LAC LA BICHE – The Law Enforcement Training Centre in Lac La Biche will soon have a new Emergency Vehicle Operations Course (EVOC) track for training law enforcement professionals.
Chris Clark, director of training for the Law Enforcement Training Centre, said depending on weather, construction of the EVOC track will start in late spring and should conclude by the end of August.
According to Clark, the EVOC training course, which will be located on the Lac La Biche West Industrial Park Road, is a purpose-driven track for emergency vehicle driving and will be used for a variety of disciplines and first responders.
“It will be the only purpose-built track in Alberta that will encompass all of the required disciplines as well.” Clark said. “The track will also be utilized for other training avenues such as collision training, high risk vehicle stops and other vehicle tactics training.”
The training centre’s new EVOC track, Clark explained, will include a paved skills pad, two high speed driving lanes with an intersection, a gravel track and a mud track for 4x4 training and slope driving. Based on estimates discussed by Lac La Biche County council, the project is estimated to cost about $2 million.
Presently, the Law Enforcement Training Centre uses a smaller driving area within the air tanker base located near the Lac La Biche industrial park and airport. When speaking with the Lac La Biche newsroom last April, Clark stated that there are many limitations to this base, including a limited staging area.
When it is built, the new EVOC track will have considerably more advantages over the current training area.
“The track will allow for more disciplines to be taught, allow for more space that will increase safety for students, allow for more diverse and advanced training and also cross discipline training,” said Clark.
In addition to training recruits with the Community Peace Officer (CPO) induction program, Crown Land Enforcement and the Western Conservation Law Enforcement Academy can utilize it for recruit training too.
According to Clark, the EVOC track will also be used by police agencies, other enforcement agencies, fire services, EMS, and can also be used for office highway vehicle (OHV) training. He added that there is a growing request list of organizations wanting to use the track, and this includes the MELT (Mandatory Entry Level Training) program at Portage College.
“This track has potential to attract a lot of different disciplines. Also, the track can be utilized for certain community events so it will be a win for the community . . . and it will be a win for our training centre as it will draw a significant amount of usage and bring people to the community.”
