WINDSOR, ONT. (WWJ) - The Ambassador Bridge is expected to reopen anytime after 11 a.m. on Saturday after Canadian police moved in on protestors who have blocked access to the bridge since Monday night.
WWJ's Charlie Langton was live in Windsor on Saturday morning and said police had readied an arsenal of helicopters, drones and tow trucks to assist with moving parked trucks and protestors if they continued to cut off traffic at the bridge.
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Over a 100 officers -- not including the SWAT teams present -- all assembled at 8 a.m. to serve a judge-ordered injunction, but neither the equipment or extra law enforcement was needed.
In fact, WWJ's Charlie Langton said police so far haven't made a single arrest.
Charlie Langton described interactions between police and demonstrators as peaceful, with protestors voluntarily leaving the area after five days of protesting Canada's COVID-19 mandates for truckers.
Among a chorus of people shouting "freedom, freedom,' Charlie Langton said protestors only want mandates lifted and they're satisfied that their message has reached an international audience.
Under the Canadian mandates, unvaccinated truckers coming from the U.S. will be subjected to a COVID test and a 14 day quarantine -- the new rule started Jan. 15 with the U.S. adopting a similar guideline.
Truckers and supporters of the movement called the Freedom Convoy began gathering in cities across Canada before setting up camp in Windsor. Protestors parked their semi trucks across both lanes of traffic leading to and from Detroit on the Canadian side, putting a screeching halt an critical trade between the two countries.
Leaders from both Canada and Michigan, while supporting the Canadians' right to protest, denounced the disruption of businesses and lives that relied on the Ambassador Bridge. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer called it the "busiest land border crossing in North America," with hundreds of millions of dollars worth of goods traversing the bridge every day.
The mayor of Windsor filed an emergency injunction in Canadian court to move the protestors after the blockade began to take a serious economic toll on the region -- the order was granted on Friday afternoon.
“We cannot allow this lawlessness to continue to happen," Dilkens stressed, during a Thursday afternoon news conference. He estimated that the border disruptions have impacted roughly $400 million worth of goods every day since the protests started last weekend.
Protestors who continued to block access to the bridge on Saturday would face a fine of $100,000 and a year in jail.
This is a developing story. Stay tuned live to WWJ Newsradio950 for the latest updates.
