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Police enlist RCMP helicopter to disperse thousands crowded on Vancouver beach

On Friday night, police were witness to ‘several thousand people staying well into the evening’
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Crowds at English Bay were blasted with a large beam of light from an RCMP Air-1 helicopter on Friday, May 14. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Marc Grandmaison

Partiers at English Bay were blasted with a beam of light from an RCMP Air-1 helicopter Friday night. It was Vancouver Police’s attempt to disperse the crowds.

“The beaches were very busy, with several thousand people staying well into the evening,” said Sgt. Steve Addison in an email.

Officers also patrolled the beach on foot, he said, to encourage social distancing and maintain order.

At one point, a fight broke out and two arrests were made.

People in the city’s West End reported hearing helicopter sounds throughout the evening.



sarah.grochowski@bpdigital.ca

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