in the South Slave region are preparing to roll out a new organizational structure they're hoping will improve policing in the area.
NT Sgt. James Lai told NNSL Media that the three major detachments in the area SA国际影视传媒� Hay River, Fort Resolution and Fort Smith SA国际影视传媒� will share resources and staff in an effort to ensure that there's enough presence where it's needed.
It will also help police curb drugs and alcohol moving between the communities, he added.
The initiative is called 'Project Guardian.'
"We're choosing the name Guardian because it emphasizes and highlights what we do here," said Lai. "We're trying to protect not only the communities the loyally serves in the NWT, but we're also protecting our people.
"In listening to both our community leaders and our () members, we've concluded we essentially need to do business different in the NWT, specifically in the South Slave area.
"What community leaders are asking for is more visibility, more police officers and more proactive work. So we are removing the boundaries of our detachment areas to allow us to efficiently and effectively redeploy police officers in areas that have increased criminal activity. Criminals don't abide by borders or boundaries, and our police shouldn't either," Lai added.
Overall, the in the NWT had a 27 per cent vacancy for positions across the territory, including in the South Slave region.
By pooling resources and staff, Lai said local detachments will also be more visible in communities, which he hopes will be reflected in more people reaching out to police when there's trouble. Day-to-day operations are not expected to change much, but there will be more police moving through communities, which Lai says will mean more police vehicles on highways.
He said the three detachments will have a rotating schedule with the goal of having enough personnel on hand during peak times in each community. He also noted having the three detachments gives a "surge capacity" to quickly move officers to a specific area in the event of an emergency.
A second factor in the 's organizational change is for the officers themselves. Lai noted being a police officer can be an isolating job and coming into a Northern community can exacerbate that feeling of isolation. So to help support the mental health of officers, Lai said having the pooled resources would aid officers in feeling at home in their communities.
To that end, police are asking community members to help police feel welcome by simply reaching out to them and saying hello.
"You might not know the first name of the community police officer you meet in the store," said Lai. "We're encouraging community members when you see police officers you don't know, please introduce them.
"Part of this project is making sure our police officers are exposed to different patrol areas they traditionally wouldn't be."
A little known fact, said Lai, is officers in smaller communities are on call 24/7 SA国际影视传媒� if a police officer is off duty and gets a call for service, they're effectively on duty.
Having to be ready for action at any given point during the day can be taxing enough on mental health, so by pooling resources from the three smaller detachments, officers can actually get a break. This is hoped to reduce burnout and keep officers in the communities they're assigned to.
"I strongly feel that will increase our service delivery," said Lai. "So that way when the members are attending calls for service, they're refreshed, rested and able to provide the service communities are expecting of us.
"The long-term plan is not only protecting our members but retaining our members who are here. If they're supported, rested and able to see other areas, once we start showing our membership the gems of the North, we're going to have retention up here."
Project Guardian will be rolled out in a phased approached. The initial push was getting the word out and the program will be implemented throughout the rest of the year. A review of the project with feedback from community partners is planned for completion by Dec. 31.
