Ottawa police create ‘integrated command centre’ to better control protest

Ottawa police have created an “integrated command centre'' to respond to the convoy protest in the city's downtown core.

The police service says it struggled with enforcement on Saturday, February 12 because there were more than 4,000 protesters present and some engaged in “aggressive, illegal behaviour.”

Ottawa Police Services (OPS) says the integrated command centre will help the force coordinate with Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and RCMP.

“We expect that the ICC will result in a significantly enhanced ability of our police service to respond to the current situation in our city,” OPS said in a statement Saturday evening. “The ICC will allow us to make the most effective use of the additional resources our policing partners have provided to us.”

Ottawa police say in addition to the 4,000 protesters on Saturday, they needed to manage a 300-vehicle convoy and another car convoy from Quebec that was 20 kilometres long.

That also say they intercepted a “fuel transport” that was making its way into the downtown core.

OPS is still waiting for more reinforcements from provincial and federal police forces. A fraction of the 1,800 requested additional resources have made their way to the nation's capital.

Police say they continue to be stretched thin because of the ongoing protest.

By Saturday morning, police had handed out a total 2,600 tickets for bylaw infractions since the protests began more than two weeks ago.

There are currently 140 active criminal investigations in relation to the demonstration and 26 arrests have been made.

—With files from The Canadian Press.