Fatal police shooting in Dawson Creek under investigation

The province's police watchdog has been called to Dawson Creek, B.C., after a confrontation withRCMP officers left one man dead.

The Independent Investigations Office spokeswoman KellieKilpatrick said the shooting happened at an open house sponsored by B.C. Hydrofor the Site C dam project on Thursday evening.

RCMP saidaround 6:30 p.m., officersrespondedto a report that a man was disrupting the event and allegedly damaging propertyin the 500-block of Highway 2.

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Police said when they arrived, they found a masked man outside the venue who wasthought to be connected to the complaint.

RCMP said in a statement that efforts to de-escalate the situation were unsuccessfuland the man was shot during a confrontation.

The man was taken to hospital, but died of his injuries.

IIO members, including a team director, forensic specialistand several investigatorswill fly to Dawson Creek early Friday to take over the case. In the meantime, RCMP'sNorth District Major Crime unithassecured the site.

This is the fifth police-related shooting the IIO has responded to this year.

In 2014,there were 11 officer-involved shootings and five in 2013.