Weekend crowding at Sylvan Lake beach sparks concern over social distancing enforcement

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The province says it intends to discuss social distancing enforcement options with Sylvan Lake officials after beachgoers packed the central Alberta town’s waterfront on Saturday.

Photos posted to social media over the weekend showed significant crowds, sparking concern about whether public health requirements were properly followed.

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People should maintain at least two metres of space from others in public, according to the province.

In a release, town officials said they were aware the waterfront “was at or near a maximum capacity” on Saturday “and that some of our visitors were concerned with crowding, and physical distancing practices, or lack thereof.”

“All Albertans should now be acutely aware of their role in preventing the spread of COVID-19,” the town said in a statement. “Those unable or unwilling to adhere the direction of Alberta Health … must reconsider visiting our community.”

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But the town’s chief administrative officer Wally Ferris said controlling social behaviour “is tremendously difficult.”

“We neither have the jurisdiction, nor the resources, to manage and enforce behaviour,” Ferris said.

“Only the RCMP, and Alberta Health, has the authority to enforce how visitors comply with physical distancing rules, but we want to be clear: From what we observed on the weekend — the sheer number of people — enforcement alone is not the solution.”

The town stated it reached out to the province “to provide a clear direction” on how to balance enjoyment of the lake with public health concerns.

Alberta’s top doctor said Monday the province intends to discuss the issue with town officials this week.

Health Minister Tyler Shandro said the province has made changes to the Public Health Act to “help local communities be able to enforce” public health orders.

But chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said the province recognizes there are some locations “where there are challenges.”

“So we will be setting up conversations this week to see how we can work together to make sure the local municipalities and other groups have the support that we’re able to provide and that we can think through solutions that are locally appropriate,” she said.

“It would be premature to talk about specifics or how we could give any additional assistance.”

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In a statement, Sylvan Lake RCMP said it “monitored the thousands of people gathered at the beach in Sylvan Lake” on Saturday, of which many weren’t compliant with physical distancing requirements.

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But Mounties said no tickets were issued.

“The RCMP were faced with an overwhelming number of people and the decision as to who to begin education and ultimately enforcement against was an implausible task for the Sylvan Lake RCMP members,” Mounties stated.

“The sheer number of people at the beach is an indication that enforcement is not the solution.”

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RCMP said officers used their resources to manage “other priority community safety concerns including drinking offences and driving offences.”

“A decision had to be made in terms of the most effective use of the RCMP resources,” it said.

“The RCMP remains committed to working with our AHS partners, and public safety is always our number #1 priority. In this case, the thousands of Albertans who demonstrated a disappointing disrespect for the Order put themselves and the citizens of the community of Sylvan Lake at risk.”

Premier Jason Kenney also addressed the “large crowds” at Sylvan Lake during a Monday news conference.

“I implore Albertans to remain vigilant and disciplined,” he said.

“I’ve seen that (crowding) myself in parks and I’ve seen people in crowded areas including grocery stores not wearing masks and that kind of conduct could unfortunately jeopardize the progress that we have made. We are not done with COVID but we are learning how to live with it and our future success depends entirely on not letting our guard down.”

shudes@postmedia.com
Twitter: @SammyHudes