A 15-gun salute went ahead as scheduled outside Queen’s Park on Thursday, as Toronto residents remained on alert due to what police have described as an unspecified “potential risk to public safety.”
Toronto police tweeted prior to the ceremonial gunfire that there would be “no need for concern” about the noise.
The salute was delivered ahead of the Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Dowdeswell’s throne speech. The newly minted Progressive Conservative government is poised to begin a summer sitting of the legislature.
The gunfire was expected to last about 10 minutes.
Several people on Twitter questioned the decision to go ahead with the salute, saying that the noise could cause panic.
Though authorities have been tight-lipped about the nature of the information they’ve received, police forces in the Greater Toronto Area have increased the number of officers at key tourist locations, such as the CN Tower and Canada’s Wonderland.
“We’re not going to comment on anything to do with the information received other than to say that it is information that causes us to determine a potential risk to public safety,” Toronto Police Insp. Michael Barsky told reporters during a news conference outside the CN Tower on Thursday.
York Regional Police asked the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity.
The Ontario premier’s office said in a statement that they are aware of the “potential threat” and are monitoring the situation closely.
With files from David Shum, Global News
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