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Sources have confirmed that one RCMP officer is dead and another is injured after a “critical” police incident in Coquitlam.
Coquitlam RCMP warned late Friday morning that Glen Drive was closed between Pinetree Way to High Street, only describing it as a “police incident.”
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B.C. Premier David Eby confirmed a “very serious, critical incident” took place involving the RCMP in Coquitlam, but no further details were provided.
Speaking in Vancouver at the Union of B.C. Municipalities conference, Eby said there’s no further risk to public safety and more information will be released by the RCMP.
Carley Hodges says she saw one officer being taken out of a building on a stretcher while getting chest compressions, and a second officer was bleeding from the leg with a tourniquet above it.
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The building manager of a condo complex in the 3000-block of Glen Drive said he was working in his office when a resident contacted him to say that police had swarmed the area. He said police, some carrying “high-powered guns,” later instructed him to notify all residents in the building to stay put and away from the windows.
“They are shocked,” said the building manager, who asked not to be identified for safety reasons. “They are scared. Most residents are seniors.”
Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart couldn’t share details of the officers’ injuries, but said he had been briefed on the situation along with Premier David Eby and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth.
“This kind of stuff is extremely troubling,” Stewart said.
Elenore Sturko, the B.C. United MLA for Surrey South and a former RCMP officer, said she’s devastated that an officer has died in the line of service.
“I just look at my own badge and I just think like, ‘Wow, here we have someone who has paid the ultimate sacrifice.’ It’s just absolutely devastating to know that this unfolded today.”
Yan Wang manages a dental office near the area that is closed off, and says police asked them to shut the office and stay away for the rest of the day and tomorrow.
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Postmedia has reached out to the local RCMP detachment for more information and has reporters en route.
More to come …
— With files from Katie DeRosa, Kim Bolan and The Canadian Press
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