Photo: Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center · Public domainElkford has less crime per resident than 72% of Canadian towns
Against usual levels of 85.7 and 62.8, violent and non-violent offences here reach 67.7 and 40.8. Counting crime the police covering Elkford reported from 2023 to 2025, it grades B+ for safety: #29 of 251 in British Columbia. By contrast, the yearly rates were 13.4 violent incidents and 16.4 incidents of property crime per 1,000 residents, set against 12.9 and 31.2 in the typical town its size.
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. Area-wide: crime severity, crime rate and incident counts, counted over the Elkford detachment area.
What stands out about safety in Elkford
Under the British Columbia norm
Elkford’s index of 48.2 compares with 83.2 for the typical town in British Columbia. Towns its size ↓
Lower than many towns its size
Of the 40 Canadian towns nearest it in size, Elkford places 12th from the lowest index. Towns its size ↓
Less crime solved
Weighted by seriousness, 24% of crime in Elkford ends in a charge or is otherwise solved: 46% of violent crime and 10% of the rest. Across Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people the figure is 34%. Questions ↓
Written from Statistics Canada’s police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025. Figures are what police recorded, not convictions.
What sits behind Elkford’s B+
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: #29 of 251 in British Columbia and #482 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.
Which crimes make up Elkford’s figures
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 | 1.3 | 0.4 | — |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 0 | 0 | — |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 0.3 | 0.1 | — |
| Robbery | 0 | 0 | — |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 0 | 0 | — |
| Other violent violations | 0 | 0 | — |
| Breaking and entering | 3.7 | 1.2 | — |
| Possession of stolen property | 1 | 0.3 | — |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 5.7 | 1.9 | 5% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Theft under $5,000 | 13.3 | 4.4 | 15% |
| Mischief | 15 | 5 | 15% |
| Weapons violations | 1.7 | 0.5 | — |
| Administration of justice violations | 3 | 1 | — |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 1.3 | 0.4 | — |
| Drug violations | 1.3 | 0.4 | — |
| Impaired driving | 11.7 | 3.8 | 51% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 0 | 0 | — |
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.
Elkford comes 12th of the 40 towns nearest in size
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lorne Manitoba | 3,022 | 26.8 | 36.9 | A+ |
| … | |||||
| 9 | Saint-Anaclet-de-Lessard Quebec | 3,018 | 44 | 75.8 | A− |
| 10 | Saint-Marc-des-Carrières Quebec | 2,961 | 44.5 | 72 | A− |
| 11 | North Shore Prince Edward Island | 2,994 | 46.6 | 50.7 | A− |
| 12 | Elkford British Columbia | 3,030 | 48.2 | 67.7 | B+ |
| 13 | Cap-Saint-Ignace Quebec | 3,074 | 48.4 | 77.8 | B+ |
| 14 | Electoral Area E, Alberni-Clayoquot British Columbia | 3,069 | 48.6 | 69.1 | B+ |
| 15 | Markstay-Warren Ontario | 2,990 | 49.3 | 58.8 | B+ |
| … | |||||
| 19 | Electoral Area D, Cariboo British Columbia | 3,057 | 51.7 | 55.1 | B+ |
| … | |||||
| 35 | Princeton British Columbia | 3,050 | 114.4 | 174.3 | C− |
| … | |||||
| 38 | Houston British Columbia | 3,114 | 162 | 219.6 | D |
| 39 | Electoral Area C, Strathcona British Columbia | 2,981 | 166.3 | 162.8 | D |
| 40 | Lesser Slave River No. 124 Alberta | 2,980 | 170.9 | 107.9 | 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 Elkford in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
3,030 residents, about 41 violent incidents a year: the police area Elkford belongs to, 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 50 property crimes and 33 other violations a year (2023–2025 average). The grid is 1,000 residents, a coloured dot for each incident a year at these rates.
Elkford’s index year by year
Crime Severity Index
2023 opened the run as its heaviest year (51.8); 2024 was the lightest, at 43. The comparison line, the typical Canadian town its size, runs from 74.3 in 2023 to 64.2 by 2025.
Every year as a table
| Year | Elkford | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 49.7 | 64.2 |
| 2024 | 43 | 68.8 |
| 2023 | 51.8 | 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 Elkford, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Crime in the places around Elkford
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elkford | 3,030 | 48.2 | 67.7 | B+ |
| Sparwood (31 km) | 4,486 | 79.7 | 121.6 | C |
| Electoral Area A, East Kootenay (48 km) | 2,092 | 54.7 | 67.3 | B |
| Crowsnest Pass (56 km) | 6,011 | 80.2 | 94.5 | C |
| Fernie (58 km) | 7,086 | 69.5 | 65.2 | C+ |
| Electoral Area E, East Kootenay (68 km) | 1,881 | 43.4 | 34.1 | A− |
Elkford sits above 1 of the 5 neighbours with figures of their own. Just 68.4 km away, Electoral Area E, East Kootenay comes to 43.4, against 48.2.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means. No closer places have figures: these lie 31–68 km from Elkford.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- A wider policing area. The detachment counts crime across its whole territory, of which Elkford is one part.
- What 100 means. Canada’s own index has been below its 2006 base of 100 for years, so 100 marks a fixed reference, not today’s national average.
- The clearance rate. 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.
- Severity, weighed. The index weighs crimes rather than counting them: a serious offence moves it far more than a minor one. Statistics Canada is plain about its limits: “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.”
- Few people behind the figures. The police behind these figures serve about 3,030 people, so a handful of incidents moves every rate. Statistics Canada’s note: “Data for police services or detachments with populations less than 5,000 should be used with caution.”
Questions about safety in Elkford
Is Elkford safe?
Its police recorded 13.4 violent incidents and 16.4 property crimes a year per 1,000 residents over 2023–2025, which gives Elkford a Crime Severity Index of 48.2. In the middle of Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people the figure is 68.5.
What is the most common crime in Elkford?
Top of the list is other Criminal Code offences (5.9 per 1,000 residents a year); assault, at 5.1, and mischief, at 5, follow.
Is crime going up in Elkford?
Barely: 51.8 in 2023, 49.7 in 2025. With few people or missing years behind it, the change is a rough one.
How much of Elkford’s crime do police solve?
Counting serious crimes for more, 24% end in a charge or are otherwise solved (34% for the typical Canadian town its size); split up, that is 46% of violent and 10% of non-violent crime.
Whose figures are these?
A police service or detachment that covers Elkford and other places, so the figures are shared.
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).