By Sgt. Bob Vatamaniuck

During the past week the Columbia Valley RCMP received about 50 calls for service. The following is a small sample of those calls.

Hit and run at Panorama

On March 28 an employee of the Panorama Mountain Transportation attended the detachment to report a hit and run at the Panorama Mountain Resort parking lot involving their tour van. The vehicle was parked overnight on March 25 and when attended to on the 26th it was noted the van had sustained rear end damage, which included some of the body crumpled in. At the time there were no suspects or witnesses of the collision but as they gathered their own information they learned that there was some video surveillance available and consequently may have a suspect. Therefore they contacted police.

Once police became involved it was quickly learned that on the night of the occurrence an ex-resort employee was asking other employees about possible surveillance cameras in the area, including footage in the parking lot. He eventually admitted that he hit the van and was charged for leaving the scene of the accident.

Three-day Immediate Roadside Prohibition

During the evening hours of March 28, Columbia Valley RCMP stopped a Toyota Tacoma on Athalmer Road at Lakeview Drive, Invermere. The police had observed the driver turn left on a red light. Once confronted it was quickly noted the driver’s breath smelled of liquor and he admitted to drinking beer earlier in the evening. The driver was demanded to provide breath samples into an Alcohol Screening Device. The driver provided two breath samples which both registered a ‘WARN’ reading. Consequently, the driver’s operating licence was seized as he was served a three-day Immediate Roadside Prohibition.

Fear and loathing couple cause concerns

On March 30, at about 11 p.m., Columbia Valley RCMP received a complaint in the Village of Radium Hot Springs of an intoxicated male and female who had left a local bar without paying their tab. The female left the area whereas the male came back and was hanging around outside. Members attended and although intoxicated and slightly confrontational, police were able to convince the man to pay the bill.

RCMP let him leave on his own accord and walk back to his hotel. However, a short time later police got another call about the couple. At about 12:30 a.m. police were called to a hotel in Radium Hot Springs where two people were passed out. The hotel employees were fearful the couple was suffering from some kind of medical distress.  RCMP immediately attended with personnel from BC Ambulance and it was quickly deduced that the male was the same who was spoken to earlier in the evening.  Both subjects did wake up and assured everyone they were fine and eventually went to bed without any more reported issues.

Fight taken outside broken up

On April 2, about 1 a.m., Columbia Valley RCMP received a complaint surrounding a bar fight at one of the bars in downtown Invermere. The complainant reported that multiple people were fighting inside the bar and that employees had been able to get everyone outside. RCMP members arrived shortly after and were able to separate a large group of people that was located outside the bar. It was determined that a bar fight had broken out inside the bar from one male bumping into another. Several people then got involved in the fight. No one had received any injuries and there was no damage to the bar. People dispersed after the police arrived and bar and the downtown core calmed down considerably.

Come to a full stop or risk being out of pocket

The month of April we will be looking for drivers who are reluctant to come to a full stop at stop signs.

Section 186 of the Motor Vehicle Act states: “Except when a peace officer directs otherwise, if there is a stop sign at an intersection, a driver of a vehicle must stop a) at the marked stop line, or b) before entering the marked crosswalk on the near side of the intersection, or c) when there is neither a marked crosswalk nor a stop line, before entering the intersection, at the point nearest the intersecting highway from which the driver has a view of approaching traffic on the intersecting highway.” The fine for not stopping at a stop sign is $167.

– Sgt. Bob Vatamaniuck is commander of the Columbia Valley RCMP Detachment

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