Photo: Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center · Public domainElectoral Area H, Central Kootenay sees less crime per resident than nine in ten Canadian towns
Of the two halves, violence comes to 32 and other offences to 37.7, beside norms of 85.7 and 62.8. The Safety Grade comes out at A, drawn from crime the police covering Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay reported through 2023 to 2025: #4 of 251 in British Columbia. Per 1,000 residents a year, 8.0 violent incidents and 16.2 incidents of property crime were recorded, against 12.9 and 31.2 in the typical town its size. Its weighted clearance rate, the share of crime police solved, is 20% (the typical Canadian town its size: 34%).
Statistics Canada, police-reported crime, 2023–2025 means. The index weighs each crime by its seriousness; rates are incidents per 1,000 residents a year. Source area for crime severity, crime rate and incident counts: the Nelson detachment area.
What stands out about safety in Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay
Less severe than in 2023
In 2023 the index in Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay stood at 43.1, by 2025 at 28.5. Over the same years the typical Canadian town its size went from 74.3 to 64.2. Year by year ↓
Lighter than British Columbia’s middle
The typical British Columbia town scores 83.2; Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay, 35.8. Towns its size ↓
A lower index than most towns its size
Set among the 40 Canadian towns closest to it in population, Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay comes 5th, counting from the lowest Crime Severity Index. Towns its size ↓
Non-violent crime leads the index
Violent crime scores 32 on Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay’s index against 85.7 for the typical Canadian town its size; non-violent crime, 37.7 against 62.8. By type ↓
Written from Statistics Canada’s police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025. Figures are what police recorded, not convictions.
What’s behind Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay’s grade
How sure: Less sure than most. No detachment reports for Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay itself, so the grade rests on the nearest one’s figures, 26 km away.
The grade weighs the Crime Severity Index and its violent half, averaged over 2023–2025, against every Canadian town and city neighbourhood of 1,000 people or more.
Its place: #4 of 251 in British Columbia and #192 of 2,572 Canadian towns.
The Crime Severity Index and its two halves, beside the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
Year by year in Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay: down 34%, 2023 to 2025
Crime Severity Index
The first year, 2023, was the heaviest at 43.1, and 2025 the lightest at 28.5. In the same years the typical Canadian town its size read 74.3 (2023), then 64.2 (2025).
Every year as a table
| Year | Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 28.5 | 64.2 |
| 2024 | 35.9 | 68.8 |
| 2023 | 43.1 | 74.3 |
Statistics Canada, Crime Severity Index by police service, each year as published. Typical: the median of Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
The Crime Severity Index of the police covering Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Which crimes make up Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay’s figures
Against the typical town its size, Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay runs highest on mischief (5.9 per 1,000 against 4.9). Motor vehicle theft and theft under $5,000 sit below it.
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 0 | 0 | — |
| Sexual violations against children | 3 | 0.2 | — |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 3.7 | 0.3 | — |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 0 | 0 | — |
| Robbery | 0 | 0 | — |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 0.7 | 0.05 | — |
| Other violent violations | 1.3 | 0.1 | — |
| Breaking and entering | 17 | 1.3 | 8% |
| Possession of stolen property | 6 | 0.4 | 38% |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 14.3 | 1.1 | 9% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 5.7 | 0.4 | 0% |
| Theft under $5,000 | 43.3 | 3.2 | 5% |
| Mischief | 78.7 | 5.9 | 2% |
| Weapons violations | 1 | 0.08 | — |
| Administration of justice violations | 18 | 1.3 | 65% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 7.3 | 0.5 | 18% |
| Drug violations | 2 | 0.1 | — |
| Impaired driving | 27.7 | 2.1 | 86% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 0.7 | 0.05 | — |
Statistics Canada’s violation groups for the whole police service or detachment, incidents a year its own. Cleared: incidents solved by a charge or otherwise, as a share of those reported.
Incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 means, against the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay is 5th of 40 towns its size, lowest index first
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norwood Ontario | 5,308 | 25.2 | 31.4 | A+ |
| 2 | Stirling Ontario | 5,489 | 30.8 | 33.2 | A+ |
| 3 | West Lorne Ontario | 5,566 | 31.5 | 41.2 | A |
| 4 | Southwold Ontario | 5,473 | 31.5 | 41.2 | A |
| 5 | Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay British Columbia | 5,390 | 35.8 | 32 | A |
| 6 | Electoral Area B, Central Kootenay British Columbia | 5,243 | 36.8 | 46.9 | A |
| 7 | Hudson Quebec | 5,533 | 39.2 | 61.7 | A |
| 8 | Metchosin British Columbia | 5,207 | 40.7 | 41.3 | A− |
| … | |||||
| 24 | Juan de Fuca (Part 1) British Columbia | 5,439 | 63.5 | 90.2 | B− |
| … | |||||
| 40 | Oliver British Columbia | 5,262 | 132.5 | 95.2 | D |
The 40 Canadian towns of 2,500+ people closest in population; city neighbourhoods, city totals and reserves are left out. Towns on one police service or detachment share its index.
The Canadian towns closest to Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
The detachment closest to Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay, 13,400 residents, recorded about 110 violent incidents a year, 2023–2025
Violent incidents per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Property crimes per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Statistics Canada counts actual incidents; those police record as unfounded are listed apart and kept out of its crime rates and severity index. Each incident is filed under its most serious violation, which the survey sets partly by the maximum penalty.
Add about 220 property crimes and 93 other violations a year (2023–2025 average). The grid is 1,000 residents, a coloured dot for each incident a year at these rates.
Crime in the places around Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay | 5,390 | 35.8 | 32 | A |
| Electoral Area F, Central Kootenay (22 km) | 4,209 | 35.8 | 32 | A |
| Nelson (24 km) | 12,126 | 100.4 | 98.4 | C− |
| Electoral Area I, Central Kootenay (24 km) | 2,758 | 42.4 | 50.5 | A− |
| Electoral Area E, Central Kootenay (27 km) | 4,309 | 35.8 | 32 | A |
Every neighbour with a figure of its own has a higher index than Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay. 2 neighbours are on the same police service or detachment: they share the figure and aren’t compared here.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means. No closer places have figures: these lie 22–27 km from Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Cleared, not convicted. The clearance rate is the share of incidents police solve, by a charge or otherwise, weighted by seriousness like the index. It isn’t a conviction rate.
- What the index measures. Statistics Canada, which publishes the index, attaches a caution: “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.” The number weighs each reported crime by its seriousness before dividing by residents.
- 100 is Canada in 2006. A reading of 100 is the whole country in 2006. Half of that, 50, means half the severity per resident.
Questions about safety in Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay
Is Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay safe?
Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay measures 35.8 on the Crime Severity Index for 2023–2025, next to 68.5 for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. Per 1,000 residents a year, its police record 8 violent incidents and 16.2 property crimes.
What is the most common crime in Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay?
Mischief is the most common, at 5.9 per 1,000 residents a year, then other Criminal Code offences (3.8) and fraud (3.8).
Is crime going up in Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay?
No: the index fell 34%, from 43.1 in 2023 to 28.5 in 2025.
How much of Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay’s crime do police solve?
20%, by the weighted clearance rate, where the typical Canadian town its size manages 34%. Violent crime is cleared at 46% and non-violent crime at 12%.
Whose figures are these?
A shared service or detachment’s, reported as one for Electoral Area H, Central Kootenay and everywhere else it polices.
Source: Statistics Canada, police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025 (Statistics Canada Open Licence); TownRatings calculation.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Crime severity index and weighted clearance rates, police services (tables 35-10-0186 to 0190, 0061, 0063, 0064), 2023–2025 · Statistics Canada, Incident-based crime statistics by detailed violations, police services (35-10-0178 to 0185) · Safety Grade: TownRatings calculation. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).