M.D. updated on activities of Claresholm/Nanton RCMP

By Rob Vogt
The RCMP in Claresholm and Nanton have been busy over the past three months with a variety of initiatives.
Corporal Tom Nairn, the detachment commander for Claresholm, appeared as a delegation at the Feb. 8 meeting of M.D. council to provide his quarterly report.
He opened by discussing how the province is upgrading the 911 system so people will be able to call or text; it will better relay coordinates and locations to the RCMP; and it will collect useful data.
The detachment is entering its fourth quarter, so Nairn turned his attention to the detachment’s priorities to see if they should be kept or changed.
Currently those priorities are:
1) Traffic safety – speeding and impaired driving violation enforcement.
2) Crime reduction, property crime – they have undertaken offender checks, educational media releases, and Operation Street Sweep.
3) Police-community relations – they have done foot patrols, enhanced visibility shifts, meetings and presentations.
4) Reduce substance abuse – they have undertaken drug enforcement, and drug enforcement training.
Nairn asked if council had any other priorities. Typically three are chosen, and he requested council provide a letter by the end of March from council with those priorities.
“The current ones have been pretty effective, I think,” he said.
Nairn then discussed how those priorities and associated targets have been met.
He explained two are below target. Part of that was due to not all RCMP members being trained on laser and radar for traffic control. At the end of January, Nairn had three instructors teach everyone in the detachment on radar and laser enforcement.
Impaired driving is also down because it has gone to provincial laws where there is more deterrence.
They are also below target on offender checks, but Nairn said that is due in part to there not being many offenders in the area with conditions to follow.
He also had members work with Fish and Wildlife on Operation Street Sweep, where arrests were made for hunting deer without tags.
Drug enforcement is on-going with investigation into drug dealers. Helping that is the development of two new sources of information.
Nairn also discussed the crime statistics noting person crimes are up by one over this time in 2021; property crimes are down seven per cent; Criminal Code traffic offences are down 45 per cent; and motor vehicle collisions are down 17 per cent.
Currently, the Claresholm RCMP have four constables and one corporal, with a new sergeant coming by late Spring, and another constable set to arrive in March.
Nanton is fully staffed, with three constables and one corporal.
Nairn concluded by discussing some of the projects the detachment has done.
Over Christmas, the RCMP partnered with Students Against Drinking and Driving on liquor bags. Blank liquor bags were taken to elementary schools in Stavely and Claresholm. Students drew don’t drink and drive messages on them and they were given out during the season.
Operation Cold Start also took place the previous week where 10 unlocked vehicles with the key left in the ignition were identified. The owners were contacted and given information on how not to become victims of vehicle theft.
“The work that you are doing is great,” said Reeve Maryanne Sandberg to Nairn and Corporal Paul Bedard who gave a report on the activities of the Fort Macleod detachment. “Thank you for all that you do.”