A standoff in Athabasca’s Cornwall neighbourhood June 29 caused some panic on social media, as residents littered Facebook with questions about authorities not releasing enough information, as well as others sharing too much information that could endanger first responders.
Athabasca RCMP Sgt. Kevin McGillivray said the incident went well from a policing perspective, but social media could both help and hinder investigations.
“This is an information age and people want information immediately,” McGillivray said. “You look at places like Ottawa during the Parliament Hill shootings, or Moncton during the shooting rampage out there, social media played a big part in those, both good and bad. In Moncton, (the suspect) was monitoring movements of the police and that individual was specifically targeting police.”
He added that posting photos of an unfolding situation from a distance could also be dangerous to police attempting to secure an area, and some Athabasca residents had asked people to remove their posts from Facebook.
“I had it said to me specifically, ‘Well, we weren’t showing pictures of officers or their locations,’” he said. “Maybe, but you’re now showing a panoramic view of where there’s an opening, and where that person would be able to get out of our containment area. If they take an overview of that area, it gives the suspect an idea of what he or she is up against.”
McGillivray said he understood the public’s need for information during an unfolding situation, but rather than posting photos, he suggested sending out a general description and generic photo, like of a sign or police car.
He also cautioned that it’s easy for wrong information to spread, and suggested that the public should look to RCMP accounts for accurate information.
The Cornwall incident received worldwide coverage as far away as Cairo, Egypt, yet despite the flurry on social media, some residents in the area were left in the dark about the police situation.
During a soccer practice on the nearby WHPS field, a panicked parent yelled out that there was a man with a gun.
McGillivray said that typically officers go door-to-do to inform neighbours about an incident and evacuate or move them to a safe area in the home. If they can’t be reached physically, RCMP will phone the house and, if that isn’t possible, a loud hailer is used.
In the case of the Cornwall incident, officers used a bullhorn but McGillivray said there was no real danger to the public.
“We had it contained immediately and we knew for certain that the person we were dealing with was inside the residence.
“If there’s people that we know are in an area of danger, then they’re going to be evacuated. If we felt there was an issue at the school, then we would have evacuated the area.”
RCMP initially arrived on scene for a domestic disturbance. A lone male was found deceased in the home from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
“We go to those types of events daily but it usually doesn’t end up like that,” he said.
