Another young male police officer was killed today. A civilian was also killed as well as a female police officer being seriously injured. The incident occurred in a Montreal neighborhood. The suspect was also killed. The female police officer was sent to hospital and thanks to hospital staff her life is no longer in jeopardy.
Yesterday, two RCMP officers in Melville, Saskatchewan were seriously injured after being shot while attending a report of assault. They are presently reported as being in stable condition. I imagine from my experience that in both incidents the attending officers did not know completely what they would encounter when they arrived on site.
These incidents caused me to recall returning to Newfoundland and Labrador after attending the funeral of my nephew, Devon Northrup and his partner Morgan Russell in Ontario. They were both with the South Simcoe Police Force and were killed attending a family disturbance in Innisfil, Ontario on the 11th October 2022. My wife, Sharon and our granddaughter were with me and when we returned, I became aware of a wreath laying ceremony at the Monument of Honor in Conception Bay South (CBS) being held on the morning of October 27th, 2022. The wreaths were being laid in honor of the four Canadian police officers who had been killed in recent months of which one was my nephew, Devon. I attended this ceremony along with a small group of police and military members. It was an emotional affair bringing back memories of Devon’s funeral which I had just attended. During the ceremony, almost as if on cue a police car with sirens wailing and lights flashing passed by on its way to a call. That pinched my heart, so when I came home, I sat down at the computer and the following poem resulted:
The Siren
Fallen leaves
Soaked with morning frost
Glistened in the bright sunlight
Photos of four fallen police officers
Killed these past few weeks
Watched with frozen smiles as a
Small crowd of retired and serving police
Armed forces personnel and public servants
All stood squinting in the daylight
Around the Monument of Honour
A retired police officer,
His features aged from when
I knew his younger self
Led the proceedings
Followed by the chaplain
With some kind words and
The Police Officer’s Prayer
A police siren wailed
As she read the prayer
Officers on their way to a call for help
Perhaps as unaware of this service
As they were to what would happen on the call
Yet that lonesome and urgent sound
Paid tribute to the deceased
Reminding those present
The work they did and
The work still being done
Is important
Service 