Conservation officers safer due to dispatch centre: officials

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This article was published 30/11/2023 (992 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BRANDON — A new 24-hour dispatch centre for Manitoba’s conservation officers has worked out the kinks after being in operation for a month.

“We’ve come up with a lot of solutions and a lot of extra ways that we can keep them safe and that we can stay in contact,” said Robert Stewart, director of emergency communications.

He said dispatch staff has had to learn the shift patterns of conservation officers, how to track them if they need to get somewhere on a helicopter and how to facilitate communication when some parts of the province aren’t covered by radio.

The dispatch service, which is provided by the Brandon Public Safety Communication Centre, puts conservation officers in touch with police and first responders.

The former Tory government announced in June it had signed a $1.2-million contract with the contract to bring conservation officers into the fold. The centre also provides emergency dispatch services for seven police agencies and 192 fire departments throughout the province, as well as to Manitoba-based enforcement officers of the Canadian Wildlife Service.

Natural Resources Minister Jamie Moses toured the site Wednesday.

“We want to make sure that we’re always aware that conservation officers are just a radio call away from assistance,” Moses said.

The centre hired four staff members to facilitate the service and has one staff member dedicated to the conservation officer component.

In June, officials said that without a central communication centre, officers could only phone the RCMP.

“We know that this centralized dispatch… is going to ensure not only safety for officers, but also a little reassurance for their families, so that they will make sure that they have comfort in mind that they’re more likely to reach home safely at the end of the day,” Moses said.

The three-year contract has an option for a two-year extension.

Stewart said that when he announced to staff that they were going to take on a conservation officer dispatch service, they were excited.

“It’s well known that public safety communicators, the 911 call-takers and dispatchers that are upstairs look out for the public … but one of the things that a lot of people take for granted is that public safety communicators have just as much concern over the safety of the responders in the dispatch out to events,” Stewart said.

Having officers connected to a dispatcher for services is important, as their work can put them in situations where firearms are involved, the director said.

“Because of the dangerous nature of law enforcement in general, not having a dispatcher, not having that communications background, at best, it distracts the officer while they’re doing their job,” Stewart said, “And at worst, it could lead to… some safety problems for those officers.”

During the June announcement, the government of the day said the dispatch centre would be in operation in early August. Officials said Wednesday it didn’t get going until Oct. 26.

Statistics provided by the province show there are 10 conservation officers in the Brandon compliance area (which includes Brandon, Carberry, Neepawa, Virden, Shoal Lake, and Boissevain) and 13 officers in the Parkland compliance area, which includes Swan River, Roblin, Dauphin, and Winnipegosis).

This year in the Brandon area, conservation officers laid 213 charges and issued 81 warnings. In the Parkland area, officers laid 231 charges and issued 71 warnings.

— Brandon Sun