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
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.
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.
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.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
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.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Powerful tornado tears across Nebraska, weather service warns of 'catastrophic' damage
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States, injuring at least three people.
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.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.