Winnipeg Police: Intoxicated man forces library to close briefly

An incident involving an intoxicated man prompted the brief closure of a Winnipeg library branch on Friday.

According to Winnipeg Police, officers responded to the Louis Riel Library at 12:10 a.m. for a report of a drunken disturbance.

Police said no injuries or assaults were reported and the man left the library before police arrived.

Then the police found the man eating. Officers said he had been drinking and was not handling the situation properly.

“The male was politely advised to go to shelter, given appropriate counseling and cautioned for causing a disturbance,” said Const. Claude Chancey said in an email to CTV News Winnipeg that the man has not been charged.

A spokeswoman for the City of Winnipeg said the library was closed for about 30 minutes. Police said the library was internally assessing the man's access to future services.

In December 2023, there were five reports of intoxicated people in Winnipeg libraries, according to the most recent data available.