MHPS wraps up busy Stampede week
It was a busy, yet not overly-eventful Stampede week for the Medicine Hat Police Service.
The MHPS responded to about 25 missing children calls during the fourday Stampede event, and dealt with a number of smaller offenses over the duration.
“Friday and Saturday were a bit busier for us, especially Saturday, but overall it was a pretty good Stampede,” said Sgt. Mike Fischer. “As far as things we dealt with, I’d say it was a fairly average Stampede.
“There was a lot of smaller things we had to send officers to, but we didn’t really have a giant event or arrest this year.”
Friday was Kids’ Day at the Stampede grounds and 11 children went missing that night, with a couple just leaving the grounds unannounced.
“It’s something I personally had never seen before, but a couple of the kids just left completely,” said Fischer. “It was pretty bizarre, but the kids just went home.
“We spent a few hours looking for the kids and eventually called out patrol officers to go check on the house, when they got there they confirmed that the kids were home.”
Fischer says the MHPS sent seven people home early Friday for various reasons, and wrote one ticket Saturday for a person who was too intoxicated.
“There was a lot of drunk people (Saturday) night,” he said. “We probably ended up kicking out 10 people Saturday, but overall people were mostly behaved.
“Ninety-nine per cent of people at the Stampede are there to have fun, it’s the one per cent of people who we have to deal with and keep and eye on — people were good this week.”