The Winkler Police Service is once again requesting the hiring of more officers ahead of City Council's 2017 budget meetings.

"It's vital to a community that grows at the pace that Winkler has, that its protection services keep par," Police Chief Rick Hiebert says. "In order to continue with the service we've provided in the past, and not start to jeopardize areas, we are in need of additional staff, we need more police officers."

Over the past five years, criminal code stats have steadily increased in the city. With staff stretched thin, areas like traffic patrol have had to be cut down. The increase in workload has also translated to more overtime shifts from police staff to complete the required paperwork.

Winkler Police have made similar requests for the past two years. And while the City of Winkler approved the request this spring, it came with the condition that officers move to 12 hour shifts. However, the change to working conditions led to stalled negotiations that delayed the hiring of new officers.

Hiebert explains the service can't afford to wait when it can take a year and a half from advertising until new recruits hit the streets.

"The interview, background stages, getting someone into a recruit class until they graduate, it's not less than a year and a half, and could be more," Hiebert says. "It's not something we can prolong."

"To protect a society you have to be prepared, to react... is too late. And we're already falling behind," he says.

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