Calgary police entered the equivalent of a so-called ‘red alert’ among available resources, as it dealt with an exchange of gunfire between cars in the city’s southeast Tuesday night.

The city’s police chief said these situations are happening more often.

Around 7 p.m. on April 15, Calgary police responded to the 2700 block of 12 Avenue SE after reports of shots fired in the community of Radisson Heights. According to police, gunfire was exchanged between two motorists.

Police said multiple shots were fired between the suspect and the victim’s car, with the victim returning fire and hitting the suspect’s car, police said.

The victim was taken to the hospital in life-threatening condition and was later upgraded to stable condition. One other person that police believe was connected to the incident had non-life-threatening injuries. No members of the public were hit, but police said stray bullets struck residences nearby.

Calgary police said that they believe it was a targeted incident, involving ongoing gang activity in the city. Four people were taken into custody. Two have since been released, and no charges have been laid.

“Although we believe the incident was targeted, we saw a complete disregard for community safety play out in a very public setting. I want to thank those witnesses and those with information that have already come forward with tips, which have had a significant impact on the investigation,” said Staff Sgt. Matthew Gow of the Organized Crime and Offender Management Section of CPS, in a prepared media release.

Calgary police Chief Mark Neufeld referenced Tuesday’s incident during his annual report to the Community Development Committee on April 16. There, Chief Neufeld detailed that call turned into multiple scenes, not just the initial shooting incident.

He said that the victims had to be transported to the hospital and required police officer supervision. After that, police located a burned-out vehicle that may have been connected to the initial shooting and that required investigation.  Then, officers were able to follow up leads at another house, so more officers had to contain that house.

“So, we actually had five different places in the city where we had police officers from all over the city,” Chief Neufeld said.

“During that period of time, there was a period of time between probably eight o’clock (p.m.) and one o’clock (a.m.) where we had to shift to what we call differential response.”

Ambulance red alerts and the CPS differential response

Calgarians and Albertans are no strangers to the challenges Alberta EMS has had with both red and orange alerts – which is a period of time in which no ambulances are readily available to respond to a call.

In a September 2024 report, Alberta Health Services issued a report that showed red alerts across Calgary and Edmonton had been reduced significantly, compared with the years prior. 

Chief Neufeld said the CPS calls it a differential response. It means that they don’t have the resources at hand to respond to calls in a typical way.  He said if there’s a serious offense that’s been reported, they’re going to find a way to respond.

“The reality of it is, short of that, we may not get there as quick as we’d like to. I made the reference that that’s like a red alert, because I think we all understand that in the health context, but actually that exists in a policing context, too,” the chief said.

“It’s always been something that has happened, but I find it happening more often now than it did in the past.”

Concerning the Tuesday evening shooting, Calgary police are still looking for information, including potential CCTV or dashcam footage from the area.  Anyone with more information is asked to call Calgary police at 403-266-1234.