KANANASKIS -- Minutes after tourists were politely kicked out of hotels and campgrounds in this mountainous, pristine area, the RCMP and the military started rolling in to set up for Canada's biggest security operation -- to protect world leaders during next week's G-8 summit.
Less than an hour after tourists were told Monday to leave the Kananaskis Lodge -- the site of next Thursday and Friday's summit -- a convoy of RCMP vans from as far away as Ontario started moving into the underground parkade.
At the nearby Nakiska Ski Resort, 260 trailers are sprawled over six parking lots to house police.
The RCMP's role is mainly intelligence and the military's is to conduct surveillance and communications, and to strike in case of a terrorist attack.
"The threat from the terrorists is not something the police are equipped to deal with," said Barry Cooper, a political scientist at the University of Calgary who specializes in terrorism.
Meanwhile, the bulk of the military personnel, mostly ground troops from Edmonton, are set to arrive by week's end, along with the best in war technology, such as Coyote armoured vehicles, the same ones being used in Afghanistan to hunt down al-Qaida terrorists.
OPERATION GRIZZLY
Other equipment being used in the mission, called Operation Grizzly, are Griffon helicopters and surface-to-air mobile equipment that shoots laser-guided missiles.
"We are bringing all of our capabilities because we're prepared to meet all kinds of threats," said Maj. Luke Gaudet, a spokesman for the Department of Defence.
"We have been requested by the RCMP to compliment their capabilities, to monitor and survey the area."
After closing several campgrounds last Sunday, the military started setting up massive campsites, with high-tech telecommunications and mess tents to fuel soldiers.
Some surveillance will be done from Coyotes, which can detect threats from 24 km away, even at night, using a combination of thermal imaging and laser equipment.
The military is also bringing its air defence anti-tank systems, usually used in combat to shoot laser-guided missiles at enemy aircraft.
Starting next Tuesday for four days, the skies over Kananaskis Country will be a no-fly zone, with a flight ban of 150 km that extends into British Columbia.
CF-18 fighter jets will patrol the skies, flying to and from their home base of Cold Lake.
FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. NoNonsense English offers this material non-commercially for research and educational purposes. I believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C § 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner, i.e. the media service or newspaper which first published the article online and which is indicated at the top of the article unless otherwise specified.