Vancouver’s Wreck Beach needs more safety resources: report

The Metro Vancouver Regional District says more resources are needed to keep people at Vancouver’s famous Wreck Beach safe.

A report to the regional district says visits to the clothing-optional beach are up 44 per cent over the last five years, including nearly 1 million in 2022 alone.

However, the increasing popularity of the attraction appears to be posing some safety concerns.

The beach on the University of British Columbia Endowments Lands is relatively isolated, so when things do go wrong it requires a multi-agency effort involving the UBC RCMP, Vancouver Fire Rescue Services, and the Canadian Coast Guard, the report says.

“Due to the geographic isolation of Wreck Beach, the Coast Guard’s hovercraft is heavily relied upon to assist BC Emergency Health Services with medical emergencies. This process works well, however, if the Coast Guard is unavailable to assist in transporting off the beach, the patient must be carried by stretcher up the 500 steps to NW Marine Drive where they are transferred to an ambulance.”

Metro Vancouver’s Regional Parks Director, Mike Redpath, spoke to the Parks Committee about the report. He says that the coordination among the agencies is “excellent,” but they’re challenged by a lack of resources.

“The RCMP is integral to our solution in the future. Our staff team is meeting with the RCMP even now talking about how we can ameliorate some of the challenges that we’ve identified in the report,” he said.

The report calls for increased education and enforcement on public safety issues, more regular beach patrols, trail improvements, improved signage, security lighting, more frequent log clean ups and increased fire prevention efforts.

The regional district is expected to implement these solutions in the spring in advance of what they expect will be a busy summer season at Wreck Beach.