Metro Vancouver parks staff want greater police presence at Wreck Beach
Vancouver’s only nude beach could see more police this summer.
According to a report from Metro Vancouver parks staff, Wreck Beach, located near the University of British Columbia, has a “noticeable absence of a regular police presence which has posed challenges in responding to incidents involving drugs and alcohol and in closing the beach at night.”
The report, authored by Paul Brar, a division manager for Metro Vancouver Regional Parks, is asking the UBC RCMP detachment for additional patrols. Brar said staff are trying to be “proactive” in preparing for the anticipated busy season.
“When there's really big crowds, there’s a high correlation of incidents that occur,” he said.
Brar said those incidents can include altercations between beachgoers.
Emergency calls to Wreck Beach in 2022 were among the lowest they’d ever been with 61 calls. The previous year saw 178 calls while 2020 saw 120. Parks staff attributes the lower volume of calls in 2022 to cooler temperatures during the peak summer months.
The report also outlines fires as a concern as the beach is only accessible by a steep path with 500 stairs which can be challenging for first responders to get to when there is an emergency.
In terms of addressing emergency incidents, the B.C. Ambulance Service has offered to provide naloxone kits and training to Wreck Beach vendors to reduce the harm and deaths associated with opioid overdoses.
Staff say the beach’s popularity has grown each year. In 2022, there were more than 838,000 visitors, and over the past five years, the number of visits to Wreck Beach have grown by 44 per cent.
According to the report, B.C.'s attorney general established Wreck Beach as a clothing optional area in 1983.
It will be presented to staff on Wednesday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.