Nanaimo will lose nearly two dozen RCMP officers to 2010 Olympic duties in Vancouver and Whistler. Some of the 23 officers -- or about 16% -- have already left Nanaimo and more are headed over this week. Many will be gone until early March, but officials stress policing in Nanaimo will be maintained at required staffing levels. It means some Nanaimo RCMP units, such as traffic, will temporarily be collapsed and officers will not take leaves or attend training courses during that time. Of the cops who remain in Nanaimo, four officers will spend all day overseeing floatplane security screening downtown. "It's not a big glitch or killer to the Nanaimo detachment. Does it matter? Absolutely. We certainly have given our share," said Nanaimo RCMP Insp. Al O'Donnell on Wednesday. "We've crumpled some units to support units but we'll make it happen."Nearly all of the officers in Nanaimo, the largest RCMP detachment on Vancouver Island, who are involved in Olympic duties were chosen because they are on tactical or emergency response teams. There are nearly 15,000 RCMP officers on the Olympic roster. Police and city officials have already acknowledged more officers are needed in Nanaimo, with a report last month stating "current staffing levels are insufficient to meet demand for service." Officers here are busier on average than most RCMP in the province.
Unlike the extraordinarily tight security when the 2010 Olympic Torch Relay passed through Nanaimo in October, which resulted in approximately $30,000 in police overtime, the city will not incur any costs for officers at the Olympics. The RCMP-led Vancouver 2010 Integrated Security Unit will cover nearly $500 million of the $900-million Olympic security budget.
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