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
What's a Barnacle? It's yellow, sticks and screams if you try to pry it off your car
Barnacles, bright yellow devices used to make sure parking scofflaws pay their tickets, could soon be making their way to cities across Canada.
Verdun Airbnb listing taken down amid complaints, fines and frustration from neighbours
An Airbnb in Montreal's Verdun borough was the source of much frustration from neighbours who say there were constant parties at the location. It has been taken down from the app, but housing advocates remain upset about short-term rentals.
Man who set himself on fire outside Trump trial dies of injuries, police say
A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former U.S. President Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said.
They were from different countries and barely spoke each other's languages. More than 20 years later, they're still happily in love
He decided to spend Christmas somewhere that wouldn't involve snowstorm disasters. She was spending the holidays with family, travelling for the first time outside of her native country of Venezuela. 23 years later, they're still in love.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
A Nigerian chess champion plays the royal game for 60 hours - a new global chess record
A Nigerian chess champion and child education advocate played chess nonstop for 60 hours in New York City's Times Square to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon.
Fire in Labrador town under control, officials tells residents to stay away
RCMP say the fire that prompted a state of emergency in a Labrador town is now under control.
12 students and teacher killed in Columbine school shooting remembered at 25th anniversary vigil
Thirteen victims of the Columbine High School shooting were remembered during a vigil Friday on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the shooting that was the worst the nation had seen at the time.
Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza city of Rafah kills at least 9 Palestinians, including 6 children
An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.