Thousands gather on Halifax streets for chaotic Dalhousie University homecoming parties; one person stabbed
Thousands of party-goers filled several streets in Halifax Saturday night as part of unsanctioned Dalhousie University homecoming events, according to Halifax Regional Police.
Around 10 p.m., a crowd of 3,000 to 4,000 “intoxicated people” started gathering on Larch, Preston and Jennings streets, eventually making their way to Jubilee Road, police said in a news release.
Police say they pulled several injured people from the crowd, including a man who was stabbed, but police did not indicate the severity of his injuries.
Adrian, a student who asked CTV News not to use his last name, called the party a “disaster.”
“It was shoulder-to-shoulder basically the whole length of the street,” said Adrian. “It was just house parties galore, like just people on roofs, people in trees.”
Homecoming is a fall tradition among Dalhousie students. A similar party at the event last year saw police arrest 10 people for public intoxication.
According to students, a few parties started around noon Saturday and crowds grew drastically throughout the day.
“The boys were rallying, chucking beer cans,” said student Logan Denison.
Officers tried to disperse the crowd, but say they faced a “high level of resistance,” with bottles, cans and debris from post-tropical storm Fiona thrown at officers.
It’s been reported officers were also punched, kicked and spat on, with some requiring medical care.
However, some are also accusing police of using excessive force. In videos circulating online, officers appear to shove people in the crowd and wield cans of pepper spray.
Dalhousie Student Union President Aparna Mohan condemned the “violence” used by police in a Twitter thread, writing “Students texted me saying @HfxRegPolice had begun to pepper spray, tear gas & jump partygoers at Larch Street tonight.”
In an interview with CTV News, Mohan said Dalhousie could take more responsibility for the incident.
“I want to point out the specific ways HRM and council and police take responsibility and invite everyone to have a more nuanced conversation,” said Mohan.
Police say, at one point, a fire was set in the street using downed branches from post-tropical storm Fiona. Officers managed to put the fire out.
The crowd was dispersed after a "couple of hours," and while police did not say how many people were arrested, they say dozens of summary offence tickets were issued.
A Halifax Regional Municipality councillor who lives in the area says Dalhousie should take responsibility for its students.
Waye Mason says the school needs to be “more transparent about their code of conduct issues and what they're going to do to make sure that students are staying on campus to have a drink.”
“Part of what we understand is that students are not allowed to, or find it very difficult,” said Mason.
Police said Saturday's incident required them to call in extra backup as the size of the gathering grew.
In an email to CTV News, a spokesperson for Dalhousie University said it has warned students that attending street parties is unacceptable, but noted, “It’s a complex and growing problem across North American universities that pose a high-risk for alcohol-related and safety incidents on campuses and nearby neighbourhoods.”
Halifax Regional Police say more information will be released when it becomes available.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.