RCMP attached at La Loche hospital

RCMP attached at La Loche hospital

The RCMP are investigating an incident on Sept. 30 where officers barricaded the hospital in La Loche and used pepper spray to prevent up to 70 people from getting inside. An RCMP news release stated, “It is believed the crowd’s intent was to forcibly remove the two La Loche (RCMP) members that were inside the hospital. The members and hospital staff were able to barricade the doors and keep the crowd out of the hospital. The front doors and windows of the hospital were heavily damaged.” More than 20 RCMP from the La Loche detachment were called out to disperse the crowd. The disturbance began about 3:15 a.m. when an ATV crashed near a police truck parked outside a house party. According to the police, party-goers threw rocks and bottles while officers were questioning the injured ATV driver. The injured man passed out and some people started threatening the officers and blaming them for his injuries. The police and paramedics were hit with flying debris but were not seriously hurt. The ambulance that took the injured driver to the hospital was heavily damaged. The crowd followed the police to the hospital. The RCMP have suspects but no arrests have been made.