Don't Jump! Police & Fire Say Find Another Way To Stay Cool

People have been looking for ways to stay cool this week and many have taken to the river and some have taken off from the Centre Street bridge into the river.

Captain Trevor Allan with the High River Fire Department says while it may look like fun it's just too unsafe on many levels.

"We do not promote any jumping from the bridge within the Town of High River, there's just too many hazards that cannot be controlled. There's traffic hazards, it only takes a moment of inattention for a youth to be up on that bridge deck because they're already wet or we could have a motor vehicle collision."

He says the water is also very murky which makes it impossible to see potential hazards.

Allan says the water may look high but adds the flood brought a lot of gravel and debris in and has made the river channel much more shallow than it was in the past.

High River RCMP are weighing in and Staff Sergeant Robyn Alexander says there could be some terrible outcomes.

"People playing around up there pushing and shoving and someone could get pushed into traffic, there's all kinds of bad outcomes. We recognize it's almost a time honored tradition to jump off that bridge but we certainly don't encourage it or endorse it."

He says that complaints from drivers have been on the increase and adds individuals can be issued tickets and charged under the traffic safety act for distracting motorists.

There are a lot of ways to stay cool during hot days and local authorities suggest jumping off the Centre Street bridge into the river is not one of them.

High River Fire Department Captain Trevor Allan says the water is giving jumpers a false sense of security.

"Even though the water appears to be high, we've got to remember that since the flood a lot of gravel has been scoured in and has made our river channel more shallow than in the past so the appearance is that there is more water than there really is for this time of year."

He says aside from the river being more shallow it's impossible to see any potential dangers in the water because of all the sediment.

Allan says the river has claimed lives in the past and says he discourages individuals from jumping off the bridge as it's a very hazardous situation.