File photo of Whoop-Up Drive in Lethbridge. New emergency protocols have been announced for Whoop-Up Drive. (Photo: LNN)

By Justin Goulet

City of Lethbridge announces new emergency protocols for Whoop-Up Drive

Nov 16, 2023 | 3:30 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – New emergency protocols have been announced for Whoop-Up Drive.

This follows an incident on June 28, 2023, which blocked westbound Whoop-Up Drive for several hours. The situation was aggravated by a series of collisions on the Highway 3 river crossing, which reduced its capacity as a detour from the Whoop-Up Drive closure.

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After this incident, City of Lethbridge staff conducted a review of the Whoop-Up Drive Emergency Traffic Protocol. A revised protocol has now been approved and activated by the City Manager. It will provide an enhanced response in the case of another incident like the one seen in the summer.

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Officials said the changes are anticipated to improve the overall safety and coordination along Whoop-Up Drive to ensure the movement of traffic during disruptions.

The revised protocol now more actively supports the following purposes:

• Provide two-way traffic on Whoop-Up Drive in the event one of the travel directions must be closed due to emergencies on the bridge deck or the approach lanes; and
• Provide maximum one-way movement in either direction across Whoop-Up Drive in the event of a mass evacuation on either side of the city.

Joel Sanchez, Director of Infrastructure Services said, “These changes will provide better communication between internal stakeholders and will enable faster activation of this protocol whenever it is needed, regardless of whether an incident occurs within or outside of normal business hours.”

Sanchez added, “We have identified opportunities for improvements after the event on June 28, and we were ultimately able to use the situation for these needed improvements.”

In July, an incident debrief was held with all internal stakeholders, including Transportation, the Lethbridge Police Service, Lethbridge Fire and Emergency Services, Communications and Engagement and Emergency Planning & Risk Management. It allowed staff to discuss topics such as ways to clarify decision-making authority and improve inter-departmental and public communication.

Greg Adair, Chief of Lethbridge Fire and Emergency Services said, “Like any emergency management plan, this protocol is considered a living document. Next steps include conducting a tabletop exercise on the activation of this protocol. Any learnings from this or subsequent exercises and incident debriefs will be used to continually improve the protocol to better ensure that it works when we need it.”

The Whoop-Up Drive Emergency Traffic Protocol is available via the City of Lethbridge website.

READ MORE: Lethbridge News Now.

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