Online COVID-19 threat a fake after P.A.put on alert

The post was soon after deleted but not before it was shared over 200 times. The woman later made a second post, claiming she was being charged, and while acknowledging she was wrong, blamed the people who had shared the original post. RCMP Sgt. Rob King told paNOW the woman was contacted and was warned not to make any more similar posts online.

Response from La Loche

La Loche mayor Robert St. Pierre, says kids will be kids when it comes to bad behaviour online.

“I think that’s just silliness,” he said. “Because La Loche is the epicentre right now, and people have posted certain things on social media and basically saying that La Loche is carrying the virus or walking diseases and people see that get pretty defensive about our community and rightfully so.”

St. Pierre added he doesn’t think the story we should be talking about is the online threat, but rather what people can be doing to support each other in defeating this virus throughout the world.

In response to the possibility of people travelling in large numbers to Prince Albert, St. Pierre argued the only people leaving the community, are the ones who have valid reasons such as medical trips. He added people in the community have been abiding by what’s been set out from leadership.

St. Pierre also explained he is in regular contact with the community’s checkpoints, and has been told activity is very slow and nobody is going through. He said the checkpoints are manned 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

“People are scared but why blame La Loche? I know La Loche has a bad wrap but we’re great, loving and caring people. If we’re going to be defensive, people will be defensive and I can’t control that,” St. Pierre said.

Prince Albert’s mayor believes woman owes apology to city

Greg Dionne say he’s disappointed to hear the woman who made the online threat won’t be charged, explaining that while the threat may not have been valid, it did cause a great degree of anxiety for the city.

Dionne explained when the city received word about the potential threat, the RCMP, city police, and highway patrol were immediately mobilized.

“You have to take it as truthful. You have to investigate it,” he said.

Dionne said when authorities realized the woman was claiming to be at a Prince Albert hotel – a business that has been closed for weeks – they figured out what was actually going on and that the threat was fake.

“What apology is she going to do to help [the hotel] get the customers back that she scared away? She’s tainted a business in Prince Albert and that frustrates me,” Dionne said.

“You can apologize all you want and blame other people for sharing your Facebook post. The number one question is did you post it? Yes, then it’s 100 per cent your fault.”

The local hotel, which had undergone some extreme renovation, was scheduled to re-open on May 5. Dionne said management expressed concerns to him about following through with the plans, after seeing the post, but have since been talked back into it.

With regard to concerns related to people from other parts of the province coming to Prince Albert, Dionne said he had none, and applauded the northern leaders for the work they have done in their respective communities controlling the spread of the virus. Rather, Dionne said he was more concerned about traffic coming from Alberta.

“They are a hot bed of cases and we’re soon gonna open to cottage country. And all these people are going to come from Alberta without being checked for COVID-19,” he said.

With files from Nicole Reis/meadowlakeNOW

nigel.maxwell@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell

by Nigel Maxwell

Online COVID-19 threat a fake after P.A.put on alert

What's Trending