Fort Smith wants COVID-19 border patrols back on the ice road

Fort Smith Mayor Fred Daniels said if there are border controls at the 60th parallel and on the Liard Highway between British Columbia and the Northwest Territories, then his community should get the same protection.

"The border [patrol] was installed for a good year and for some reason they took it out. I'm asking for it to be replaced because the winter road is in from [Fort] Chipewyan to [Fort] McMurray," said Daniels. 

Fort Smith is an N.W.T. town at the Alberta border. It connect to Fitzgerald, Alta., and when the winter roads are in place, it 's a gateway to the N.W.T., connecting people as far as Fort Chipewyan and Fort McMurray.

He said having a border control in place would give residents peace of mind that there is some protection from COVID-19.

Richard Mercredi, who lives in Fort Smith, contacted the COVID-19 information line about the lack of border patrol now that there is a winter road.

He worries that even if people are required to file self-isolation plans after travelling south, there is nobody to make sure that's happening.

"Nobody, I can guarantee you, is putting in a self-isolation-plan … when they're coming through that winter road," he said. 

Mercredi said the winter road is bringing people in for grocery shopping and picking up gas, but they also have local people travelling south to Fort McMurray, Calgary and Edmonton.

Mercredi worries about seniors in the community with COVID-19 numbers rising. 

"They're the most vulnerable," he said.

Mercredi said beyond a border patrol, there are problems with anti-maskers entering stores or stating that they have mask exemptions, even if there are signs that say masks are required.

He hopes that a patrol off the ice road will bring more accountability for southern travellers to follow self-isolation rules.

 As of Thursday afternoon, there were 40 cases of COVID-19 in Fort Smith.