Oceanside Community Safety

1) File 2018-133615: On December 10th, two culprits parked their vehicle at the end of Coombs Rd in Coombs BC and removed tree boughs from the trees on Island Timberlands (IT) property after accessing the property with an ATV. The removal of the branches costs IT thousands of dollars a year as it strips the tree and the tree will have a hard time growing.

Over the Christmas holidays and New Year’s, 510 people are injured and two people are killed in 1,890 crashes every year in B.C. That’s 35 crashes and nine people injured every hour.

1) File 2018-13343: A reported break and enter to a business located at 1300 block Island Hwy West, Parksville, on December 2. A business cube van was stolen. There were 8 machetes, 7 BBQ's and 1 fire pit stolen from various buildings along with the delivery truck and two 20 lb propane bottles. The vehicle has been recovered and forensic evidence is being processed.

B.C. has the toughest drinking and driving laws in Canada. If you’re caught driving impaired, you could face these penalties:

Oceanside Community Safety's Community Watch performed two deployments in November, 2018 dedicated to the Cell Watch program. Of 327 drivers observed, 3 were misbehaving.

I found this Tweet from a cyclist on southern Vancouver Island yesterday: A #RCMP told me today it was too dangerous to ride a bike on the roads and I should find another hobby. In their view going to the grocery store on a #bike is a hobby. #Police and the public need to wake up #bikes are a serious mode of transport.

Wow! This officer must have missed some important reading in their copy of the Motor Vehicle Act.

Seven combination Speed Watch and Cell Watch deployments were made by Oceanside Community Safety's Community Watch during the month of November, 2018. Of 7,803 vehicles checked,  502 or 6.4% were traveling at more than 10 km/h over the posted speed limit with the highest deviation being 88 km/h in a 50 km/h zone. 76 drivers were observed doing some form of distracted driving.

1) File 2018-13106: On November 25, an observant resident reported they located an excavator off of the Claymore Forest Service Road, Qualicum Beach. RCMP confirmed it was a stolen excavator via the VIN.

1) File 2018-12859: November 18, police received a report of mischief to vehicle after a red 2010 Ford Ranger had been damaged in the area of Memorial Avenue and Rupert Road East, Qualicum Beach. Suspect(s) drilled at 1/2" hole in the vehicle's gas tank stealing approximately 1/8 of a tank of gasoline.

The annual drinking and driving CounterAttack program starts this weekend. If you will be out and consuming alcohol or recreational drugs, please plan a safe ride home. Hosting a party? Remember that you have responsibilites for your guests when you are serving intoxicants. #KnowYourPartBC and #SafeRideHomeBC