Winnipeg police ready for 'every type of threat' at whiteout party, including Toronto-style van attack
Van driver plowed into Toronto crowd on Monday, killing 10 and injuring 15
As hockey fans prepare to fill downtown streets for the next Jets whiteout viewing party, safety concerns loom following a deadly van attack in Toronto on Monday.
"Honestly the mindset [is] that it's never going to happen to you where you are, but it's probably possible, especially with the Jets and all that kind of stuff happening, all the people downtown," said Keegan Misanchuk.
Stacey Oliferchuk said safety at whiteout parties came up in a discussion with coworkers Tuesday.
"With the street parties going on hopefully nothing like that will happen," Oliferchuk said.
Insp. Dave Dalal, a police special event commander, said on Tuesday Winnipeg police are "mindful" of the Toronto attack and continually reassess threats at events.
"You can't prevent these attacks everywhere, as you've seen. Nobody thought it would happen in Toronto and we don't know what will happen locally," Dalal told reporters at a news conference Tuesday.
"But we're doing our best to make sure that doesn't happen here."
On Monday, a van driver plowed into a number of pedestrians in the Yonge Street and Finch Avenue area of North York in Toronto, killing 10 and injuring 15.
Alek Minassian, 25, of Richmond Hill, Ont., is in custody.
Dalal said attackers that use vehicles as weapons to plow into crowds are "prolific," because the attacks are easy to execute but hard to prevent.
At the last Jets street party, which took place before the Toronto deaths, dump trucks blocked streets at every entrance, Dalal said, serving as immense, movable blockades to prevent vehicles from veering toward the crowd — intentionally or otherwise.
More than 15,000 partiers
The street parties have been held on closed-off downtown streets during Jets home games throughout the NHL playoff series. The last party, on Friday, drew more than 15,000 fans and Dalal said attendance is expected to grow.
The trucks are preferable to other options, such as cement blockades, because they're easier to move, Dalal said. If an emergency happens inside the street party, staff can drive the trucks out of the way to allow emergency vehicles to get inside.
"I won't get into tactics, but we have a layered approach," Dalal said. "People will see street closures to prevent vehicles from accessing the area, you'll see officers at various points leading into the area as a visible presence."
Police presence will grow with the crowd, Dalal said. Officers are working with party planners to get a sense of how big it could be as organizers consider expansion in the second round of the playoffs.
Police are constantly re-evaluating threat levels at the public parties, but the overall game plan hasn't changed in light of the Toronto attack.
"Our tactics attempt to deal with every type of threat and that's not going to change," Dalal said.
'Taking it very seriously'
Economic Development Winnipeg, which is organizing the street parties, said Winnipeggers should not be alarmed.
"The work that has gone into keeping Winnipeggers safe at these street parties is unprecedented, and it's something we're taking very seriously," she said. "We talk about it after every game."
As for Misanchuk, he hasn't had a chance to participate in one of the whiteout parties yet but hopes to watch a game as the Jets face off against the Nashville Predators.
He happened to be in Nice, France, in 2016 days before a driver in a truck struck and killed 86 of people and injured dozens more during Bastille Day celebrations.
Despite that experience and what happened in Toronto, Misanchuk says he won't be turned away from big public celebrations like the whiteout parties.
"You can't … live scared like that," he said.
The Jets face off against the Predators in the first game of the second round of playoffs Friday at 7 p.m.
With files from Nelly Gonzalez