Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson admitted the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) "lost control" of the so-called "Red Zone" around Parliament Hill during the Freedom Convoy protest.."In the red zone, it was lawlessness. People were having parties. There were open fires. They are throwing off fireworks that were a fire hazard to heritage buildings in the downtown core," he said..Testifying at the Public Order Emergency Commission on Tuesday, Watson said he was initially warned by the Ottawa-Gatineau Hotel Association that protestors had enquired about booking 9,000 to 10,000 hotel rooms for 30 days. But he said this did not concern him..READ MORE: Hotel association warned Ottawa that Freedom Convoy planned to stay for weeks ."When you're making a booking, you have to give evidence you're going to follow through with it. I don't think most took it seriously for the reason there was no follow up. They asked about rooms and rates, but never booked," he said..Watson said the OPS was used to dealing with large protests, but "nothing of this magnitude.".As the protestors refused to leave the parliamentary precinct and more began to arrive, Watson said he realized the protest was no longer a protest, but an occupation..Watson calls protestors 'very nasty people' who 'don't represent Canada'.Watson described some of the impacts of the convoy on Ottawans, including children missing chemo appointments, fireworks bouncing off buildings, harassment of citizens wearing masks, incessant honking, and people "roasting a pig."."These are not made-up stories. They are all documented cases during the occupation," Watson said. "People started to realize this was turning into a very volatile situation when we saw fireworks going off and hot tubs being brought in.".During his testimony, Watson revealed his frustration with Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who was "not as responsive," in finding a solution to the protest. Documents showed the province did not want to join a "tri-parte" meeting between the three levels of government.."What's it going to accomplish, a bunch of people sitting around a table talking?" Ford said to Watson at one point. "That sounds like a cabinet meeting," Watson replied..A readout of a call between Watson and Trudeau on February 8 also revealed Watson thought the protestors were "nasty people," that "don't represent Canada."."Can't reason with them, so vulgar, and hateful. Attacking people, ripping their masks off, honking their horns," Watson said..Watson said it was clear the police "lost control" of the Red Zone when officers attempted to confiscate the protestor's fuel cans. He said those officers were "swarmed by 100 truckers," and had to give up..As such, Watson said they couldn't send in bylaw officers to hand out parking tickets to protestors. "If police officers were being swarmed, I couldn't in good conscience force bylaw officers, who don't have the proper training, into a situation where their safety could be in danger," he said.."We were all, quite frankly, treading water and trying to keep our heads afloat. It was a horrific experience for the people who lived here," he said..'Show me the Mounties'.During the testimony, Watson explained the OPS didn't have enough officers to deal with the protest. Peter Sloly, then chief of Ottawa police, wanted an additional 1,800 officers to help police the crowds..Watson said he repeatedly pressed the federal and provincial government for additional "boots on the ground," but there was a "significant delay" in getting those reinforcements from the RCMP and Ontario Provincial Police..During a call with Sloly and federal cabinet minister on February 8, Watson declared, "show me the Mounties."."We need to come out of the meeting with a down payment on resources. If we don't have more officers, this will go on for a long time," he said..At one point, 250 RCMP officers were sent to Ottawa to act as local police. But Watson said it wasn't enough, as 150 were sent to the West Block and Rideau Hall to act as protective services for Trudeau and the governor general..Watson said once reinforcements arrived in Ottawa, it was "quite remarkable" how quickly the streets were cleared of the protestors.."It was a very good showing of professionalism. We would have been having a much different commission if somebody had been shot or killed," Watson said..Watson testified the city of Ottawa did not ask for the Emergencies Act to be invoked. But the mayor was supportive of the act after it had been implemented.."Nobody raised the Emergencies Act with us, but when it was implemented, I thought it was a very positive step to getting this situation resolved."
