A 14-year-old so intoxicated that she sat in her own vomit and a passed-out 15-year-old that police at first believed to be dead were just two of many drunk young revellers White Rock officers monitoring Canada Day festivities on the waterfront dealt with Monday evening.
“As soon as the night crowd started to come, there was lots of alcohol,” Const. Janelle Shoihet said Tuesday. “The level of intoxication was up and the age had gone down.”
Fortunately – and despite the less-than-dignified behaviour of some of the partiers – no major injuries or incidents were reported.
Shoihet said the quantity of underage drinkers encountered by police was similar to that dealt with at last year’s Canada Day events.
Of those she personally handed over to their parents, she recognized the 14-year-old as having completed drug-abuse resistance education offered to Grade 5 and 7 students. Monday, “she vomited all over herself and all over the ground,” Shoihet said, noting the girl consumed a half-litre of vodka in the course of an hour.
“If you ever needed someone to be the poster child for not drinking to excess, she would be it.”
The 15-year-old was found lying on the road behind a restaurant in the 15000-block of Marine Drive.
“His friends just left him,” Shoihet said. “We’re thankful that nothing worse happened.”
It’s estimated 10,000 people turned out to catch the fireworks, which wrapped up a day of activities to mark the country’s 146th birthday.
Police in Surrey estimated 100,000 people streamed through celebrations at the Cloverdale Amphitheatre. That event included performers, a midway and fireworks, along with headliners Sloan and Platinum Blonde.
Despite the large crowd, police reported only one arrest, that of an underage drinker.