Edmonton police help train staff at pools how to handle safety in, reports of sexual assault situations

The World Waterpark at West Edmonton Mall in a file photo. (CTV News Edmonton)

Edmonton police say reports of sexual assaults on children and teens at pools and recreation centres nearly doubled from 2022 to 2023.

The Edmonton Police Service said in a media release Thursday the number of such reports rose from 16 in 2022 to 29 last year.

In one case at West Edmonton Mall's World Waterpark in 2023, a 17-year-old boy was charged with five counts of sexual assault.

Police say the girls who reported him were all 11- and 12 years old at the time.

EPS says it's been training staff at the waterpark and at city pools on how to increase safety, and how to handle assault reports.

Acting Insp. Jack Meikle of the EPS serious crimes branch, says the training efforts should help reassure parents.

"I think the main message is to trust their instincts, and if they see something, they can report it to any of the staff at the pool and that the staff have the training to know what to do next," Meikle told CTV News Edmonton.

EPS says reports of sexual assault at pools are lower this year but that there is no acceptable number of them.