After a shooting and manhunt near Clear Lake, Man., this past week, people in the area and across the country are more mindful of the risks RCMP officers face in rural communities.
Wednesday night, two police officers responding to a break-and-enter call in Onanole, Man., were fired upon. Cpl. Graeme Kingdon, 42, was hit. The suspects fled and were later taken into custody at three separate locations, two near Onanole and one in Neepawa.
Former RCMP officer Sherry Benson Podolchuk told 680 CJOB Thursday that she was saddened to hear of the shooting.
“I was totally shocked of this very tragic event, and it just brought back a lot of memories of what it’s like to be in small-town Manitoba or small-town Saskatchewan,” she said.
Being a police officer in a rural area can be incredibly rewarding but is also inherently dangerous, said the former RCMP officer.
Podolchuk said officers are very often alone, patrolling day and night, with little help available from their small police detachments. She also noted the potential for danger when handling things like routine traffic stops as a lone officer.
“You’re driving along and you see a car, and it’s in the middle of nowhere. You think, well, why is this car out here at two o’clock or four o’clock in the morning? It’s speeding so you pull it over for speeding,” Podolchuk explained.
“You are very vulnerable. You have no idea how many people are in that car, where they are coming from, what is their intent, where they are going, so you are very vulnerable as you walk up to that car. They train us how to approach vehicles like that but anything can happen,” she added.
Podolchuk said that as a rural officer, you never know when someone is going to jump out of the car and shoot at you.
“You have to protect yourself or your partner, if you have a partner,” she said. Most of the time, though, Podolchuk said officers are alone.
And when something does happen, backup is not easy to come by.
“You are on your own … help is on another planet,” she said.
“You might as well be on the moon because by the time you call for help, something terrible could have happened.”
From missing persons reports to robberies or erratic drivers, any time a call comes in there is potential for a difficult situation, Podolchuk said. Often, while a car is responding to one situation, other officers are responding to a different call, which means help can be “far, far away.”
Officer shootings are always shocking and they are particularly upsetting in small towns where everyone knows everyone, said Podolchuk.
The community knows the officers, the officers know the community, and everyone probably knows the suspects as well, she added.
“It hits the community hard… It’s the ripple effect: the initial victim and his or her family, and then it ripples into the community and they are really shaken and deeply saddened.”
Kingdon, the officer shot in Onanole, was airlifted to Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg, where he was reported to be in stable condition.
WATCH: An emotional Scott Kolody, Commanding Officer of the Manitoba RCMP, describes his visit to hospital to see Kingdon
When asked what can be done or what might be learned from this most recent shooting, Podolchuk said having two officers in every car would definitely help but may not be an option for small towns.
“Two-person police shifts, day or night, but that might not always be possible in these small communities… a lot of it boils down to cost,” she said.
Podolchuk said gun registry is also a big help for rural officers. Just like people register their cars, she believes they should also register their guns.
“As police officers, when we are going to a call, it’s nice to know if this home — if this person — has a weapon,” she said.
These are things, the former RCMP officer said, that can make a real difference for rural police.