Two American tourists are facing mischief charges after climbing the Lions Gate Bridge and backing up traffic for a photo-op on Thursday morning.
Zachary Burke, 23, from California and 26-year-old Andrew Valentine from Washington were arrested shortly after descending one of the enclosed pathways on the bridge.
The actions impacted motorists on both sides of the bridge as well as people travelling to and from Burnaby, Vancouver Police Chief Const. Adam Palmer said.
Palmer called the move “a pretty selfish stunt to do” just to get a good photo.
“I understand that people want to do thrill-seeking events and no one’s opposed to that but not on public infrastructures,” Palmer said.
“You can go climb a mountain or something like that, so that’s why they are facing criminal charges… it’s not just a danger to the people that went up on the bridge or the people below, it’s also a danger to our officers.”
The pair made an appearance in court late Friday afternoon and Crown Counsel wanted to keep them in custody over the weekend but both were released by using their confiscated camera equipment as a type of bail.
Valentine, who is a Seattle resident, has an Instagram account laden with photos taken on rooftops and building ledges.
Vancouver police said motorists heading across the Lions Gate Bridge around 8:30 a.m. on Thursday called 9-1-1 after seeing a man pulling himself up the guy-wires to about 50 to 70 feet up the bridge deck.
When police arrived on the scene, they could not see the man from the bridge deck. High-angle rescue specialists from the Emergency Response Team were sent out to search the enclosed pathways and guy-wire systems on the bridge.
“Not only was this a huge inconvenience to the people that live, work, and visit downtown today on the Lions Gate Bridge, it was dangerous for these drivers because we had drivers looking up, looking for these people because they were concerned for their safety,” said Cst. Jason Doucette said following the incident.
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This isn’t the first time the Lions Gate Bridge has been shut down due to someone attempting to climb the structure.
In January, the bridge was closed for more than an hour after a climber forced police to shut it down. The Global One chopper captured the person walking along the suspension cables and swinging a coat.
As for Burke and Valentine, their next court appearance is July 28. If convicted, a public mischief charge under the criminal code can result in a sentence ranging from a conditional discharge to up to five years in prison.
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