Activists who dangled beneath busy B.C. bridge will be charged: RCMP

July 4, 2018 

Several demonstrators were taken away in police boats as Mounties removed the activists suspended in air underneath the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge, where they have been blocking oil tanker traffic since early Tuesday morning.

A statement from activist group Protect the Inlet said Will George, who spoke to CTV News from his precarious position the day before, was among those taken into custody after dangling from the bridge for about 36 hours.

George was one of a dozen brought back to solid ground after members of the RCMP moved in Wednesday afternoon.

North Vancouver RCMP said the activists will face mischief charges. They will also be charged with impeding the safe movement of a vessel under Sec. 121 of the Canada Shipping Act, an offence that carries a maximum penalty of 18 months in prison and a $1 million fine.

After being processed at the police station, they'll be released on a promise to appear in court, Mounties said.

In a statement following his arrest, George said the experience would not discourage him from future action: "I will remain the fierce opposition. It is in my blood to protect the water."

Video from CTV's Chopper 9 helicopter showed a handful of RCMP officers gathered on the catwalk, executing what appeared to be a risky and technical extraction operation.

"Public safety is the priority, both for the protesters and for the police," the detachment said on Twitter.

Later, they wrote that they were in the process of removing them, but that the work was "tedious and slow."

Clad in a harness and helmet, an officer could be seen rappelling off the bridge down to where one of the protesters was lying in a harness. It appeared that the pair were talking and the officer attached something to the demonstrator's rigging before climbing back up to the underside of the bridge.

Other officers stood on the catwalk underneath the bridge, while police and Coast Guard vessels circled in the Burrard Inlet below.

The operation was observed by Greenpeace Canada members and supporters from the south end of the crossing.

The action played out more than 36 hours after the opponents of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion climbed onto the bridge before sunrise to launch the blockade.

Seven of them rappelled down far enough to stop tankers from reaching or leaving Kinder Morgan's Westridge Marine Terminal, while the other five provided support from the catwalk.

On Wednesday morning, protesters said they were well-fed, warm and comfortable, and that they had "no plans on leaving any time soon."

Emma Jackson said the dramatic aerial blockade was part of an ongoing response to the federal government's highly controversial $4.5-billion purchase of Kinder Morgan's expansion project.

"It doesn't matter that Justin Trudeau has decided to make taxpayers into the shareholders of this project, it still will not go forward," Jackson said in a Facebook video. "This resistance movement, if anything, is stronger than ever because of this recent decision."

Kinder Morgan did not provide a schedule of tanker arrivals or departures early on in the protest, but has since confirmed that one vessel, the Serene Sea, has been trapped inside Burrard Inlet as a result of Greenpeace's blockade.

"A vessel loaded with crude oil departed our Westridge Marine Terminal and is now waiting for suitable conditions at its Port of Vancouver designated mooring location," a spokesperson for Trans Mountain told CTV News in an email.

"We respect the right to peacefully demonstrate and there are many ways to express opinions in a safe and lawful manner. It is unfortunate that the actions of these individuals have caused disruptions to vessels and individuals that transit to and from the waters east of the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge, including customers from our terminal and the other marine cargo terminals."

A spokesperson for Port of Vancouver said deep sea vessels and some other boats, such as sail boats with high masts, were unable to cross underneath the Ironworkers bridge because of the protesters and their banners.

Shorter vessels such as tugboats, barges and small commercial vessels were still able to go back and forth.

With files from CTV Vancouver's Maria Weisgarber

[Top photo: Anti-pipeline activists form dramatic aerial blockade]