An RCMP Explosives Disposal Unit (EDU) based in the Interior remains unlikely at this time.

The subject was brought up during a Kelowna RCMP news conference on Monday (Jan. 27) after officers responded to a distraught man who had parked a vehicle in the eastbound lanes of the Bennett Bridge around 3:45 a.m.

A letter sent to media, and posted to social media, claimed that there might be explosive material in the van. The bridge was shut down for more than 10 hours while RCMP waited for the EDU to arrive from the lower mainland. 

BC RCMP Senior Media Relations Officer, S/Sgt. Kris Clark, told Black Press Media that current call volume requiring an EDU response does not support the creation of a secondary unit in the Interior.

鈥淭he recent events on the William R. Bennett Bridge are unfortunate, however, we must consider needs based on call volume and cost analysis,鈥� he said.

Clark said that the allocation and funding of resources is complex and involves multiple partners and various levels of government, and that additional teams or locations would require added personnel, vehicles, equipment and facilities.

He noted the inconvenience the event caused to the public, and pointed out that police took every precaution to keep the public safe and resolve the situation as quickly and safely as possible. The EDU, established in 1975, supports the entire province and is consulted regularly, deploying when a threat is deemed credible.

The event on Bennett Bridge was the third suspected explosive device incident in Kelowna in the past three months. On Jan. 7, a , leading to a several-hour lockdown of the area. No explosives were found.

On Nov. 8, prompted road closures on Enterprise Way between Dilworth Drive and Leckie Road. The EDU was consulted but did not respond, as the item was determined not to be an explosive device.

In February 2023, for several hours. The EDU responded and used a robot to neutralize the device.

The RCMP confirmed that the device had the capacity to detonate.