Winnipeg Police Service (WPS) has declared a state of emergency due to staff shortages stemming from COVID-19, Chief Danny Smyth said Wednesday..Currently 170 members are on COVID-19 related leave, roughly 15% of the force..“We have some real challenges ahead,” said Smyth in a statement..“The current COVID-19 situation has significantly impacted our staffing resources. It has become necessary to execute parts of our Business Continuity Plan to ensure essential services — particularly in general patrol.”.Additional officers from other units will be redeployed on short notice, beginning with community support units and the Guns and Gangs unit. Eighty officers will be assigned to general patrol on January 10..Declaring a state of emergency gives more flexibility in “redeploying resources,” said the chief..“The majority of the people [officers] I would say right now are vaccinated,” said Smyth, adding that officers should double up their “procedural masks” when not using N95’s..Smyth told reporters the service has a 97% vaccination rate..Reid Small is a BC-based reporter for the Western Standard.,rsmall@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/reidsmall
