Another coyote attack in Vancouver’s Stanley Park leaves several people, including children, hurt

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Another coyote attack has left several people hurt in Vancouver’s Stanley Park.

On Wednesday, the BC Conservation Officer Service says three people, two of them children, were hurt in the attacks. The first incident was around 5 p.m., when the park was still open. A four-year-old child was bitten while walking with their parents near Brockton Oval. The next two attacks happened around after the park had closed. At around 9 p.m., a child was bitten near the Nine O’Clock Gun. Half an hour later, a man was bitten near Lost Lagoon.

All three people sustained minor injuries.

The animal “demonstrated signs of food habituation” and as a result it was killed, according to the BCCOS.

It’s just the latest in dozens of attacks on people in the park, which have led to growing calls for action.

Vancouver Park Board Commissioners John Coupar and Tricia Barker have asked for a special meeting to push the province to take action on the coyote attacks, although they are stopping short of using the word cull.

Since December 2020 there have been more than 40 attacks on people.  The BC Conservation Officer Service (BCCOS) has put down seven coyotes since the attacks began.

But Coupar and Barker are calling for a more direct and immediate response.

Management of the coyote population in Stanley Park falls on the province (CityNews)

“One of our key responsibilities is to ensure public safety in our parks and if the same thing were happening with dog attacks on our city streets, it would be dealt with immediately. In this case I think it’s just gone on for far too long. It’s time for action,” Coupar said.

Wildlife fall under the jurisdiction of the BCCOS, and he says it is up to them to decide if the animals should be removed or euthanized.

“In my mind, removing the animals is necessary,” Coupar said, adding he is not calling for a cull. “I’m not an animal expert,” he said when asked.

He’s stunned it’s taken this long to seriously address the issue.

“It’s a thousand acres of fantastic park that people love in Vancouver and we need to get people back into the park and enjoying the park safely.”

Conservation Officers say they have spent hundreds of hours patrolling the park to address public safety and they will continue to do so. Although they do have authority over animals, the park falls under the jurisdiction of the Park Board, and as a result do not have the power to enforce an overnight closure.

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On Tuesday, the Park Board announced Stanley Park will be closed from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., every night, in an effort to reduce the number of attacks. Barricades will be set up to block off main entrances, and rangers will patrol the seawall and turn away anyone whose presence is not essential.

Donnie Rosa, general manager of the Vancouver Park Board, says there is an ongoing investigation after some people were caught feeding the wildlife.

“Essentially some folks who were bringing in raw chicken, bird feed, cat food and trying to get pictures and trying to get up close with either raccoons or coyotes,” he explained.

Anyone who is in the park and encounters a coyote, or sees someone feeding wildlife, is asked to call the BC Conservation Officer Service at 1-877-952-7277.

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