CANADA DAY ON THE HILL
Thousands party in sweltering heat
A suffocating heat kept Canada Day celebrations more subdued Sunday as crowds were down on Parliament Hill, lines were easily manageable, and the fiasco of last year’s Canada 150 celebrations was avoided.
While there was no precise number for the downtown crowd size, it was evident as the day wore on that the heat — and the lack of 150 hoopla — reduced numbers sharply from 2017’s extravaganza, which featured Prince Charles and Camilla, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Bono.
By 7 p.m., for instance, there were only 5,500 visitors on the Hill, virtually no lineups, and a day’s count of 26,000 through security checkpoints. The Department of Canadian Heritage reported at the end of the evening that 48,000 people had passed through security screening. By the time of the evening performances, there were more than 20,000 on the Hill.
“Wow, what a difference from last year,” said Allison Geddes, 33, who breezed through the line at about 2 p.m. with her friend from Victoria, B.C., Francesca Bell, 36.
It was a marked departure from 2017, when delays of five hours or longer marred Canada 150 celebrations and created a civic embarrassment. Nor was Wellington Street anywhere near as busy.
Not only were lessons learned about crowd control, but organizers were also ready for the heat, with rows of misters to greet visitors walking up the Hill service road from the west, several free water stations and a water cannon firing rain showers on the east lawn.
The high temperature of 34.7 recorded at the airport — little comfort in the news — was a full two degrees shy of the July 1 record set in 1931 and 1963. However, a humidex of 47 and a relative humidity in the 60 per cent range had everyone struggling in an oppressive bubble.
Paramedics were kept busy. By 7:30 p.m., they had responded to 65 calls in the city’s core, most of them heat-related, with 10 people taken to hospital, including a heart-attack victim at Mayor Jim Watson’s annual breakfast for seniors at Lansdowne Park.
Paramedics were also particularly pleased this year to roll out two new six-wheeled vehicles — built for off-road work — with fullyequipped stretchers that fit in the air-conditioned rear box. But, good Lord, we’re hardy. Les Trachuk, 62, and his wife, Eva, 56, who live in Edmonton, arrived on the Hill at about 9 a.m. and said they planned to spend the entire day there, waiting some 13 hours for the fireworks.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” said Trachuk, camped out in a folding chair on the west lawn near the main stage, dug in for the long haul with water at the ready.
Newly retired, he’s on a crossCanada trip on a three-wheeled Honda Goldwing, something he has wanted to do since his 20s. He left home on June 18 — Eva flew to meet him here — and the couple were on their way to Montreal, Quebec City and the East Coast. In the end, it will be a 10,000-kilometre saga.
“For me, the highlight of Ottawa is just to be right here.”
There was, of course, the usual patriotism on display. Pairs of Mounties in red serge were busy being photographed with families, children and half-clothed men with umbrellas on their heads: the Governor General did a walkabout; BeaverTails were sold on the Sparks Street Mall, and perfectly normal people wore flags as capes.
It was not all smooth sailing, of course.
Alisha Sharma, 26, was cooling herself in a misting station on the Hill, but not just from the heat. She and three family members rose at 3 a.m. to drive to Ottawa from Brampton, arriving at about 9 a.m.
However, once the party of four went through the security line — where packs and keys had to be checked — their main key ring disappeared.
“This has really ruined the day,” said Sharma. “I don’t even want to go in now.”
She said they spent about an hour with officials from Parliamentary Protective Services, but a thorough search couldn’t locate the ring, which held keys for the car and the house.
They suspected a person in front of them had picked up the keys by mistake.
Sharma said her husband had to call a locksmith, at a cost of $500, to have another key made for the Toyota Camry so the couple could get home.
She said she pleaded with staff to check security cameras to see who might have claimed their keys by mistake, but were refused. “You know, this is not our fault.”
The weather office had been warning of dangerous heat all week and that message was clearly heeded. There was plenty of water everywhere, so much so that a water vendor near the National War Memorial said he was having a terrible day.
“It’s the hottest and the slowest it’s been in 12 years,” said the man, who did not want to be identified. “Even in the rain last year, we had a better year than this.”
He predicted he would sell only half his inventory of 100 cases of 24, at $2 a bottle for half a litre.
Wisely, there were places to cool off. The National Arts Centre fully opened its new lantern lobby, which was a chilled oasis on the eastern edge of the Hill. Inside, adults took a load off on comfortable chairs, while children had a colouring and face-painting station.
As if on cue, the Capital Brass Trio fired up Gershwin’s classic Summertime, later slipping into the theme from the Addams Family. (Ottawa City Hall was also open, and hundreds took to indoors there for spells of cool air.)
Security was visible, but not intrusive. There were temporary concrete barriers placed along Elgin Street to prevent any kind of vehicle rampage and, at one point, 13 RCMP officers could be counted near one watering station, while others milled about carrying huge firearms.
To contact Kelly Egan, please call 613-726-5896 or email kegan@ postmedia.com Twitter.com/ kellyegancolumn
It’s the hottest and the slowest it’s been in 12 years. Even in the rain last year, we had a better year than this.
A WATER VENDOR suffered a sales drought, with plenty of water to be had on the Hill