One of Russ Wyatt’s favourite movies is Patton.
So when the Transcona city councillor got a chance to play general in his ward Monday afternoon, he had a pretty good idea what he was doing.
Instead of directing tanks around during the Second World War, Wyatt was untangling a traffic jam around Sevala’s Ukrainian Deli on Victoria Avenue.
Transcona city councillor Russ Wyatt helped untangle a traffic jam of 100 customers waiting for Sevala’s Ukrainian Deli to open at noon Monday.
“We had a massive lineup,” Wyatt said. “I kid you not, traffic in both directions and folks didn’t know what to do. So I pulled over, and I started directing traffic.”
Sevala’s owner, Del Demchuk, was dealing with a throng of more than 100 customers at about noon when the store opened.
“Typical Russ, he was taking charge,” Demchuk said.
Wyatt received a round of applause from those waiting in line when the gridlock finally cleared.
The longtime civil servant and his assistant were out and about delivering turkeys to the four fire stations in his constituency and chocolates to local police when he hoped to stop at a nearby printing shop, which turned out to be closed.
“The folks in the line were laughing,” Wyatt said. “One guy said, ‘A councillor’s job is never done.’
“When you see something, you can either sit there and get frustrated or stay, ‘All right, let’s sort this out.’”
Wyatt said it took only a few minutes to get the roadway unclogged and everyone moving again.
scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca
Scott Billeck
Reporter
Scott Billeck is a general assignment reporter for the Free Press. A Creative Communications graduate from Red River College, Scott has more than a decade’s worth of experience covering hockey, football and global pandemics. He joined the Free Press in 2024. Read more about Scott.
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