a great service to the community and make it much easier for policing in this area.”
Sinton noted citizens on patrol is particularly needed in the summer because of the increase in people in the area. Based on past experiences as a volunteer she says even the presence of patrollers deters questionable activity.
Volunteers do not need any special skills as everyone is trained by the RCMP.
Anyone interested in participating in marine patrol can contact Sinton at 836-4613.
Anyone interested in participating in Citizens on Patrol or Speed Watch can contact Kathy Keam at 250-836-3267.