16 new officers bolster Calgary transit safety
Rookies will have to deal with challenges including homicides, opioid crisis
It was a much-needed boost for those who maintain order on Calgary’s transit network.
Fort Calgary was the scene of Friday’s graduation ceremony for a class of 16 Calgary Transit public safety and enforcement officers — the first new batch of officers in over three years.
Brian Whitelaw, who oversees the city’s 101 transit peace officers, said the rookies are entering into an environment that’s both challenging and rewarding.
“They’re graduating into an environment where we’re starting to see the opioid crisis become very real to all Calgarians,” he said.
“They’re dealing with generally a safe system, but there’s a lot of mental health and substance abuse issues that really challenge peace officers.”
Last year was a challenging years for transit officers.
Faced with rising rates of both crime and social disorder, fuelled both by the depressed economy and Alberta’s opioid crisis, transit officers faced numerous serious incidents on transit property last year.
That included two homicides in 2017 — matching the number of previous murders committed over the transit system’s 108-year history.
In late November, transit officers began carrying naloxone kits in response to increasing instances of opioid overdoses in the city.
Since them, officers have administered the lifesaving drug seven times.
“I didn’t anticipate we would use naloxone that frequently,” Whitelaw said.
“I knew we would have some overdoses, but I certainly didn’t anticipate that volume of cases.”
As well, the ever-present threat of terrorism is a reality all western transit systems face on a daily basis.
“With all agencies across Canada, across North America — vigilance is key,” he said.
“The best way to provide that layer of security, that prevents the really bad situations from happening is if we’ re visible, we’re seen all the time — it demonstrates our diligence towards safety, and deters people from making Calgary Transit a target.”
Friday’s graduating class of 16 brings the total number of officers system-wide to 101 — the first time in a number of years that Whitelaw’s had a full complement of officers.
“We’re completely filled at this point,” he said.
“We’d experienced quite a bit of attrition over the past couple of years — we’re mindful of the economic downturn, so we kept many positions open until we had the opportunity to be able to hire a class of 16.”
This year’s class is one of the service’s most diverse, one that included graduates originally from El Salvador, Kenya and Iran.
One of those graduates is 42-year-old Francis Atsulu, who applied to become an officer after a number of years as a Calgary transit operator.
“I started as a bus operator, moved my way up to become a train driver — and then a transit operations supervisor,” he said.
“It’s all about public interactions, and I had that interest — I always said that if I had the opportunity, I’d join the transit officers.”
Originally from Kenya, Atsulu served in the military for nine years before emigrating to Canada in 2006.
“I’m so happy that I’ll get the opportunity to serve Calgarians as a peace officer,” he said.
I knew we would have some overdoses, but I certainly didn’t anticipate that volume of cases.