FORT McMURRAY — Wood Buffalo’s Crime Severity Index fell 16.5 per cent in 2025, according to the latest figures from Statistics Canada.
The index dropped from 129.2 in 2024 to 107.9 last year, outpacing a 10.4 per cent decline across Alberta RCMP jurisdictions.
The Crime Severity Index, or CSI, measures both the volume and seriousness of police-reported Criminal Code offences relative to population, with more serious offences given greater weight.
RCMP cautions the index should be considered in the context of individual communities, particularly in jurisdictions with smaller populations where relatively small changes in reported crime can produce larger year-to-year swings.
Wood Buffalo RCMP says the CSI is one of several measures it uses to identify local crime trends and establish policing priorities.
Current priorities include property crime and theft, prolific offenders, violence in relationships, drug trafficking, traffic safety and community engagement.
Police also point to the implementation of a Downtown Beat Team and continued partnerships with Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo bylaw officers and community peace officers as part of their approach.
Other crime prevention initiatives include CAPTURE, Bike Index and the RAVE Mobile Safety App.
Acting Officer-in-Charge Insp. Troy Switzer called the decline encouraging and credited RCMP employees, community partners and residents for contributing to public safety.
“While we are pleased to see this positive trend, we recognize that there is still work to be done,” Switzer said.
He says the detachment will continue focusing on crime reduction, support for victims and partnerships aimed at improving community safety.
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