Downtown Vancouver after the riot
Posted Jun 16, 2011 08:07:21 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – They say those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it: The City of Vancouver is in full damage control after riots erupted after the Canucks’ loss in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals last night.
Some of the worst of the damage is along West Georgia Street, where it looks worse in the daylight. Gaping holes in storefront windows are being boarded up by plywood and there’s blackened pavement where at least two cars were flipped and set on fire on Seymour.
It’s a harsh backdrop and a stark contrast for professionals in suits and ties starting their work day. We spoke with one man was deejaying at Library Square when everything unravelled last night. “It was a completely different atmosphere inside.”
“I created a happy atmosphere where people were celebrating,” he explains. “Not celebrating the fact that we lost or anything like that. It was just celebrating that they’re alive and everything is fine. Yet, right outside the window, it was the opposite. It was almost like a movie.”
The mob and the angry characters that got this started may have dispersed, but as of 5 a.m., there were stragglers inflicting even more damage on Howe Street with another overturned car. It’s one of about a half dozen flipped cars since rioting began last night.
It’s become the backdrop for a photoshoot, as some can’t seem to get enough of human nature at its worst. One person tells us it’s incredible how people can get caught up in the mob mentality. “It’s appalling, but interesting at the same time.”
There are also those trying to explain last night. “If anything we should be embarrassed about, it’s that humanity is expressing themselves that way. But it doesn’t matter where you are in the world; it’s happening everywhere. This kind of reaction is going to happen everywhere over things people are passionate about.”
Created with flickr slideshow from softsea.
Massive clean-up the day after
Crews are clearing downtown streets this morning, shovelling up mounds of shattered glass and putting up plywood.
At the Future Shop on Granville Street, there were still tables through some of the shattered glass of the front doors. At the Chapters store, there’s an explosion of books and magazines, toppled displays and tables.
As the city wakes up to the first early morning workers are rolling in, glass repair people have replaced police on every corner. An army of city workers have been spraying and sweeping the streets, shovelling a mountain of shattered glass. The back of one truck is filled with it; half-buried at the top, there was a shredded stuffed bear.
Roderick has been taking pictures last night, documenting the damage to put online. “I took pictures throughout the riot; (I’ll) post them,” he explains. “They basically help the community heal… holding into account those responsible.”
A Facebook page called Post Riot Clean-Up – Let’s heal Vancouver has rounded up over 12,000 “attendees.” It’s encouraging people to go downtown to take gloves, garbage bags, and a smile to help clean up Downtown Vancouver today. Twitter: @vancouverclean.
On-lookers in utter shock at damage
The day’s workers are arriving downtown this morning to confront what’s not only physical damage to the city, but the damage to its reputation. Many are walking down the job, literally slack-jawed and shaking their heads.
One woman had tears streaming down her cheeks as she was walking into work, in disbelief this could happen in our city. Another came down with the expressed purpose of finding a way to volunteer to help clean up some of the mess.
Many people have been taking photos to post them online as a way to document the damage. Others have been posting pictures from last night in the hopes people who caused some of the damage can be identified.
