RCMP says they’ve arrested one man in connection with a multiple stabbing at an Alberta work camp that has left two people dead.
At about 1:50 a.m. on Tuesday, police responded to a workforce housing camp southwest of Fox Creek for reports of a man, armed with a knife, attacking people.
When officers arrived at the camp, named Berland Open Lodge, they found two people dead.
"They located two deceased persons and shortly thereafter, located a male armed with a knife," said Cst. Jason Curtis with the RCMP. "An altercation ensued and police firearms were discharged at the male."
The man was struck and injured by the gunfire. The RCMP were not injured.
Edmonton RCMP Major Crimes is at the scene and is taking over the double homicide investigation.
The victims have not been identified.
Officials overseeing the camp say they are aware of a serious incident at the camp that involved a fatality. "We have been in contact with our camp people and with the RCMP," says Tyler McCracken, the executive VP of DJ Catering, a sister company of Canada North, which operates Berland Open.
McCracken says the camp is a standard workforce housing camp and they have clients and their staff at the camp. He says that the number of people at the camp vary depending on the season. "This time of year, it's typically a little bit slower, but it can anywhere from three or four staff to, well Berland isn't that big of a camp so we wouldn't see more than 15 to 20 staff at any given time."
He says that they're now waiting for the RCMP to complete their investigation into the incident and are asking everyone to remain patient. "They need to contact the victims and go through all the procedures that comes along with something of this severity."
McCracken says that all camps have responsible people in position, but not all of them have devoted security personnel. "It's not common that you would have a security guard and certainly not an armed security guard."
He says that the situation on Tuesday morning is very difficult. "We typically would not see an incident like this in our industry."
"My understanding is that everyone who was on site is going to be questioned and beyond that, I don't know what the plan will be. I assume a number will want to return home. We will be making available whatever services we can to help our staff."
McCracken says that those services include but are not limited to counseling.
In a further statement issued on Tuesday, DJ Catering Ltd. said:
We were deeply saddened by the incident that occurred today at one of our locations. Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with the victim’s families at this time. The RCMP will provide any further updates with respect to the investigation.
ASIRT is also stepping in to investigate the incident that resulted in the discharge of the RCMP officers’ firearms.
"The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team is responding and will be investigating the use of police firearms against the suspect," said Cst. Curtis. "The suspect is in custody and is receiving treatment, but I do not have information on the extent of his injuries."
The investigation is ongoing and police say autopsies have been scheduled for later in the week
Fox Creek is located approximately two and a half hours northwest of Edmonton.
(With files from CTVEdmonton.ca)
