Ottawa police gear up for second ‘Rolling Thunder’ motorcycle rally
Posted Jul 25, 2023 09:45:39 AM.
Last Updated Jul 25, 2023 11:55:58 AM.
The Ottawa Police Service (OPS) is gearing up for another ‘Rolling Thunder’ demonstration.
The motorcycle rally, which will be similar to a rally held in April 2022, is being organized by several people who took part in the so-called ‘Freedom Convoy’ last winter.
While the exact objective of the rally remains unclear, ‘Rolling Thunder’ describes itself as a group ‘connecting Veterans across Canada in a salute those who went before us.”
Last year’s rally remained peaceful and Ottawa Police Chief Eric Stubbs tells CityNews Ottawa the service has been in touch with organizers to ensure cooperation this time around as well.
“When we work with organizers of events, we look for them to be peaceful, for them to be safe, and to be lawful,” Stubbs said. “That’s the goal with this particular one and ensuring we have good communications.”
As it stands, Chief Stubbs believes the OPS will be able to manage the rally without additional help from Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) or other regional police services.
“We have a robust plan of a number of members who will be engaged that day,” Stubbs said. “As usual, our plans are scalable to shrink or expand as necessary during that day.”
The rally is planned for the weekend of August 5 and the number of people expected to attend is not being made public at this time.
