BC RCMP responds to seasonal policing demands

Agassiz, B.C., Lower Mainland District

2023-05-25 14:37 PDT

File # BC RCMP

The great weather around this time of year sees an influx of people to some of British Columbia’s most beautiful and popular areas, such as the Village of Harrison Hot Springs. The BC RCMP tracks and responds to these seasonal demands with extra patrols wherever they are required.

As the Provincial Police Force, the common uniform, training, infrastructure and policing standards of the BC RCMP allows the RCMP to supplement local resources as they respond to demands for policing services in areas less busy throughout the year. This flexibility and surge capacity allows the RCMP to ensure adequate and effective policing throughout the province.

An aerial photograph of the BC RCMP Zodiac boat in Harrison Lake at Ten Mile Bay campsite. Campers inside vehicles and trailers are parked at the waterfront.

View a larger image: An aerial photograph of the BC RCMP Zodiac boat in Harrison Lake at Ten Mile Bay campsite. Campers inside vehicles and trailers are parked at the waterfront.

This past weekend, Cst Berthier Kyobela, posted to BC RCMP Federal Serious and Organized Crime, joined Cst Kyle Toole, of the Agassiz RCMP, on the waters at Harrison Lake and Sts’ailes Territories at Harrison River. Police officers with the BC RCMP, on time off from their regular duties, enjoy such unique opportunities to supplement their colleagues.

After a thorough check of the Zodiac rigid-hull inflatable boat and logging into the Police Records Information Management Environment (PRIME-BC) that allows them to view every police file and for dispatch to identify their location, Cst Toole launched the pair from Harrison Hot Springs. In addition to having completed the nine-day Small Vessel Operator Proficiency course, Cst Toole has the electronic navigation course and he is a volunteer Fire Fighter with the Popkum Volunteer Fire Department. This makes Cst Toole, originally from New Brunswick, a connected and resourceful member in the Fraser Valley community, a valued professional with the BC RCMP and an incredible asset to provincial safety. 

Cst Kyle Toole speaks into his portable police radio while navigating the BC RCMP Zodiac boat on Harrison Lake.

Out on Harrison Lake, Cst Kyobela and Cst Toole conducted education and safety checks with boaters and families in the popular waters before heading north west into Harrison River where they patrolled the waters and provided a police presence to the water-access-only homes. The pair then returned to Harrison Lake and proceeded north, patrolling the coastline, including with the use of Forward Looking Infra-Red (FLIR) equipped to the boat to help identify persons behind dense forestry for check-wellbeing reasons, given their distance from immediate help.

Further north, the two police officers conducted investigative follow ups at Camp Cove Group Campsite, Limbert Rocks Campsite and a foot patrol at Ten Mile Bay Campsite. North at Ten Mile Bay Campsite, additional safety and education checks were conducted with a boat and kayakers.

Cst Berthier Kyobela works on a laptop while seated in the BC RCMP Zodiac boat on Harrison Lake at Limbert Rocks Campsite.

"The Agassiz RCMP will be out providing patrols and visibility over the course of the summer. Our area has so much to offer to recreation enthusiasts and those wanting to leave big city life behind throughout the summer. We ask that everyone coming to the area be respectful to each other and be safe, says Sgt Mike Sargent of the Agassiz RCMP.

After several hours out on the waters, Cst Kyobela and Cst Toole returned to the Village of Hot Springs and jumped into their police car but dispatch soon informed them of a single-boat accident in the Harrison River.

The pair returned to the dock and launched the Zodiac boat. Within minutes of the original call, Cst Kyobela and Cst Toole located the single boat and its occupants. The occupants and their boat were assessed by police and it was determined that a tow back to land was necessary. The occupants were welcomed onto the police boat and secured with personal flotation devices. Their boat was towed back to land with the two-motor Zodiac where Cst Toole conducted a further inspection of their boat and provided them boat safety education.

With no further calls on the waters, Cst Kyobela and Cst Toole returned to shore just as the sun was setting, docked the boat and once again jumped into their police car and drove into the Village of Hot Springs.

Cst Kyle Toole navigates the BC RCMP Zodiac boat in the blue waters of Harrison Lake at Sheers Island and Ten Mile Bay campsite.

View a larger image: Cst Kyle Toole navigates the BC RCMP Zodiac boat in the blue waters of Harrison Lake at Sheers Island and Ten Mile Bay campsite.

The BC RCMP reminds those near or in the waters to ensure that they are prepared for an emergency. This includes having the capacity to self-rescue and not being impaired near waters. For those enjoying campsites outside of cell phone reception, the BC RCMP reminds everyone to ensure that they have informed someone of their intended location and when they intend to check in or return. In an emergency or missing person outcome, this information would be critical to a police response and allow the BC RCMP to deploy the appropriate land, water or air service fleet, says Cst Berthier Kyobela.

Did you know?

The BC RCMP serves 99% of BC’s land mass (over 72% of the total provincial population) and the communities we serve range from remote Indigenous Nations and coastal villages to major urban cities.

Click here for a map of the 99% land mass served by the BC RCMP!

Released by :

Cst. Berthier Kyobela

Media Relations Officer
Federal Serious & Organized Crime (FSOC)
14200 Green Timbers Way, Surrey, B.C. V3T 6P3
Office: 778-290-3239
Email: berthier.kyobela@rcmp-grc.gc.ca 

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