Protesters demanding an end to the old logging blocked traffic on the Patricia Bay Highway near the Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal on Monday.
The blockade, which continues from 5:30 a.m., is on the northbound lanes of Patricia Bay Highway (Highway 17) just past the ramp of Sydney’s McDonald Road Park near Tsehum Harbor Park. One lane, however, is open and traffic is moving slowly through the area.
However, the RCMP has now closed the northbound lanes of Patricia Bay Highway on Beacon Avenue in Sydney due to the ongoing blockade.
A protester put his hand inside a concrete barrel and was thrown on the road. Two more protesters were chained through a car, with one protester inside the vehicle and another outside.
So far no one was able to send in the perfect solution, which is not strange. CHEK News was also told that a person had been investigated for assault but released.
The group leading the blockade is called Save Old Growth, which is demanding that the BC government pass legislation to immediately end all old logging in the province. In the past, they have maintained blockades prior to Great Victory, Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland.
The video uploaded to an Instagram account called @ Save.Old.Growth shows a large structure with a protester on it falling to the ground. The video has since been removed. It is unclear whether the person at the top of the structure suffered serious injuries.
The ongoing blockade has resulted in traffic jams, delays and frustrated motorists trying to reach the ferry and elsewhere. At least 30 cars have been abandoned as people struggled to get to the ferry terminal on time.
In a press release, the RCMP did not say how many people were arrested, but said that between 12 and 15 people had set up an illegal blockade on the motorway. They said multiple police resources were used to “safely dismantle the obstacles and arrest those responsible for the blockades.”
“The protest created frustration among travelers who tried to evade this illegal blockade,” the chief said. Alex Bérubé, spokesman for the BCMP RCMP. “These blockades are simply dangerous for protesters and others.”
The RCMP also acknowledged that a protester fell from the top of a structure and was injured. This person is said to have been taken to hospital.
This story is regularly updated, please update it for the latest information.
It has been more than two hours since protesters blocked parts of the highway (n / ba bc ferries). Still here with just over a dozen protesters.
Traffic remains limited to one lane with police navigating. A protester has his hand stuck inside a concrete barrel. @ CHEK_News pic.twitter.com/sqRJluL2BB
– Oli Herrera (@oliherreraTV) June 13, 2022
The best place I could find, but the police have started to take some of the protesters out on the road.
It looks like two people have been chained together in a car (one on the ground, one inside) and are also connected to each other.
Some kind of saw is being used @CHEK_News pic.twitter.com/LpSrA6cdD0
– Oli Herrera (@oliherreraTV) June 13, 2022
“The earth is in a spiral of death. Radical action will be taken to save us.” – George Monbiot
Photos of the Victoria block pic.twitter.com/Q2VGt6wF4a
– Save Old Growth (@saveoldgrowth) June 13, 2022
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